#nobody understands my niche…. j | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

phoneybeatlemania-bit-the-dust · 3 years

Note

do you have any theories about the india trip ?? personally, im not sure what to think about it, but i’d love to hear your thoughts !!

(Sorry its taken me so long to answer this - it just got lost in my drafts cause im an idiot lmao 🤦‍♀️)

Im not entirely certain on what I believe happened in India, if in fact anything did happen at all - but more on that later! I guess though that these are the main theories (though if you have any differing opinions/theories, feel free to discuss them!):

1. Paul rejected John’s advancements

2. John wanted to further their relationship, and Paul wanted to maintain the ‘friends with benefits’ situation they already had

3. Nothing significant happened between the two (yet something still changed in John)

I’ll try to discuss which theories I find the most convincing, compelling and substantiated - as well as offering my own opinions and hypothesis’s ^^ (discussion bellow the cut)

1. Paul rejected John’s advancements

The theory I would say im most drawn to - not the theory that im necessarily most convinced by though - is that John made a move on Paul, after a few years of pining for him, and was subsequently rejected. Its a theory that I tend to be compelled by, but I have to admit that its one I struggle to justify entirely. The problem with this theory, for me, is that this is a conclusion ive drawn based mostly off of what their relationship appeared to look like after India. It seems as though something must have happened between them to have ruptured their relationship as profoundly as it did - and because they were on relatively good terms before India*, combined with certain inferences we could draw from comments John made regarding his feelings towards Paul and their relationship, it feels as though it’s possible that he made an advance on Paul, which was rejected and thus caused the ultimate disintegration of the Lennon/McCartney relationship.

(*I mean, their relationship was always complicated and difficult - but it seems that it was okay-ish prior to India, and then just inexplicably plummeted after the trip)

But nobody (as far as im aware) has confirmed, or even really alluded to, this advancement or rejection ever having happened. And the lack of evidence substantiating the claim is a major draw back for me!

However, I do also feel as though nobody’s really come out about anything that happened in India - all ive heard is that they meditated, wrote songs, John and Cyn fought, and Ringo ate baked beans. But like, more must have happened on the trip, surely? Im not saying the absence of information regarding the trip is proof that there was a big “lovers quarrel” between John and Paul, and that everyone involved in that trip is now just sworn to secrecy or something - but like, id just like to see a biographer really investigate the holiday, and try to conclude what events might have occurred during the trip, because as of right now, with the information we have, it seems to have been, bizarrely, both a lacklustre and uneventful, yet still hugely impactful event. If the narrative of the “India trip” were to be shifted in the future in light of new information, the same way the narrative of “Let It Be/Get Back” is being changed, I wouldn’t be surprised!

2. John wanted more, but Paul didn’t

Another popular theory is that John and Paul were engaged in something of a physical affair, but in India John proposed (or perhaps demanded even) that they take their relationship further, and Paul just wasn’t compelled to do so.

Beliefs vary regarding this, based on how far you personally think their relationship went: some might say they only ever did a little drunken experimenting with one another, and that it was just a fun fling until John suggested they take it further. Others might argue that they were in fact in a committed relationship, and John wanted to go public with it - or at the very least, demanded exclusivity between him and Paul.

In entertaining this theory, im most compelled to believe that John and Paul were engaged in occasional “flings”, and perhaps by ‘68 were even acknowledging that there was some deeper and more sincere between them - but ultimately, I don’t think Paul would have ever been inclined to fully commit to John, because I think he always wanted children and a family. In addition to this, though its clear John and Paul were passionate about one another, it isn’t clear how compatible they were in the long term - and with Paul being the more grounded of the too, I suspect he would have recognised this incompatibility, which John (the idealist) might not have.

Though I admit that John could certainly be unrealistic and irrational, im not convinced that he suggested to Paul they go public with their relationship, because I think John still had a fairly strong sense of his place in popular culture, and would have still been able to recognise that if they were to “come out”, it would probably deeply and irreparably damage both their careers - as well as George and Ringo’s too - at least amongst the general public. They’d still have some ardent fans, but their following overall would have become far more niche, and the “beatlemania” would’ve worn off swiftly. Im not sure if either of them would’ve been willing to take that heat in ‘68, especially not Paul, who as I mentioned earlier, I think might have recognised the futility and incompatibility inherent in their relationship.

Then again though, John was always a little “cocky”* when it came to his sexuality - I think if an interviewer were to genuinely have enquired into his sexuality, straight up asking him “Are you bi? Gay?” I get the sense that he would have told us! Sure he’d probably have dressed the response up with a dozen quick quips and jokes, but ultimately, I think he would have given a sincere response. And so, perhaps he did feel he had the confidence, at least in India, to actually “come out”, but if Paul wasn’t willing to make this official with him, perhaps this confidence dissipated.

(*No pun intended you pervs🤦‍♂️)

Another thing to note about India is that they’d have been relatively secluded, as well as off the drugs/drinks for the most part - and this would have forced them to really reflect upon their relationship. Perhaps John saw that he wasn’t contented with Cynthia, and recognised his desire for more from Paul - and so in such a raw state of mind, I can see how he’d become so shattered if Paul were to have rejected him (that statement could relate both to the first and second theory, I feel). Perhaps John made an advance upon Paul whilst they were both sober for the first time, and that changed their relationship somehow? Just thinking out loud here!

But again, this theory overall has the same problem as the first in that, though it appears to make sense, it still lacks proof; it ultimately isn’t a substantiated claim.

3. Nothing happened between J&P, but something changed

This is probably the theory that everybody is least interested in hearing, but I still think its a pretty valid one, albeit the least dramatic (In my opinion though its still a really interesting perspective to explore though!).

Its possible that nothing of particular significance happened in India, but something still shifted in John, causing him to vilify and reject Paul. The issue with this though, is that it begs the question: why did John undergo such a significant change in India then?

Id argue that perhaps John was making very subtle and slight moves towards Paul, that Paul either ignored or didn't pick up on. Id assume that perhaps John had been hinting at this desire for awhile now, and maybe he got it into his head that in India, where him and Paul would have a lot of time to be alone and intimate, his feelings would finally be reciprocated. But then, Paul never picked up on these hints, and never made any advancements - and this broke something within John. It would fit neatly within the Yoko narrative, because it offers reasoning to the abrupt but intense attachment John formed towards her almost immediately after India - as well as explaining the sudden vilification of Paul. But I suppose that the first two theories also fit pretty neatly within the Yoko narrative, because they all relate to the same basic concept that John wanted more from Paul, and Paul didn’t - and so he tried to replace him with Yoko.

I suppose though, that the this theory overall could also be countered by making the argument that Paul also began to spiral after India, and so some occurrence presumably must have happened to Paul too. I wonder though if its possible that maybe Pauls spiralling was kind of a result of Johns? I get the sense though that Paul would need a change in his life to cause his mental health to seriously deteriorate, but I don’t feel like the same is necessarily true for John - I think John is sort of the type to spiral, irregardless of whether his life undergoes a significant change or not, because I think John was the force driving a lot of the drama and troubles throughout his lifetime. So if Johns mental well-being started seriously deteriorating, I can see this being a cause of panic and anxiety for Paul.

But something that further inclines me to believe that an actual event occurred between John and Paul is this extract from Geoff Emmericks memoir (x)(id recommend reading the entire extract, its interesting!):

‘I glanced in Paul’s direction. He was staring straight ahead, expressionless and weary. He didn’t have much to say about India that day, or any other. I sensed at that moment that something fundamental in them had changed.”’

It just really feels as though there was some confrontation between John and Paul that had to have happened to perpetuate the miscommunication later seen between them. Like if there hadn’t been some kind of confrontation, then I can’t really understand why Paul would be reluctant to speak about India, or harbour any regrets or dismay regarding the journey. Perhaps you could drill it down to the betrayal they appeared to have felt by Maharishi allegedly hitting on girls - but I feel like this was a “betrayal” mostly felt by John, I never really got the sense that Paul was deeply effected by it.

But yeah - those are the main theories I think.

Overall, I think that the third theory is probably the most substantiated claim, but I think it leaves a lot to desired. It just doesn’t feel like it totally fits together, as though theres more to the story - but I guess relationships and peoples psyches aren’t puzzles, and so not everything is always going to piece together perfectly; but I dunno.

Like I said though, the theory im most compelled by is the first. I acknowledge that it lacks evidence, but it just seems to make a lot of sense to me! But really, who knows what the hell happened in India?

If anyone else has an opinion on all this, or wants to expand upon or even suggest a new theory, feel free to! I always like hearing from you guys!

#mclennon #asks #@cinnamontoastandtears #thanks for the ask!#india #what the fuck happened in india #maharishi #pauls sexuality #discussion

71 notes · View notes

marshmallowprotection · 3 years

Note

Hey! I’m only now looking at the mysmes fandom after playing the game since 2017, and your matches look interesting so I was hoping I could get one? Thank you so much!

I’m feminine presenting and use any pronouns, 5’4”, INTP/J, 5w4, and bi. I’m not currently in college because of covid but when I have the means I hope to study history and possibly German as a foreign language before going into law. I’m decently well rounded with a history of stem classes, linguistic interests, and spurts of science obsessions (particularly psych and types of medicine). I’m a bit of a high achiever academically, getting the highest score possible on every AP test I’ve taken, but I do criticize the system more than I probably should. I’ve been taking various music lessons since I was 6, but I’ve more recently settled on playing the double bass as my main instrument. My music taste ranges anywhere from obscure folk punk to whatever viral tiktok song I have stuck in my head. I read so much that I ran out of room in my bookshelves, so they line almost every piece of furniture in my room. I also really enjoy writing, so wherever I am tends to become a minefield of pens and pencils from whenever inspiration struck.

I tend to be very open to new ideas if I think they have merit, but if someone’s sporting harmful nonsense I’ll shut them down as quickly as possible. I enjoy joking around with my friends, but if I have a bit of a reputation for turning on a dime if things turn to be genuinely rude. If someone loses my trust, it’s very hard to gain it back, and sometimes I burn bridges that might not have had to be through doing that. I care for my friends and family very deeply, and become fiercely protective over them because of that. I don’t usually tell them how much I love them through words, but I do help them with anything they need and spend as much time with them as I can.

I match you with...

Jumin!

You're the kind of person that is very passionate about your interests. You can be really critical when you're invested in something and sometimes you feel like your voice is a little bit too crass. Passion is just really important and you take that very seriously. Conversation is an important thing for you. You're also very particular about the way that you line things up. Because of that you're looking for someone that's a very methodical and forthcoming in their own right. There's nothing wrong with being someone that likes to stick to their own structure and follow the beat of Their Own Drum. You know what you're invested in and a lot of people cannot say that.

That's why it just seems to be a given that Jumin makes sense. He's the kind of person that would sit with you and talk for hours about anything that you can think about. He loves being able to get lost in debate and discussion and it seems like he would be able to help you keep a level head and explore those things. It doesn't matter how niche you think something is, he probably knows something about it. He's got his own Oddball habits that people never expect. So it's going to be interesting to see the two of you interact because you finally found someone that listens to your voice and isn't afraid to ask questions about things that they may not understand.

That being said, you're both very protective people. You're very empathetic to those that you keep in your circle and because of that it's important that your loved ones are taken care of. It doesn't matter the cost or the risk. You both put everyone first. It's only a given that selfless people find each other. The two of you don't need words to express your emotions. You just need to be able to look at each other to know what the other is thinking. It's like you seem to gravitate on the same energy field that nobody else seems to see.

#mod kait #mystic messenger #ask #anon #matchup

5 notes · View notes

jaybug-jabbers · 4 years

Text

All-Glitch Pokemon Blue Run Pt1: An Introduction

The following is an archive of a series of e-mails exchanged between ‘[email protected]’ and ‘[email protected].’

Please keep this information classified.

6/10/97 10:00am

Greetings!

I am a news reporter with the Butterfree Bugle. I received a tip about a young lady who was found unconscious just outside the town limits of Pallet Town. She reportedly wandered out there in pursuit of "a strange noise."

I am currently attempting to contact this individual so that I might interview them for further details. I would greatly appreciate any help you could offer in tracking her down. The safety of the residents of Pallet Town are my top priority. Such news could serve to alert others to any potential problems or threats in the area.

I thank you in advance for your assistance,

-W. G., Butterfree Bugle

---

6/11/97 7:22pm

Butterfree Bugle Reporter,

I think I may be able to help you locate this person. Do you work at the local office in Pewter City? Did you plan on conducting interviews there? It's odd, but I can't seem to find any W.G.'s listed on your website.

-J

---

6/11/97 9:08pm

Yes, I am a recent hire, and our website has not been updated in some time, unfortunately. I do apologize for that.

I'm actually stationed quite a distance from Pewter, so I was hoping to conduct the interview over the phone or even online.

I am quite pleased to hear that you can assist me! You do live in Pallet Town, then? Did you know this young woman personally? Perhaps you could provide an address or phone number for me. This would help enormously.

Thank you greatly,

W.G.

---

6/12/97 11:31am

Butterfree Bugle Reporter,

To be honest, I do want to help you, but I have some concerns. There's plenty of scams going around online. I kind of need you to provide me some credentials or something. I hope you understand.

-J

---

6/12/97 1:06pm

I understand perfectly. You are wise to take such precautions.

Please see the attached file with my work ID. I trust this will be sufficient.

-W.G.

---

6/13/97 12:14pm

"Butterfree Bugle Reporter",

I just got off the phone with the Butterfree Bugle. Spent an hour talking to them. They've never heard of you. I also described the "work ID" you sent me. It's nothing like what they use for their employees.

Buzz off, creep.

-J

---

6/13/97 11:44pm

All right. Let me start again. I beg of you to read this before you block my address.

I apologize for the subterfuge. The fact is I must be extremely cautious in my line of work, and that sometimes requires a cover story. I can't very well e-mail half the country while spreading my name and purpose around.

However, I strongly suspect you are the very person I have been attempting to locate. So I will reveal to you the truth. I can only hope that you are cautious about what you do with this knowledge.

My name is William Ginkgo. I am a pokemon professor located in Cinnabar. My specialty focuses on very . . . unusual pokemon.

Look, I heard from an old contact about something strange occuring in Pallet Town. I have very good reason to believe that I could provide at least a partial explanation for who or what you encountered out there. I'm willing to wager that nobody else has been listening to you about it.

Let me help.

-Professor Ginkgo

---

6/14/97 2:52pm

Professor Ginkgo,

Okay. I'll bite.

You want to hear my story, I'll tell you. But you may be disappointed. There really isn't much to tell.

It was late, like 9ish or something, the sun was about to set. I was outside with my Caterpie and my Kakuna, practicing moves. We were just in the grass right outside of town. Sometimes in the evenings I hear weird sounds coming from the distance. Like a cry of some sort, but strange . . . distorted. Almost sounds like something between a human and an animal-- I can never really tell which it is. My friends can never hear it, they tell me I'm nuts, but I know it's there. Also, sometimes I think I can see stuff moving out of the corner of my eye? But when I turn to look it disappears.

Well, the mystery had been bugging me for ages, and I was getting tired of my friends telling me I was crazy. And that night, I heard it again. It seemed to be coming from the field just past the fence. Actually, that often seems to be where the sound's coming from.

I don't know if you've been to Pallet Town before, but there's this tall, decorative fence that goes around most of the perimeter of the town, and a big abandoned field just past it. Nothing really out there but grass, but whenever we were young and we tried to climb the fence our parents yelled at us. Nobody was ever allowed to climb it, and we were told not go out there in the field. I guess it's private property or whatever. I'm honestly not sure. But I never see anyone out there. It's practically taboo around here to even joke about going out there.

It really wouldn't even have occurred to me to break that rule, if it hadn't been for the weird noises. I spent a while perched on top of the fence, listening, and waiting to see if anybody would come by. Nobody did, so I hopped down on the other side and made my way over to the grass.

Everything was fine and normal at first, but as I got closer, I started feeling a little lightheaded, and the sounds seemed to be growing louder and higher-pitched. Almost as if I could hear them inside my head. And then I reached the grass, and my vision went blurry and started to black out. I thought for a second that I saw . . . something. I'm not sure what. It's kind of jumbled in my mind.

Then I guess I passed out, because the next thing I remember is waking up at home in my bed. My parents were there, really worried. They said somebody spotted me as they were walking by, unconscious on the ground.

And that's about it.

You're a pokemon professor, so maybe you have some idea of what's hiding out there. Is it dangerous? My friends and family still tell me I'm imagining things.

-June

---

6/14/97 6:12pm

Dear June,

Thank you for sharing your story.

I do not believe that you are simply imagining things. In fact, what you are describing is a phenomenon that has occured before. Typically it occurs when people wander too far outside a town or city limits. It does not always happen, of course, but there are certain locations . . . that seem to attract the phenomenon.

As to what's hiding out there, I may have some idea. I would like to ask: have you ever heard of glitch pokemon?

-Ginkgo

---

6/14/97 8:04pm

Uhh. What? Glitch pokemon?

---

6/15/97 1:45am

Dear June,

Allow me to give you a proper introduction and explanation.

As I said, I am Professor Ginkgo. I have a small lab on Cinnabar Island. To be more precise, there are a series of labs on Cinnabar Island housed under the same roof, and I rent a small space there.

I actually grew up in Viridian City and attended the same school as the pokemon professor in your town-- Professor Oak. We were once colleagues, in fact, along with our little circle of friends.

They were all so welcoming at first, and so supportive. We all helped each other and were quite close. Encouraged each other, learned from each other. I watched Oak get his research off the ground, uniting his interest in psychology and pokemon and developing his innovative Pokedex. I collaborated with Elm on some of his studies with pokemon breeding. I even had some of my work published in some very prestigious academic journals.

That all started to change once I started to progress further into my own research interests. Back then, I was studying Ghost-type pokemon. So much is still unknown about them. In particular, I had been investigating reports of a ghost that the Silph Scope had been unable to identify. It took many months, but eventually I encountered this creature myself. And what I experienced . . . I could not quite explain. During my struggles to understand, I uncovered some very obscure papers published in a very niche journal: they were about glitch pokemon.

The article's authors theorized about the existence of these creatures. Creatures with extraordinary features and powers, unlike anything we've ever seen before. Their underlying theory was that our world, and our very universe, can have certain points where the very fabric of reality is weakened, or . . . distorted. The very laws of nature can bend or even break at these points. And somehow, glitch pokemon can immerge from these points.

I realize this sounds remarkable and perhaps even unbelieveable. Yet the descriptions in these old papers aligned so well with my own observations and experiences. The more I pursued it, the more I learned, and the more I realized I was onto something big. Enormous. And incredibly important.

Unfortunately, my colleagues were not quite so open-minded. Even when I confronted them with the direct evidence that I had collected, they scoffed at my ideas and dismissed them as mere drivel. Crackpot theories and superstition, they told me. Journals refused to publish my work. Colleagues stopped collaborating with me. I was eventually ostracized by the entire academic community.

In my desperation I contacted the authors of the original articles I had found. It took time, but eventually I tracked them down. And here, in Cinnabar, I found a few scientists quietly studying glitch pokemon. It is here I have settled and devoted myself to my life's work.

I apologize for giving you such a lengthy personal history, but I thought it prudent to explain precisely where I'm coming from. It is important that you understand I am not just some quack or charlatan. I can tell you with certainty that glitch pokemon are very real and very incredible creatures. Just as Ghost type pokemon were once thought to be silly superstitious drivel, but were later revealed to be very real lifeforms that we could observe and capture-- thanks to the Silph Scope-- we are on the verge of another scientific epiphany.

However, we must also be very cautious. Over my years of study I have come to learn just how powerful glitch pokemon can be. They have the potential for a great deal of danger, as well, if mishandled. In the wrong hands, this could be devastating. This is why I must take so many precautions. It is also why my research is so crucial. We must come to understand these powerful creatures if we are to safely co-exist with them.

June, I believe you may be able to help me with my research. I don't wish to overwhelm you, but you spoke of frequently hearing strange sounds and seeing things you could not explain; things that nobody else seemed to notice. One of the things I have learned in my work is that not everyone seems to perceive glitch pokemon. It appears that only a select few are capable . . . or are willing. I am still uncertain as to why this is, but I suspect part of the reason is that glitch pokemon are usually very shy, ellusive creatures. It could be that something about you draws these pokemon to you, and makes them more willing to reveal themselves. In any case, the fact that you notice them at all is highly noteworthy.

I'd like you to mull it over. You could contribute to some very important and meaningful work. And the fact of the matter is I am in desperate need of a field assistant. I may not have the popularity nor the generous funding of your local Professor Oak, but I can promise you the research will be exciting and interesting.

Let me know what you think.

-Professor Ginkgo

---

6/15/97 4:38pm

Professor Ginkgo,

Are you sure you want me? I'm literally just a Bug Catcher. I don't have any aspirations to beat all the gyms or become the very best at anything, like the other kids do. I just like spending time with my bug pokemon and maybe having a few battles for fun. Honestly, I don't have much to do this summer and this whole glitch pokemon thing sounds really crazy but also . . . kinda cool? But I figured I should warn you. I'm not exactly a model pokemon trainer.

---

6/15/97 5:19pm

June,

That shouldn't be a problem. Because of the need to be discrete about our research, I actually would actively discourage you from seeking out many battles for recreational purposes. It's best to keep a low profile.

Of course, I still would provide you with a pokemon to accomapy you during field research. It's simply a necessity in this modern day for anybody going out and about-- for guarding against unruly wild pokemon, for subduing potential research subjects for capture, for protection against any ruffians that may try to pull a Rattata out and try to mug you, etc.

In addition to the sheer practicality, though, I think it would present the perfect opportunity for you to start learning about and bonding with glitch pokemon right away. There's no better way to learn about something except first-hand, after all. It would be a formal part of your research to travel with such a companion.

-Professor Ginkgo

---

6/15/97 8:06pm

Wait, you're gonna give me a glitch pokemon? Really??

---

6/15/97 8:31pm

Of course, if you decide to assist me. I would also loan you a pokedex, of sorts-- one modified for my own purposes. You should find it an invaluable tool on your journey.

Would this be agreeable to you?

-Professor Ginkgo

---

6/15/97 10:00pm

To heck with it. I'm in.

-Junebug

---

End Notes

This series will follow my playthrough of Pokemon Blue using a team of only glitch pokemon. Throughout my journey I will explore and play around with a lot of other glitches in the game, too. I will not be using any sort of cheating device; these will be strictly natural glitches.

These end notes will list the specific glitches I use in each post. Obviously I’m mixing in a little lore and fiction to spice things up in these posts, but I believe the end notes should clarify exactly what’s going on. I hope you all enjoy the adventure with me!

Click For the Next Part of the Series!

This is a repost on a new blog. The original post was on Nov 20, 2019.

#pokemon #mycontent #glitch run #this is a work of fiction but #all the glitches will be very real #I will never use a cheating device #glitch pokemon #pokemon glitching #pokemon playthroughs

1 note · View note

leigh-kelly · 5 years

Text

Showmance Transcript 6/6/19 Part 3: HEYA

K: Do you remember, I think it was during the pilot. We had lunch one day because we didn’t really have any scenes together. N: Yeah. K: And then my dad told me— N: Yes. K: My dad randomly—my dad was living with me at the time and he says ‘I met this girl who says she just—’ He was a car salesman at the time. ‘and he was selling this young girl a car, she came in with her mother—’ N: Dad. K: ‘And she said she booked a pilot called Glee’ and he was like ‘oh my son’s on that you should talk to her, she seemed very nice, she was beautiful.’ I’m like ‘okay, I’ll find her’ N: I’ll find her. H: And there were all these people. K: And he was like ‘I don’t know, she’s playing some character’ and I think he got the name wrong and I looked for you on the call sheet and I was like— N: Wasn’t there, babe. K: Yeah, yeah. I was like, he’s got it wrong or maybe she made it up like, she may be crazy. J: Yes! K: And then I eventually figured out it was you and then we were at catering one day and I was like ‘hey, I think you met my dad—’ N: Yes. K: Buying a car and then we’ve been best friends ever since. J: Is this when you bought the red Range Rover? N: No. Well, I never actually bought a car from Kevin’s dad. K: No, you wanted a G-wagon. N: Cause he was working in Valencia and I had actually met him before and he was talking to me about how his son was an actor too and he used to be in a group called NLT. K: Oh no. N: And I was like ‘okay, well I’ve met him a few times’ H: What a small world. N: I’ve gone window shopping a lot of times with your dad. K: Yeah. H: How funny. K: I love that. And then we like, sat down and had lunch together. N: Yeah. K: I was like oh, yeah, she’s cool. N: And we owe it all to your dad. K: Yeah, my dad. H: So this is the original showmance here. N: And you were like right around the corner from where your dad used to work, right? K: Yeah, it’s true. Yeah, he worked in a lot of places. N: Hey, dad. K: Isn’t that weird? J: He worked at the one over here by Podcast One. K: He worked over here, he worked at Valencia, he worked in Beverly Hills. J: Oh, Mr. McHale. K: Yeah, that’s right. I forgot about that. N: He keeps it moving. K: Yeah. Yeah. What were your guys’ first impressions of us? N: You know, you guys were, you know, regulars. H: I love how you just said that. N: I mean, regulars. H: No, it’s true. N: We were like, how do we infiltrate and say hello? H: You were like the untouchables for a while, you know what I mean? N: We were like, that’s who has the show. H: How can we get there? N: It’s their show. J: Oh my God! H: We were these characters the whole time, we just sat there like Beevis and Butthead. N: You guys were doing the first time we saw you, you were doing Don’t Stop Believing. K: Yeah. J: Oh, that’s right. N: Like the big number. And so we were like, oh my God, look. H: Yeah, we were kind of outsiders at that point. N: Yeah. H: I feel like. N: And then everybody like came up and introduced themselves and we were like ‘okay.’ H: See, I don’t even remember this. I think I was so excited and so amped at this point, I don’t even remember this day. N: The Don’t Stop Believing day? H: No. N: I do. K: I don’t remember meeting you guys in that setting but I remember shooting that obviously. J: Well that was a really long two days. Um. No, it took two days, and I think we did Don’t Stop seventy-five times. K: Yeah. H: I’m sure you did. J: I am not kidding. H: I’ve worked on a lot of shows lately that are not used to working in musicals and stuff like that and the amount of shoots you do in those productions that don’t understand that is just obscene, like it’s just thousands and thousands of times are you’re like ‘okay, if this was Glee we would be done in like, an hour.’ J, K & N: Yeah, yeah. K: That’s why Don’t Stop Believing took forever, because it was the first thing— N: The first thing. K: Nobody knew how to do it. H: Yeah. And then by season six, everybody—it took an hour to do one shot. N: Now that we’re professionals. K: Like music videos, sure, we can do that in our sleep. N: Yeah, I got it, quick eight count. K: Five, six, seven, eight. J: I met HeMo watching her on Good Day America dancing with Beyonce. I watched her. H: You watched me? J: They were like ‘you’re gonna meet this girl, she’s gonna teach you Single Ladies.’ That’s what I remember. H: Yeah. J: I remember you were really quiet but you were in this cool American Apparel onesie and you were teaching Chris Single Ladies and they were like ‘oh, I think Tina is going to be in this too, we gotta push her.’ I was like ‘goddamnit yes.’ N: So good. K: I remember when Heather showed up— N: Beyonce dancer. J: To teach. K: To teach— H: To teach the group. K: And I was like pissed that I couldn’t learn it. I was like ‘I already know part of it.’ I know some of it, but then I learned that you were like, a real dancer for Beyonce— H: Yeah. K: And I was like, ‘I’m never dancing in front of her ever again.’ I was in the back of the room, like, trying to like follow along. H: That was my favorite part of you, coming in and wanting to learn the dancers and being like, super eager. K: Yeah, cause I mean— J: Yeah, cause he was sitting a long time. H: Right. N: I know, let the boy stand. H: Let the boy stand. K: Wait, do you guys remember when the actual Brittany character was created? When you made it up in the back of the choir room? H: I do, yes. N: When? J: What? H: I remember this. K: You had a version of Brittany— H: Yeah. K: That was like, she was very confident, but just, not the brightest. And you had been doing it for us— H: I was doing it for you guys. K: --between takes. And it was so good and one day Ryan walked in and we’re like— H: Cause, that’s yeah. K: Ryan, I feel like it was Amber or something where somebody made Ryan sit down like ‘you have to watch this.’ N: Yeah. H: When he would come in every once in awhile and he would be like ‘entertain me.’ J: *Imitating Ryan* How’s it going you guys? K: *Imitating Ryan* How’s it going? We’d be like ‘Ryan, you have to watch what she’s doing! She’s hilarious!’ N: Like we were kids. K: He was like ‘oh, lemme see’ and you did it and the very next scene was a scene we were shooting, it was you, Jane and Naya like, doing some Cheerios scene in Jane’s office. H: Uh huh. N: Oh, I remember that one. K: And then the next day you told us he had you, he was like, throwing you lines to do as that character and you became the full fledged— N: He was literally feeding you lines. H: And he was like ‘okay, now do it a little dumber.’ K: And then you became Brittany. N: Brittany S. Pierce. Britney Spears. K: And I like how that’s possible for people. N: Very cool. K: At like, this gigantic, crazy ass machine that it was and an expensive show to put on, you could still have flexibility to— H: Right. J: Right. K: Like, oh, she’s funny, let’s just try this out. H: Right, right, right. K: I guess when you’re Ryan you can get away with doing those things. H: Do anything. I just love how he took from the fans like a lot our storyline specifically. N: Yeah. H: Where he really listened to them and he like, took their love for us loving each other and just made it into something huge. N: I mean, getting married. H: Getting married. N: Being a lesbian. H: Being a lesbian. One of the first lesbian marriages on national television. N: Wow. K: How did you feel, finding out that your characters were lesbians? N: We had no idea, and you know, we just go with the flow. We came back from, like, summer vacation and then Brad just passed me in the hallway and was like ‘yeah, no, by the way, she’s a lesbian now.’ And walked away, I was like— H: Just nonchalantly. J: Was it like, one of those Jacob Ben Israel catchups? Was that how we found out you guys fell in love or something like that over the summer? Remember those recaps. N: There was that phone call thing, right? K: Yes. H: I don’t remember. N: There was like, something about love and if that were true Brittany and I would be dating. H: Yeah, cause I remember the scene where you like, tell me you love me and you’re like ‘yeah, but you don’t say it back’ or something like that, ‘you didn’t say you love me back’ and I was like ‘of course I said I love you.’ N: And they’re like ‘let’s keep writing. Let’s see where this goes.’ J: I don’t remember any of this show, you guys. H: It’s hard, there’s so many moments. N: It’s on Netflix, Jenna. You can watch it now. J: It’s under gay TV. N: No way! J: If you search the category. K: That’s right. H: Oh really? K: My favorite category. N: Stop, that’s the funniest thing. Is it really under gay TV? J: Yes! Go look! N: Awwww. J: I’m gonna send you a video when I get home. H: Netflix! K: How do you search gay TV? How do you find that out? J: I just flip through categories because sometimes I’m like ‘I don’t know what kind of movie I want to watch’ right now, or TV show. So I’ll go through, like, crime, or like for Jenna, or because you watched and then it was like ‘gay TV’ and it was right underneath! H: Gay TV! J: Glee! And I was like ‘yeah, that’s about right.’ K: Yeah! N: That’s hilarious. H: Very well summed up. N: Not even musicals? J: No, they are under musicals too, cause I pass that category. K: It’s all the very niche categories. It’s like, gay, musical, that’s redundant.

#brittana #heather morris #naya rivera #jenna ushkowitz #kevin mchale

117 notes · View notes

queen-susans-revenge · 5 years

Text

I don’t have time to do it right now but one of these days I really need to write down everything I learned from alt.tarot back in the day Some of it is about tarot but more of it is about how to fight with people on the Internet. I was reminded re-reading the Dickwolf Discourse and how Mike’s hard-won lesson from that is that he could have Just Stopped much earlier. Just Stopping is a great skill that I learned through many bruising fights on Usenet and specifically alt.tarot. See, most people who think they are Knowledgeable About Tarot in fact are Jon Snows to the subject: they know nothing. The received wisdom on tarot is complete garbage; you can easily spend years and read dozens of published books and come away believing things like “tarot was invented by gypsies and contains secret wisdom smuggled out from the fall of the Library of Alexandria.” Insert Luke Skywalker gif: every part of that is wrong. Playing cards were actually invented by the Chinese, reached Europe around 1360, and in the middle of the fifteenth century Italian nobles started using tarot decks to play a trick-taking game resembling bridge. The so-called Major Arcana, or trump cards, were mostly drawn from Petrarch’s poem I Trionfi which translates to “The Triumphs” (triumph=trump). I Trionfi was enormously popular, especially in Italy, and you see imagery from it everywhere during the time period and all kinds of card decks using it. (Looks down at wall of text I have just produced. Whelp. Time for a read-more!)

So almost nobody knows this basic fact, that the structure of the Major Arcana and a lot of the imagery on the cards comes from Petrarch originally. Instead they spend years reading dumb newage books that all regurgitate the same content, like, “Death doesn’t mean death, it means change.” To Petrarch, and to the Renaissance Italians, and to the likes of Waite and Crowley, Death literally meant death. Now they all believed that there were things like Christian faith that could triumph over/trump even death: Petrarch’s poem is structured like a Roman triumphal parade except with metaphysical forces involved, so like the great conquering emperor is brought low by the power of love, and the lovers in turn are brought low by the power of chastity, and the chaste in turn are brought low by the power of death, but death is conquered by fame, and fame is conquered by time, and time is conquered by the eternal Kingdom of God. This is the basic procession that you see in the trump cards. And yes this does mean that tarot was also explicitly Christian, from the beginning, and remained so even as the robes-and-wands set started appropriating Jewish kabbalah and mapping tarot onto it. That happened in the eighteenth century, in France. The two dudes responsible are Antoine Court de Gébelin and M. le Comte de Mellet, two more names that most people who think they know a lot about tarot will never have heard of. The line goes from them through Eliphas Levi, Papus, Wirth, those guys, through to Waite and then Crowley. Now all these dudes were occultists, and occult means clandestine, hidden, secret, so as you might expect they were not at all good at clearly explicating their beliefs. Back on alt.tarot I used to use a Waite quote as my signature: “Superfluities and interpretations notwithstanding, it is directly, or indirectly, out of the recent view, thus tentatively designated, that the consideration of the present thesis emerges as its final term, though out of all knowledge thereof.” (That’s from The Hidden Church of the Holy Graal. It’s all like that.) So, it’s definitely not their fault that most people don’t know about Petrarch and kabbalah and what Crowley really meant when he made such a big goddamn deal about how “Tzaddi is not The Star.” Even when the likes of Crowley or Waite did write books supposedly detailing the meaning of the symbolism of their decks, they threw in lots of misdirection and outright lies “to mislead the uninitiated.” Kabbalah is the key, they’ll tell you, but they won’t tell you that they used it as an athbash--forward and back, just like the Fool’s Journey goes both up and down the Tree of Life; divine power can be called down into Malkuth, the physical world, but one born into Malkuth can also ascend to Kether, unmediated experience of the divine. (So The Star is both Tzaddi and Heh.) Anyway, if you can’t trust the newage books and you can’t trust the occult books, are there any good books on tarot? Yes, there are two: Gertrude Moakley's groundbreaking (and out of print) book The Tarot Cards Painted by Bonifacio Bembo for the Visconti-Sforza Family: An Iconographic and Historical Study, and the equally groundbreaking and equally out of print Rhapsodies of the Bizarre, a collection of essays by Court de Gébelin and M. le Comte de Mellet, with translation and commentary by J. Karlin, the terror of alt.tarot. Jess Karlin was not his real name. He knew more about tarot than, I gradually came to believe, anyone else in the world. He was a jerk, and proud of being a jerk: Thelema is a religion of war, he said, and he came not to affirm but to destroy. He was my teacher, and he taught me a lot, and I tried to repay him both with money and by acknowledging the debt whenever the subject comes up, like now. One of the things he taught me was how to learn from someone who is giving you an actual answer but insulting you while they do it. (Try ignoring the insult and saying thank you, for the answer. They may have more to teach.) I say Karlin knew more than anyone else in the world because the academics after Moakley were disappointing; the field became dominated by playing card historian Michael Dummett, who was so invested in debunking the occultists that he really doubled down on trying to argue that no link between tarot and fortune-telling existed before the French guys came along. Which is stupid, because the links between games of chance and systems of divination have always been super tight--Fate and Luck are the same damn bitch. And you can find (and Karlin did find) very early references to witchcraft performed with playing cards. So because the playing card historians would have nothing to do with the occultists, and Karlin was doing these serious deep dives into formerly-untranslated eighteenth century French occult texts and even earlier stuff, he ended up understanding the iconography and symbolism of tarot way better than the people like Dummett who were much too serious to touch the occult traditions. That was another thing Karlin taught me: that academic consensus can sometimes be just as wrong as newage gobbledegook, and it really is possible, when you start doing deep dives into niche subjects, to outstrip the experts. Sometimes it’s not just possible but frighteningly easy. Anyway, he knew a ton--and he knew it in a field where the vast majority of people think they understand the material, but are very wrong. I think this had the effect of making him quite crabby. Some people came to alt.tarot saying they wanted to learn tarot; and those people, J. Karlin was willing to teach, although he might yell at them some for believing stupid things, if they did. And they probably did--I remember being twenty-one, a shiny new-minted college graduate, proud of my A in an undergraduate Quantum Mechanics For Non Physics Majors class, trying out some “maybe fortunetelling is a quantum effect” angle and getting my ass handed to me, deservedly so. But many, many more people came to alt.tarot back in the day thinking they already knew tarot. And they very much did not want to be corrected. They just thought the cards looked cool and they were perfectly content with their own “I’ll just intuit what I think the cards mean” approach to tarot. And to those people, Karlin was a relentless asshole. Because the symbols did in fact have an original meaning, and it is possible to trace the evolution of the iconography through time, and in fact all those centuries of artists and writers and...I dunno, warlocks and whatnot...working on the cards has created a much, much, much deeper and richer symbolic framework than what most people can make up off the tops of their heads just by looking at a random image from The Tarot of the Cat People or whatever. So that was maybe the first important thing he taught me: there is a truth. Even in symbolic matters, even in stuff that was all “just made up” at some point, it is possible to distinguish what’s important and true from what’s just people spouting off the tops of their dumb heads. And fourth or fifth was that if you argue with someone long enough and you find yourself getting boxed into a corner, fighting desperately to support propositions you’re not even quite sure how you ended up needing to defend, you can just...stop. Usually that’s the cleanest and clearest path. Karlin would not let people save face and he would not let them have the last word: if they were wrong, they’d either have to admit it, or they’d have to flounce off to another Usenet group, orrrr...they’d have to learn how to fucking shut up. It’s a good skill to have. I learned it in alt.tarot, being wrong a lot. I had many fights with Jess Karlin on alt.tarot. But to my knowledge I was the only one from that group that he offered to formally initiate into Thelema. If I have siblings in this lineage I don’t know them; and I never considered myself a Thelemite, even after the initiation. But I have tried to pass on what he taught me. Crowley wrote that the adept “must teach; but he may make severe the ordeals” and I always sort of thought Karlin was living by that principle. At the same time he liked to point out that it’s not necessary to hide your pearls from swine: they won’t take ‘em no matter how brightly you polish and how neatly you letter the sign, FREE PEARLS OF WISDOM, PLEASE TAKE. My worst fights with J. Karlin were always when I was trying to do something nice for him. I still wince remembering when I tried to give him a copy of Alan Moore’s Promethea; that ended with us not speaking for several years. So if he reads this he’ll probably be mad at me all over again but anyway he eventually started using his real name, Glenn Wright, for his Internet writings instead of the Karlin nym. He hops around websites too fast for me to keep track, but as recently as 2015 he had a blog on Tumblr. Sometimes he offers tarot readings for sale--one card, yes or no question only. I recommend these without question whether you “believe” in tarot or not. (I’ve grown out of my quantum woo days and I don’t now think the cards are anything but a fantastic system for self-reflection). This is super long so I’m gonna stop now. Maybe it’ll do for that “what I learned from alt.tarot” post I always meant to make.

#tarot #stories from alt.tarot

4 notes · View notes

endeavorsreward · 7 years

Text

“Talk to Me About Video Games” reply

I'm going to do one of these, which will show you why nobody wants me answering meme questions. I couldn’t figure out how to edit the formatting when reblogging it because Tumblr is garbage but I got it from this person so you can fill it out also if you want.

2: Company you're always loyal to?

Never be loyal to a company; that's nonsense. A company is a group of people trying to take your money. Be loyal to a creator if they put out work you respect. Be blindly loyal to nobody that you don’t know personally (and even then, honestly, even if you love them, you really shouldn’t).

3: Best game you've ever played?

Haha. See, ‘cause this is a niche blog.

4: Worst game you've ever played?

It’s probably a tie between Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Persona 5, with Persona 5 being just a bit worse; but I’ve got a lot of rage and resentment in my heart for Chrono Cross and Final Fantasy VIII, given that I still get angry about them 20 years later.

There are many games that are worse than these that I have not actively played, but these are all very, very bad.

5: A popular series/game you just can't get into no matter how much you try?

I’ve tried Pokémon multiple times. Not so much because I feel that I’m missing out, per se, just as someone who’s studied RPGs for years professionally and otherwise. I just can’t get into it; I started too late in life, I guess. No shade on people who like this one, I just can’t seem to care.

15: Which two games do you think would make an awesome crossover?

This question is a trick one because they already made the best one:

youtube

19: Which game do you think deserves a revival?

Deserves? Vagrant Story deserves a lush, ground-up remake that restores the cut content, updates the visuals, and keeps everything special about the original. But there is literally nobody who can be trusted with doing it properly that has the access and the funds to do so.

20: What was the first video game you ever played?

It was almost certainly the original Super Mario Bros, which I received just as it came out.

21: How old were you when you first played a video game?

Pretty sure my previous answer covers this one.

23: Biggest disappointment you've had in gaming?

The culture. Runner-up: the industry. J/K, same ouroboros feeds both.

24: Casual, Hardcore, or in the middle?

These distinctions are meaningless and foster divisions in what could ostensibly be a community, driven by corporate marketing and now an endless hungry furnace of misogyny.

I play all kinds of games. I play phone games where you tap a few times and get bored, I play elaborate 300 hour RPGs, I play weird indie adventure games. I don’t put the same level of investment into every game I play. If your criteria might make me a “hardcore” player when I’m all-in on something like Final Fantasy Tactics, how does that track with the casual button-mashing I do in every fighting game I play, of which I own enough? Oh, right, context is irrelevant. Forget I brought it up.

26: Handheld or console?

Or PC. Or cell phone. I hear some guy put Doom on a blender. I own all of these things--except a blender, we broke ours last year and haven’t gotten around to replacing it because we don’t make milkshakes that often. Some games are better suited to different systems, and some games are fun no matter which kind of system you use. I don’t understand this question (or rather, I do, and I’m rolling my eyes).

29: Which is more important, gameplay or story?

Fun fact: In many (but not all) of the best games, these two things are indistinguishable.

Much like with comics, the relationship between “story” and “gameplay” (”writing” and “art” as if you can fucking separate those in a comic, you toads) can operate in juxtaposition and in synthesis and the extent to which a game does either of these things is a creative choice by the team making it. You can disagree with that creative choice, but it doesn’t mean a damned thing about either of those tools in the abstract.

30: A game that hasn't been localized in your country that you think should be localized?

youtube

#Reblogs

4 notes · View notes

dejametemostrar-blog · 6 years

Text

The Sexual Metrosexual Heterosexual

By CJ Stokes

He’s a rap superstar, (a genre most infamously known for its machismo and Mafioso themes), yet he’s wearing nail polish and shorts that would be alarming to even the most liberal parents of a daughter.

He’s also a Pop and Reggaeton superstar. Until you stumble upon his Instagram videos, you wouldn’t notice that he actually has the voice of an opera star as well yet he uses his spotless voice to tell women his filthiest fantasies, i.e. A 200 millas en un jetski, ¡eh! Si tú quieres te lo meto aquí, ¡eh! Debajo del sol, debajo del sol.

Translation: Going 200 MPH on a Jetski, if you want I’ll park it and we can f*** right here! Right under the sun!

I was just chilling all alone in my off campus apartment’s living room, or at least feeling that way due to the disconnect with my roommates when I heard through the twitter grapevine that Latin superstar Bad Bunny would be releasing his debut studio album on the most unexpected music release day of the week, Sunday. Not only would he drop it this day but also Sunday night.

I shouldn’t have expected anything different; as detailed above El Conejito Mal or Bad Bunny is far from predictable and Sunday, a day of reality between myself and it was the perfect day to drop. I can only understand about 35% of Spanish but Bad Bunny made this arguably the best album

.... Image a version of yourself that is truly absent of apprehension due to the judgement of others and relentless in chasing aspirations which make your heart alone pulsate with passion. Or even when life goes awry around your newfound sense of invincibility, you know exactly what to do to bounce back, recover.

.... This is the power of Bad Bunny’s 100XPRE.

.... Just a little after 11 o’clock I had accessed exactly what I was feening for; an escape. The slightly somber chords of perhaps a ukulele or some other miniature guitar were the first sounds to reach my ears. The chords were just as conflicted as I was about many long terms questions within my lifestyle.. Then, I picked apart as many words as I could from Bunny’s first sonic grunts (also with digital translator handy).

.... “Sin ti no me va bien, tampoco me va mal

Pase lo que pase no te voy a llamar

Ya yo me quité, tú nunca me va' a amar

Pa' no pensar en ti tengo que fumar

.... Without you, I'm not doing well, it's not going bad either Whatever happens, I will not call you I already took off, you will never love me To not think about you I have to smoke

.... After that came a rolling Latin Trap bass line which fused with mellow dramatic chords and a reggae percussion. Just like that, within the first four lines of the chorus, Bunny had tapped into this boundless feeling of hopelessness and insecurity when I don’t get what I want or who I want to be more specific. Not only, did he articulate this usually inexplicable feeling but he also had a solution. Yes, I know, not a healthy solution or one that works upon the first dose but he found one nonetheless and a hedonistic solution which suited my philosophy.

Amidst the void of satisfaction, Bunny’s sonics, vocals and instrumental included allowed me to envision a therapeutic, tropical afternoon, in Puerto Rico, (Bunny’s birthplace) where only the beachgoer and the beach can speak with each other. The breeze serves as a moderator or peanut gallery but its simply you and the waves sorting out your mental peace.

In that same introductory song Bunny says that this girl who causes him to smoke to forget her will remember him when she looks in her wallet and she has nothing. She’ll remember him when he puts “it” in her and she feels nothing; when she feels lonely lost in nothingness and she can fix it but she does nothing then he thanks her for nothing.

The vibes that would follow in Bunny’s tracklist are a mixture of his free spirit as well as more vulnerable moments from a man who is a paradox of the stereotype of modern masculinity.

He is humble yet brash; shy but also the catalyst of any conversation.

Take tracks two and three, 200 MPH and Quien Tu Eres? Remember that jet ski I told you about earlier? Bunny brags about how much better at sex he is than any one his jet ski passenger has been with. Quien Tu Eres? Dime socio Quien Tu Eres? They know who I am. I’m Bad Bunny, who are you, loser?!

Yet his high horse is sporadic following those two songs come more heartbreak and regret. He hates the text message “we have to talk” on ‘Tenemos Que Hablar’ and he still wonders what would’ve had happened if this toxic relationship with this woman would have been repaired while they were together on ‘Si Estuvimos Juntos’.

The roller coaster of vulnerable honesty to impenetrable confidence continued as any day on Earth would and Bunny captured each transition perfectly. However, what was most outstanding during this first listen of Bunny’s album was that I was having an epiphany. Bunny’s audacity to be himself was inspiring me to do the same from my own living room.

As I stated before, I can barely understand Spanish without help so much of my first experience was spent enjoying the sonics of the album however, from the fearless lyrics that I did catch. I was imagining a fearless future for myself. I’d chase my dreams and the dream girl. I wouldn’t apologize for my willingness and passion while doing so.

In Bunny’s Complex interview with J Balvin in which they discussed their upcoming projects. Bunny said

“I remember when they used to make fun of me at every studio when I started… I mean when I was a nobody… Because of my pants but to me it was normal. I always liked to wear short pants, really short pants, not the ones used by [Carlos Vives’] Not shorts that reach your ankles. To me those were shorts that were good for jumping over puddles. There was always a dude who would make fun of me. He would say something. And since I’ve always been lowkey and I’ve always been alone. Now look at them; all following”.

After playing the album non-stop that night I had a phone call with my longtime comrade and Puerto Rican native Carlos Trujillo, where he told me that Bad Bunny had to be his spirit animal.

“He says Benito [Bad Bunny], says everything a man can’t say. Everything you’re scared to say…I can’t even relate to the nail polish but he doesn’t make me scared of what I don’t want to do. He makes me confident in doing everything I can’t do”.

With my suspicions confirmed, I decided to fuel my future with Bunny’s inspiration as well. I felt so appeased by the album’s sounds that I realized that the Latin music scene could be an untapped niche for an aspiring producer. Me, me of all people, a black man, fluent in the Spanish industry. I could find a gold mine while simply being different and being mysef. 100XPRE has taught me to be comfortable being uncomfortable.

Even regardless of my career choices, I can find peace within my relationship problems with Bad Bunny. I can sift through my future with this ocean Bad Bunny provides.

0 notes

sarahburness · 7 years

Text

25 Best Books For Starting An Online Business

There are millions of reasons to start a blog, a landing page or a website. Whatever your goal is, you’ll need the right strategy to stay ahead of the game. That’s exactly why I recommend that you check out best books for starting an online business. These books won’t just answer your question but they can also immensely improve your knowledge.

Are you ready to feel inspired and encouraged? Let’s press on!

eBooks for Blogging

Trying to find eBooks that can guide you in the right direction can be overwhelming. No worries, though. Today, I’m listing down my compilation of the best eBooks about blogging, creativity, and inspiration you’ll need in running your own blog.

Content Marketing 101: The Must-Know Essentials

Why do some bloggers get the lion’s share of attention while others end up writing posts that virtually nobody will ever read? This eBook is aimed at both the novice and experienced blogger who are suffering from low traffic on their blogging websites.

If you’re eager to present work that creates a reputation and builds businesses, then this eBook is just the thing for you. With this, learn the three essential principles of content marketing: how to produce the right content, how to find feedback and analyze and measure the content performance.

A Simple Guide to Blogging for Business

If you are convinced that blogging can catapult your business to greater heights, then this free eBook is a perfect choice for you. Whether or not you already know, companies that blog on a regular basis gain 55% more traffic to their websites.

Can your blog do the same?

This simple guide can help you to learn why blogging is important to your business, how to find and create great content and how to promote your blog. Remember, every time you blog about your company or brand, you put it in a positive light and convince people that your offerings are better.

Who’s There?

If you’re looking for a silver bullet, then I may have to disappoint you. The free eBook I suggest here will not help you write compelling posts. Instead, it will help your blogging website work better.

This eBook aims to showcase how to create a spectacular impact as a blogger. This will be a great surprise for curious people who underestimate blogging or are not doing it well. With the simple idea of helping people get a jumpstart into online marketing, this freebie can dip your toes deeper into the water.

You’ll like the way this book explains things. It’s a great choice for both bloggers and non-bloggers. Seriously, you should read it.

How to Make Money Blogging?

With this comprehensive free eBook, even a newbie can learn how to blog. It includes step-by-step instructions and links to point you in the right direction.

The best part of this eBook is that it’s full of information necessary for anyone starting out. It covers so many topics, from knowing the importance of a customizable WordPress theme, how to make money from your blog, SEO tips, a set of helpful tools to increase your earnings and much more. If you want to launch like a rocket, get started with this book.

How to Start a Blog? The Beginner’s Guide to Successful Blogging

Here is the perfect beginner’s guide to help you learn how to start a blog. Step-by-step, this will teach you all the necessary information on how to avoid pitfalls and missteps that hinder some novices. It will also help you decide on which platform to choose and install, how to grow your audience, find your niche and more.

Business Blogging 101: How to Promote Your Business

Want to take your business to the next level?

With this interesting free eBook, it’s simpler than you think. It’s not a secret that starting a business is a challenge. The good news is this eBook can guide you and help you get your business blog up and running.

Simply put, I think this eBook is worth your attention. Learn the correct ways to promote and spread your blog on the web, how to generate engaging topics, how to increase website traffic and bring new leads- this can teach you that and more!

MeetEdgar’s Secret Blogging Formula

Looking for help? Don’t fret.

Here’s a wonderful opportunity to learn everything you need to create a killer blog post. Get ready to enjoy this free eBook and be inspired to write amazing posts, discover your voice and drive traffic. With this, you’ll get a collection of high-quality free photos, social media guides, and useful social media promotion tools that can generate conversions.

Ready to explore the secret side of successful blogging? Let’s do this.

eBooks for SEO Improvement

If you’re interested in developing and converting an audience, boosting SEO and expecting sales to come flooding you, then this is for you. By reading these wonderful freebies, you’ll surely win.

Mobile SEO Tips

How many times a day do you check your phone? Did you know that an average person does it about 110 times a DAY or nine times an hour?

If you’re a serious blogger, you want to be sure you’re getting the most traffic possible. Now, how can you accomplish that?

One sure way is to make your website responsive. With this engaging eBook, you’ll learn how to make your page rock on mobile devices of any kind. You’re going to love it.

SEO Best Practices for a WordPress Blog Post

Waiting for readers to come to you? That’s not the way to go. The longer you wait, the more competitive your niche gets.

Grab this free eBook to figure out where your readers are, go there and drag them back to your site. Magic happens when you choose the right path. Explore the importance of an SEO-optimized WordPress website that can make your visitors’ lives easier and more enjoyable. It will surely make you win over the world.

Everything You Need to Know About Long Tail Keywords

Do you ever wonder if there are any helpful strategies to increase the specificity of keywords? Looking for advice on how to arrange long tail keywords across your unique content?

Let’s just say that this free eBook has all the answers to that question. Get this eBook now unless you have a very good reason not to.

eBooks That Will Improve Your Writing Skills

The best way to improve your business or personal writing skills is to read more, write more and study your idols. Let’s look at these free eBooks below.

Storytelling That Doesn’t Suck

Written by Catherine Crayon of TemplateMonster, this handy free eBook illustrates the main rules for business storytelling that work.

You can turn your passion into a thriving business, but you need to learn how to tell a story to market yourself first. Learn how to tell your unique story to tease your readers and flirt with them. Sounds intriguing? Try it.

How to Make an eBook That Rocks?

Raise your hand if you want to make an eBook to sell on your blog or website.

If you do, then this powerful eBook will be useful for you. Written in a straightforward manner, this is a truly step-by-step guide full of brainstorming ideas, defining concepts and designing layout ideas.

Author2.0 Blueprint

If you’re passionate about writing, this free eBook will help improve your talent and make you unstoppable. It’s not only about encouraging you to start writing, but also about giving you smart tips on how to write different types of content.

It will teach you how to draft fiction and non-fiction books, how to market your work and even how to make a living with your unique writing.

Writing with Style: Three Concepts and Two Stages

Grab this freebie and learn the three most important concepts every aspiring writer needs to know. Full of real-life examples, this eBook is a great option for every serious writer/blogger who is eager to improve his writing skills. It will help you become a key player on the web.

EBook: 365 Writing Prompts

Waiting for inspiration? Need a little push?

Well, you can’t wait for inspiration to come. You have to go after it.

Get this interesting eBook written by The Daily Post team to have an entire year of writing inspirations at your fingertips. Written in an easy-to-read manner, it offers a whole host of fantastic ideas on how to get started with your writing projects. Perfect for honing your writing craft, it will inspire you to get started.

10 Steps to Becoming a Writer

Do you want to become a writer? There’s nothing stopping you from writing, so just write!

This free eBook covers smart ideas on how to become a writer and it will surely keep you busy.

How to Turn Site Visitors into Leads? 3 Actionable Strategies

You may think that you already know everything about optimizing your website. However, with this free eBook, you will learn how to create a personalized brand that will last and to make more than just money. Find the best way on how to create landing pages that convert, how to set up a webinar, attract natural traffic and achieve your goals. Remember, a little mindset change and this book can make all the difference.

Write Good or Die

Don’t miss out on a huge opportunity to learn survival tips from best-selling authors like Kevin J. Anderson, Heather Graham, Gayle Lynds, and more. Don’t leave money on the table with your blog. Explore the power of storytelling. Learn how to develop your writing skills, promote your work and use your imagination. As long as you recognize exactly what you are telling, you’re ready to get the attention you deserve.

eBooks for Social Media Marketing

20 Instagram Post Ideas to Overcome Creative Blocks

Do you want to make your Instagram environment awesome and engaging for your followers? Then you need to read this free eBook to grab some of the coolest Instagram post ideas. Get it, open it and learn from it.

Social Media Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Sometimes we have an idea but don’t exactly know how to express it.

If this is your case, you will definitely find this free eBook useful and beneficial to your business. It will help you understand the world of social media marketing. It covers all possible bumps in the road and potholes an average business owner faces.

It’s a great choice for everyone who wants to learn the difference between personal and business profiles, how to react correctly to comments, attract more natural traffic and more.

How to Build an Audience on Social Media?

Not sure where to start building your unique brand or how to find your target audience? Is your website getting as many visitors as you’d like? I’ll tell you the secret:

This amazing freebie can be a source of inspiration for you. With the best practices assembled in this free eBook, you’ll be able to easily attract readers and build a loyal audience.

21 Easy Tips to Create a Powerful Presentation For Your Business

To create a powerful business presentation, you need to use a strong visual language. It will represent any information and reduce the time it takes to convey your message. Get more information on how to build high-impact content that will captivate and inspire your audience.

A Beginner’s Guide to Creating Visual Content

How can you win your prospect’s attention? With tons of information at our fingertips, how can you create the web content that is both useful and aesthetically appealing? I’ll tell you.

This wonderful free eBook will help you learn how to create eye-grabbing things, like high-quality photos, images, charts, infographics and other visual representations for your consumers.

How to Create Infographics for Your Marketing?

Imagery is the key to draw in your visitors and tell them the story of your mission. But, how do you create eye-grabbing images worth thousands of words? This free eBook covers the basics of creating and using beautiful infographics in your marketing.

A Beginner’s Guide to Creating Shareable Infographics

With this great eBook, you will be able to create effective and impressive infographics in a way that appeals to customers. The sooner you start reading it, the better.

Starting a blog or making a career online is not that easy. But, with the help of these best books for starting an online business, you will surely be one step closer to achieving your goals.

The post 25 Best Books For Starting An Online Business appeared first on Dumb Little Man.

from Dumb Little Man https://www.dumblittleman.com/best-books-for-starting-an-online-business/

0 notes