#the authenticity project

[cortlandkaard]

by the way shameless promotion but Read This Book! it's great :3

[themelodyofspring]

JOMP Book Photo Challenge

Dec 18, 2022 - Warm and Cozy

[desdasiwrites]

– Clare Pooley, The Authenticity Project

[embookreviews]

The Authenticity Project

Clare Pooley

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ (5/5)

Clare Pooley writes books for lonely people. each time i’ve read one of her books (so twice), i’ve found myself yearning for the friendships found in the book. sure, they’re twisted and messy and sometimes the relationships between people suck. but also, they all find each other and work it out in the end. i’m a pooley fan for life, both this and rules for commuting felt like they poked at a little hole in my life i didn’t know was there. that desire to find a group of strangers that i just….fit with.

also! i loved the little twist this book took, though i never felt the same about the character afterwards (so vague but i don’t want to spoil anything!! unless you’re like roy from the it crowd and even knowing there’s a twist is devastating information)

[vaspider]

Yeah it's really dark and potato video but I haven't scammed anyone for a $7K video camera so y'all are just stuck with some dyke's Original Thoughts, Badly Recorded.

[swordmaid]

anyway shri’iia’s epilogue outfit which is a mix of 1900s male stage costumes and also that one camp outfit mod. look at the ring hehe 🤭

[jesncin]

Part of me thinks that under WarnerMedia while My Adventures with Superman got greenlit in 2021, some of these decisions could either feel self-insert like with Mindy Kaling’s Velma or a mandated checkbox fulfillment to suit corporate desires. It can explain why they wanted Lois Lane to be a more prominent character to fit current narratives and trends. I’m all in for well written characters, but it needs to be done in a way where it makes sense. Here’s too hope James Gunn handles her well with the same craft as with Richard Donner and Bruce Timm’s iterations.

so I heavily disagree with this and I'm spider-sensing some uncomfortable dogwhistles here. What do Kaling's Velma and MAWS even have in common? MAWS' marketing didn't push a titular celebrity to the extent Velma did. Any reason you've decided to compare two shows on the basis that both have prominent women of color in the lead? Velma's an adult comedy mystery while MAWS is an action adventure with a heavy focus on romance (it may be on Adult Swim, but it was never intended for an adult audience. That was corporate shenanigans). Saying they're catching some sort of trend to follow Velma is pretty ignorant of how difficult it is to pitch an action animated kids show with a woman in the lead. Entirely different markets and genres. And from what I've heard, the MAWS crew mention they had surprisingly little executive restraints which allowed them to go out of the box with their takes.

Also Lois being prominent or the lead of a Superman adaptation is not new or a trend. "Lois & Clark", "Superman & Lois", even one off animated movies like Reign of Supermen had Lois as the POV lead or heavily involved. She has led many comics on her own. I don't love this insinuation that her being racebent is a "trend"- especially when the MAWS crew mention American Alien as their source of reference for their version of Lois and Jimmy.

"I'm all for well written characters, but it needs to be done in a way where it makes sense". I don't know what you mean by this. 1. there are no well written characters in the entirety of MAWS, and 2. What needs justifying to you? Aren't well written characters self justified by being well written? Is there something about a WOC in the lead that is threatening your suspension of disbelief? Because boy have I heard that tons of times before.

I get that film and tv adaptation heavily influences popular perception of a character, but why do we place our hopes on these white guys to do justice on a character like Lois of all people. This dismisses the many women and other talented creatives who got to work on Lois in the comics. Like why zero in on MAWS Lois being a "self insert"? I don't like to auteur-ify a collaborative medium like an animated series, but MAWS was pitched by Jake Wyatt. He's the showrunner. Lois is Asian in his pitch packet. How is that a self insert? If anything, I wish an Asian creative put more of their life experiences onto Lois because then she wouldn't feel like someone so interchangeable with a white woman. And misogynisticly written.

Just kind of weird to ask this to us, the chindo authors who made a fancomic about Lois being chindo, informed by our lived experiences as chindos. That's arguably as self insert as it gets. While I'm interested in James Gunn's take on the Superman mythos, I'm not getting my hopes up on a pre-dominantly white cast and no current narrative emphasis on committing to Superman as an immigrant. Also I didn't suffer through Guardians 2's take on Mantis just to hold this white guy up as the pinnacle on writing women.

[teddybasmanov]

I hate the 'you work so hard' type of comfort audios. I don't work 'so hard', I definitely don't work hard - I barely work at all.

[xero013]

Sweetness

They can be apri-corny together (Nimbasa trio)

[cactuslester]

dan is actually SUCH a romantic I didn't expect that

idk if this is in reference to something specific that happened recently lmk if it is, but yeah he really IS

he's got his edgy cynical persona and brand and we love him for it, but he can never really help being a bit of a sap when it really comes down to it

most recent silly example i can think of is him thinking the sims shouldve had an option for evan to lovingly wake dab up lmaooo

and of course there's all of those interviews, archenemies, husbands, 4000 year old tortoises, and so on <3

this is getting slightly off topic but also slightly related, something i find absolutely fascinating is the differences in how dnp navigate these types of things, being romantic and/or being emotionally vulnerable on camera/in print

like had has the edgy cynical aloof "coincidences are just statistics" thing he likes to project, but really it doesn't make much digging to get him to start waffling poetic

but phil has the cheerful optimistic believes in the magic of coincidence thing, but i think he holds a lot of his sappiness and/or emotional vulnerability way closer and way more guarded

there's obviously a lot more complexity to this that we are not privy to and i also cant explain in just a few sentences, but still, it's so interesting how the major/most noteble aspects of their branding and online personas can give a viewer, especially ones who arent insane about them like all are here on this website, an almost opposite impression as to what's really happening

(this also is tangentially related to my thoughts about how dnp navigate the idea and practice of lying, which i also find fascinating, like i think for dan lying is a Bigger thing, like he has a greater urge/need to feel like he is being authentic and honest and a greater want to not lie, but phil sees lying as more of a neutral practice that can be helpful and useful in situations where people just aren't entitled to that information, like i think when dan said "phil doens't care, he's just like like 'i'll fucking lie to anyone'" there was a kernel of truth to that, but this is a longer conversation and i've already made this answer way longer than i expected lmao thank you for humoring me guys)

[modernvintage]

If there is anything I hate about modern “celebrity” or “influencer” culture, it is the bland-ass, cookie cutter clone wars of it all.

Like I’ve unfollowed and/or blocked so many social accounts these past few years, first, bc I hated the privilege I saw during a worldwide pandemic when people were dying, but now, because everyone is the. fucking. same.

They are all thin/ripped/hairless, (likely) rich, (likely) white, with the same exact clothing and accessories, on an “exotic” vacation to a “boutique” hotel pretending to be in a cabana (or on a boat? Why are so many people on rent-a-yachts?) with people who probably actively hate them. You could swap their faces and no one would ever know.

Seriously, so many people aged 18-45? have carbon copy lives and I’m so sick of it. I want weirdness. I want zhuzh. I want personal style back! And hills to die on! And causes to support!

This is brain rot, for real, it is no different than yuppie boomers all wanting the Cadillac and 2.5 kids in a big McMansion in the suburbs bullshit and I wanna talk about it but no one does.

Where are the rites of passage? The coming of age? The struggles? How are people affording this shit? Why do they waste their money being so bloody boring? Why does everyone look the same? With the same teeth, same lips, same fake tan, same hairstyle, same jewelry? It’s not just women, either, so many male celebs do this, too.

Go pick any hotel page on insta. Or an artist on tour. Or a festival. Click through the pictures. It’s like robot nation. Celebs or influencers “influencing” normies into being even more homogenous.

Does anyone even have fun anymore? With all the privilege and beauty and wealth, has the fun been forgotten?

Everyone is just so boring.

[florsial]

💌🕊️

What are your thoughts on the popular trend of "do you think we'll be [insert dynamic] in every/other universe/s?" but this time it's Sirius asking Regulus.

What would Reg say? How would Sirius ask it? Why would he ask it?

I’m so mad at myself I had like a whole essay and it WAS DELETED 😭😭 also sorry for the messy format!!

Anyways, I don’t think this type of interaction would ever occur face to face. I think this would only happen post Regulus death. Like Book 5 of Harry Potter when Sirius is stuck in Grimmauld. When Sirius would inevitably stumble upon a portrait of Regulus and finds himself asking “Do you think we would be brothers in every universe?” But in a way more so asking if there is a universe where they are both alive, happy, and together. I don’t think Sirius would ever doubt him and Regulus being family in every universe, it’s jsut a matter of can they be the family they choose in any universe. (Which I have a whole other thought about lol)

He’s asking because if Regulus can’t be in the family Sirius chose for himself in this universe, is there another Regulus can be?

I can’t see this type of interaction happening directly for some reason. Maybe because the question would be meant differently if Sirius directly asked Regulus? But Regulus being dead is such a vital part of why Sirius is asking the question in the first place in my head.

For Regulus’ answer (not like he would ever actually be able to answer it if I’m going along prev paragraphs), either way, is going to be yes.

Regulus will always hold out hope that he can be by Sirius side. Even in the canon universe. I’ve always believed that Regulus retains this possessiveness over Sirius that never fully went away. I mean, that’s his older brother, the person who probably raised him in an environment as hostile as Grimmauld, and the one person Regulus probably felt as if was the only person who truly loved him!! I don’t think Regulus ever fully made peace with not having Sirius in his life! Even after Sirius runs away, they still would’ve seen each in school! In the great hall, hallways, and probably in the quidditch pitch. Regulus had the knowledge that his brother was on the same campus him at all times.

Which makes it even more interesting when you remember he dies at around 17-18 years old, the age he would’ve been in his last year of Hogwarts after Sirius graduates!! Hogwarts is their last connection!! I don’t think Regulus ever fully processed not having Sirius in his life! So yes! He would always answer yes, they would be brothers in every universe, BECAUSE THEY ARE IN HIS HEARTTT!!!!

IM STILL MAD ABOUT THE FACT THAT TUMBLR DELETED MY PREVIOUS ANSWER UGHHHHHH

[logically-illogical-2me]

Marahuyo Project first episode was really good. But what did I expect, It's a queer story directed, written, produced, and acted by queer people.

[tryingtimi]

@the-wip-project Day 1: 698

Alright, the first day is here, and motivation hit an hour before bed, so that means I couldn't reach 1k. But, I got to more than half of it! And I also have a somewhat clear picture of the chapter I'm writing, so it's going to come a little bit easier tomorrow. Plus, I've edited my outline because I solved a little problem in the plot, and taken out a character that turned out just to be there for no reason, lol.

Hope today goes well for y'all!

[air3d3lalm3na]

adults are so starved of playing pretend and indulging in imagination and fantasy and it genuinely harms us. reconnecting with spontaneity, play, joy, sincerity, genuine feeling, and doing inner child work, are really the best ways you can treat yourself — doing work to heal this as an adult.

all work and no play makes jack a dull boy. and the bastards like it that way (and those who bought into it and don’t know better). don’t let them have it.

[brbgensokyo]

ive floated back around to it but miku really is a fascinating case study on star power and the struggle authenticity bc most of producers using her voice are bedroom artists writing and composing as a hobby that would probably wouldn't get the time of day if the consumer wasn't so invested in the brand of Miku