#we need more wlw musicians to make it

[fratboykate]

Papi, I didn't know about PVRIS and Lynn before you started talking about them yesterday and now I'm obsessed. Maybe I'm behind on queer artists. Can you give us a few more to check out?

SAY LESSSSSSSSSS you know i live for this shit and queer music during pride month? lets goooo. ill give you five wlw artists that i think are criminally underrated. id be hard pressed to pick a fave out of all of these because i genuinely think they all make EXCELLENT music but...

...probably THE ACES have it by a HAIR. i just love them. queer women, LATINA LEAD SINGER! (and her sister is in the band too), alt-indie/pop-rock dreamy vibes. andddd you're in luck because they just released a new album literally in the last week. between them and pvris we're gonna have a gay soundtrack this summer. i think if you made me pick like the 500 fave songs of my life the aces would have a few in there all over the rankings but "daydream" would be VERY high up. there's something about it that feels like a serotonin shot to the chest. i never not blast this song while driving:

ELIJAH WOODS x JAMIE FINE...Jamie is the queer woman/vocalist. they were a canadian duo but they broke up a few years ago and Jamie is releasing some music independently which is still amazing because her voice is sublime but the work they did together is on CONSTANT rotation for me. some astounding alt-pop goodness.

i mentioned LAUREN SANDERSON and her "songs ill eat you out to" ep last night when talking about pvris but she deserves her standalone shoutout. she's close with one of my best friends in the world so we've gotten to hang out a few times and not only is she making some incredible and unapologetic queer music but she's also a super dope human. can't say enough good things about her. she's fully independent so support her music if you can. it's truly good. unbiased opinion. "frustrated" has been on my top 100 songs on every "wrapped" since it was released. i love this song. "queen bee" is just like PEAKKKKKK makeout song. trust me. find a girl. have that as your soundtrack while you're kissing. 10/10 recommend.

CASSIDY KING is probably the most underrated here. her yt videos get like 1-3k views and it makes me sad because i loveeeeee her stuff. the tone of her voice tickles my ears.

this is not one of my top two recs but i GOTTA shout it out because not only is it her most famous song (100k yt views lol) but...listen...if you've ever dated the straight girl who dates you in secret while publicly flirting with dudes or the closeted girl who refuses to break up with her boyfriend DO WE HAVE A SONG FOR YOU lol

on the opposite end of cassidy is CHELSEA CUTLER. she's probably the most well known here but i still dont think EVERY gay knows about her so im including her because jamming or having horny songs is incredible but we also need songs to be miserable too and she's A MASTER at that lol this live performance of "sometimes" has made me cry more than once if the mood is even slightly off haha

[iamalasagnagirl]

Pls, pls, pls I need more WLW book recommendations!!!

Adults, YA, spicy, soft, I don’t care. I just need wlw books because I want to switch from fanfics only to actual books as well

Okay, here we are, enjoy :)

Bright Falls Series by Ashley Herring Blake: 1. Delilah Green Doesn't Care -> Delilah Green swore she would never go back to Bright Falls - nothing is there for her except memories of a lonely childhood - but when Delilah's stepsister pressures her into photographing her wedding with a guilt trip and a large check, Delilah finds herself back in Bright Falls once more. She plans to breeze in and out, but then she sees Claire Sutherland, one of Astrid's stuck-up besties, and decides that maybe there's some fun (and a little retribution) to be had, after all. 2. Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail -> For Astrid Parker failure is unacceptable. When Pru Everwood asks her to be the designer for the Everwood Inn's renovation, which will be featured on a hugely popular home makeover show, Astrid is thrilled. However, Astrid never planned on Jordan Everwood, Pru's granddaughter and the lead carpenter for the renovation, who despises every modern design decision Astrid makes. Is she going to pursue the life that she's expected to lead or the one that she really wants? 3. Iris Kelly doesn't date -> Everyone around Iris Kelly is in love and she’s happy for all of them, truly. Iris doesn’t want any of that—dating, love, romance. She’ll stick to her commitment-free hookups. There’s only one problem—Iris is a romance author facing an imminent deadline for her second book, and she’s completely out of ideas. Perfectly happy to ignore her problems as per usual, Iris goes to a bar and meets a sexy stranger, Stefania, and a night of dancing and making out turns into the worst one-night stand Iris has had in her life. To get her mind off everything, Iris tries out for the lead role in a local play, a queer retelling of Much Ado About Nothing, but comes face-to-face with Stefania, whose real name turns out to be Stevie. Desperate to save face in front of her friends, Stevie asks Iris to play along as her girlfriend. Iris is shocked, but when she realizes the arrangement might provide her with some much-needed romantic content for her book, she agrees. As the two women play the part of a happy couple, lines start to blur.

Falls from grace by Ruby Landers -> Savannah Grace and her band were huge stars in Nashville. Now enlists Noah Lyman - an indie musician - to help her break out of country music and make a name for herself for once and for all. They have to spend the winter in Savannah secluded vacation home in the woods of Vermont, and Noah brings along his best friend Brynn Marshall and pretend she’s his wife? After all, what could possibly go wrong?

The secret of you and me by Melissa Lenhardt -> Nora hasn’t looked back. Not since she fled Texas to start a new life. Now she can live—and love—however she wants. The only problem is that she also left behind the one woman she can’t forget. Now tragedy calls her back home to confront her past—and reconcile her future.

Books by Haley Cass: - Those Who Wait and the follow-up Forever and A Day -> Spencer Sutton, the daughter of a congressman, and Charlotte Thompson, New York City’s youngest deputy mayor, meet on SapphicSpark, a women-seeking-women dating app. Sutton isn’t built for casual, and Charlotte needs to keep a low profile as the race heats up. In spite of that, a friendship blossoms as Charlotte helps Sutton navigate the dating world. - Down to A Science -> Ellie Beckett is a scientific genius finishing a Ph.D. at MIT, sitting on her stool at her favorite bar, putting the final touches on her thesis - her life is predictable and comfortable enough, until the night Mia Sharpe walks in to play pool with some friends and things are never the same again. and On the same Page -> Riley Beckett met Gianna Mäkinen their first year at Boston University, and it changed everything for the both of them. She knows Gianna doesn't do romance or relationships, and she knows nothing could ever come between them. But when a holiday party mix-up sets in motion a domino effect of changes, Riley has to question everything she thought she knew about their relationship. What, exactly, does Gianna mean to her after all? - In the Long Run -> Taylor Vandenberg is busy running a successful travel blog. Brooke Watson and Taylor’s younger brother have been best friends for the majority of their lives. It means that even if Taylor isn’t physically present, she’s always been a part of Brooke’s most monumental life experiences. When Taylor lands back in Faircombe for an extended stay, it leads to more run-ins than Brooke would like. And more feelings than either may want to admit. - When You Least Expect It & Better Than Expected (I haven't had a chance to read them yet, but I have seen them recommended a lot)

If tomorrow doesn't come by Jen St. Jude -> On the morning Avery Byrne plans to end her life, the world discovers there are only nine days left to live: an asteroid is headed for Earth, and no one can stop it. As time runs out and secrets slowly come to light, Avery fights her way home to save the girl she has been in love with her whole life. But can Avery also learn to save herself and find hope again in the tomorrows she has left?

Kiss her once for me by Alison Cochrun -> Ellie had a Christmas Eve meet-cute with a woman at a bookstore that led her to fall in love over the course of a single night. The next year, Andrew, the shop’s landlord where Ellie works, proposes a shocking, drunken plan: a marriage of convenience that will benefit both of them. They make a plan to spend the holidays together at his family cabin to keep up the ruse. But when Andrew introduces his new fiancée to his sister, Ellie is shocked to discover is the mysterious woman she fell for over the year before.

6 times we almost kissed (and one time we did) by Tess Sharpe -> Penny and Tate keep almost kissing. It’s just this confusing thing that keeps happening. You know, from time to time. For basically their entire teenaged existence.  They’ve never talked about it. They’ve always ignored it in the aftermath. But now they’re living across the hall from each other. And some things—like their kisses—can’t be almosts forever. 

Nottingham: the true story of Robin Hood by Anna Burke -> (A retelling of Robin Hood's story with a Female Robin and wlw couples) After a fateful hunting accident sends her on the run from the law, Robyn finds herself deep in the heart of Sherwood Forest. All she really wants to do is provide for her family and stay out of trouble, but when the Sheriff of Nottingham levies the largest tax in the history of England, she’s forced to take matters into her own hands. Relying on the help of her band of merry women and the Sheriff’s intriguing—and off limits—daughter, Marian, Robyn must find a way to pull off the biggest heist Sherwood has ever seen.

Forget me not by Alyson Derrick -> Stevie has a terrible fall. And when she comes to, she can remember nothing of the last two years—not California, not coming to terms with her sexuality, not even her girlfriend Nora. Suddenly, Stevie finds herself in a life she doesn’t quite understand. And Nora finds herself…forgotten.

It goes like this by Miel Moreland -> Eva, Celeste, Gina, and Steph used to play in world-famous queer pop band called Moonlight Overthrow. But after a sudden falling out leads to the dissolution of the teens' band, their friendship, and Eva and Celeste's starry-eyed romance, nothing is the same. Until a storm devastates their hometown, bringing the four ex-best-friends back together. As they prepare for one last show, they'll discover whether growing up always means growing apart.

Dominion Series by J J Arias: 1. Losing Control  -> Talent agent Adriana Ortiz’s world is rocked when she’s thrust into the tumultuous orbit of Roxy, the raw, enigmatic pop rebel with a notorious edge and a guarded heart. Tasked with steering the wild Roxy on a whirlwind tour, Adriana boards Roxy’s opulent tour bus. The nights are filled with roaring crowds, but it’s the electric tension between Roxy and Adriana that sets the air on fire. A forbidden connection that threatens to consume them. Is the wild, unbridled Roxy worth the risk to Adriana’s career, or is she just another woman falling victim to Roxy’s charms? 2. Fighting for Control  -> Lola Barros is a rising talent agent burning with ambition. Carmen Vargas is a dedicated lawyer poised to conquer the legal field. Their shared high-rise is the only thing these two powerhouses have in common. After a trivial parking mishap snowballs onto a full-blown feud, Lola and Carmen are thrust into unconventional anger management sessions and their fiery rivalry gives way to smoldering desire. But yielding to desire isn't straightforward. Between the shadows of demanding careers and familial expectations, their love is tested. Can Lola and Carmen find a balance between ambition and affection? 3. Relinquishing Control  -> Natalia Flores rules her exclusive talent agency with an iron fist, brokering blockbuster deals while keeping everyone at arm’s length. But beneath the cold exterior lies a heart that yearns to be understood. Enter Professor Samantha Reyes—brilliant, fierce, and unwilling to let Natalia manipulate her way into the film rights to her book. Their encounters spark with tension and undeniable chemistry. In a world where control is everything, can two powerful women let go of their fears to find a love that’s worth the risk?

11:59 by Erica Lee -> TJ Edmonds has created a whole brand around not getting attached to other people. She has a best-selling novel and a popular phone app both dedicated to helping people stay detached from their significant others, so they don't get hurt. But the only reason she can move on so quickly now is because she still hasn't let go of someone from her past. It's easy to guard her heart when she no longer has it to give away. TJ texts Brooke everyday at 11:59 pm with no answers. What happens when, in a moment of weakness, this someone reaches out to TJ?

Price and Prejudice and the city by Rachel Lippincott -> Seventeen-year-old Audrey Cameron has lost her spark. After an embarrassing run-in with her ex-boyfriend, she’s told that she needs to get back out there and take risks. What she doesn't expect is to be transported to Regency England! Lucy Sinclair has her own problems when Audrey lands into her life, claiming to be from two hundred years in the future, it's a welcome distraction.

Never ever getting back together by Sophie Gonzales -> Maya and Skye are invited to star on the reality dating show Second-Chance Romance, to compete for their now famous ex-boyfriend's affections while the whole world watches. Skye wonders if she and Jordy can recapture the spark she knows they had, but Maya has other plans.

The art of us by KL Hughes -> Charlee and Alex fell in love at nineteen and dated for four years. Theirs was an enviable love — evergreen and growing. Unbreakable…Until it broke. Alex’s job now brings her back to Boston, after five years. When, by chance, they meet again, Charlee and Alex are swept up in a whirlwind of heart-rending history, tossed between past and present, and lovers old and new. Will their lingering connection be enough to convince them that some loves are meant to last? Or should the past remain in the past?

That secret something by Emily Wright -> Rebecca Lawson is off-limits. Jess knows this, but Rebecca has captured her heart for as long as she can remember. She’s sporty, tall and confident—all the things Jess is not—but most of all…she’s her best friend Lily’s sister. But when Jess and Rebecca are forced to spend time together the forbidden feelings intensify and sparks begin to fly. Amidst the chaos of raging bridezillas and other wedding disasters, can Jess resist temptation for the sake of her friendship?

The seven husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid  -> Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. Summoned to Evelyn's luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the '80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way

That summer feeling by Bridget Morrissey -> Turns out you're never too old for a summer camp romance. Or a change of heart. When a divorced woman attends a sleepaway camp for adults only, she reconnects with a man from her past - only to catch feelings for his sister instead.

Some of these are my absolute favourites, I've lost count of how many times I've read them. I cannot get enough of "the bright falls series", "One the same page", "Those who wait", "The secret of you and me" and the last entry "Falls From Grace". No matter how many times I read them. And sometimes I wish I could read them again, as if for the first time, if that makes sense. Anyway, I have a lot more titles. Let me know if you want them or not. Enjoy the reading

[love-bokumono-fics]

Fresh Crops! August 7 - August 13, 2023

This week's newest stories and chapter updates for Harvest Moon and Story of Seasons on AO3!

A Year in Forget-Me-Not Valley - by actaeoncross; WIP, 2/?, 2.5k

Rating: Not Rated; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Categories: F/M, Other Fandoms: A Wonderful Life Relationships: Gustafa/Reader, Gustafa/ OC, Nami/Pony | Aya | Jill; Characters: Gustafa, Daryl Additional Tags: Slice of Life Summary: Unable to meet her family's high expectations, Alchemy is sent away from the City and cut off by her parents to live with her disowned cousin Daryl. Her parents and brother hope she’ll learn a lesson about why it is important to be successful after living in the valley. An easy-going musician has Al questioning whether he’s trying to help out of her shell or if there’s something more to his kindness.

Calluses - by Dinomilkshakes; Complete, 3/3, 3.4k

Rating: Explicit; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Categories: F/M, Other Fandoms: A Wonderful Life Relationship: Rock/Reader; Characters: Rock, Reader, Nami, Ruby | Lou, Takakura Additional Tags: **NOTE: Some tags have been removed to remain Safe For Tumblr. Please see AO3 for complete tag list** Creampie, Breeding Kink, Unrealistic Sex, because who cares its more fun to read that way, Mention of Sterilization, its important to the main story youll see why later, im allowed to be trans the way I wanna be if you wanna read it thats cool but dont judge me pls, Transgender, non-binary, Pregnancy, each chapter is going to have different stuff I think so its at your own discretion Summary: Calluses is a Succession of Stones extra episodes booklet. In which the farmer marries Rock. And creates an alternate universe for every 'what-if' situation.

A Succession of Stones - by Dinomilkshakes; WIP, 6/10, 26k

Rating: Explicit; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Categories: Other, F/M Fandoms: A Wonderful Life Relationship: Rock/Reader-Insert; Characters: Rock, Takakura, Vesta, Matthew, Cecilia, Ramona, Sebastian, Ruby | Lou, Tei Additional Tags: **NOTE: Some tags have been removed to remain Safe For Tumblr. Please see AO3 for complete tag list** Blood, unemployment, Reader is Non-Binary and Trans, And likes to dye their hair. so sue me, Romance, Yes I'm sorry it's Rock I have brainrot, there will be children later. its A Wonderful Life so expect it, Friends to Lovers, Childhood Sweethearts, Childhood Friends, they/them pronouns, Creampie, Breeding Kink, Everytime I update the preview it changes chapter 2 into chapter 1 so I'm sick of that Summary: In which the farmer marries Rock. “My hands are calloused so that his won’t need to be.” - Shakespeare, probably. Living in the big city takes a turn for the worse as you lose your job! SO you make the move to the Forgotten Valley where you used to spend your youthful summers. Awesome. One of your childhood sweethearts still lives there- but this fucking guy won’t leave you alone! You can’t seem to get away. Bygone are the days of sitting alone in your apartment, whiling away the time. Unfortunately, you become fond of him- on days where he’s gone it feels like somethings missing. But who is this bum who won’t leave you alone, and why do you never see him working!? And could you possibly put up with him for the rest of your life..? In which we examine a situation in which the farmer has no other choice but to marry Rock, because the situation calls for it.

Stone Butch, High Femme - by Whybe123; WIP, 7/13, 20k

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/F Fandoms: A Wonderful Life Relationship: Muffy | Muumuu/Nami; Characters: Muffy, Nami, Molly, Lumina Additional Tags: Drabbles, One-Shots, Sapphic, I'll revive the harvest moon fandom myself if i have to, and im going to make it gay if i do it, Lesbians, wlw, Mutual Pining, Mild Angst, hurt comfort, Small Towns, Dating, Fluff, ALL THE FLUFF Summary: In light of Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life getting a remaster, I was faced with an obvious task; I gotta make this gayer. Enjoy the following disjointed collection of Muffy/Molly and Nami clumsily falling in love in that sleepy little valley we all came to love.

Tumblr Posts for A Wonderful Life Characters - by actaeoncross; WIP, 13/?, 16k

Rating: Not Rated; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Categories: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi Fandoms: A Wonderful Life Relationship: Multiple Characters x Reader; Characters: Celia | Seperia, Cody | Gordy, Daryl, Flora, Gustafa, Lumina, Marlin | Mash, Matthew, Molly | Muffy, Nami, Rock, Reader Summary: A collection of Tumblr posts for A Wonderful Life Characters x Reader prompts. The blog is an offshoot of my main and should be found under AWL Imagines.

Lady Of Grasstrail Farms - by FromADenOfBeasts; WIP, 43/?, 55k

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/M Fandoms: Pioneers of Olive Town Relationship: Female Farmer/Lars; Characters: Female Farmer, Lars, Laura, Angela, Clemens, Damon, Jack, Emilio, Reina, Victor, Gloria, Simon, Jesse Additional Tags: My First AO3 Post, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Slow Burn, Fluff and Angst, Supportive Big Brother, honestly the best big brother ever, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Domestic Fluff, Wish Fulfillment, Mysterious Origins, Childbirth Summary: A young woman named Vallon quits her job and follows her heart to Olive Town, where her family has roots deeper than she ever thought. Now she has to contend with new neighbors, ancient magic, and getting the hang of farming a wild land. Can she cope on her own, or can she at least find someone to share it with?

I Love You, I Truly Mean It - by rainbowcoral; Complete, 2/2, 4.5k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply; Category: F/F Fandoms: Trio of Towns Relationships: Female Farmer/Lisette; Characters: Female Farmer, Lisette Additional Tags: Love Confessions, LGBTQ Female Character, Declarations Of Love, First Love, Romance, Sweet, Healthy Relationships, Love Summary: Holly doesn't love Lisette as a friend. She loves her, but she loves her romantically. Lisette loves fairy tales, and she wants to be loved as if she were a princess. To Lisette's surprise, Holly loves to listen to her talk about fairy tales.

Tempest - by HouraiTeahouse; Complete, 1/1, <1k

Rating: General Audiences; Archive Warning: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings; Category: Gen Fandom: Trio of Towns Character: Kasumi Additional Tags: This is not apologism, Pre-Canon, Relatives to Enemies Summary: Kasumi loves her father.

[disappointeddyke]

gonna be annoying and nosy :)

6, 21, 26, 29, 37, 41, 47, 48

ps hope your day gets better

6. Favorite article of clothing? Currently, this cowboy shirt I just got. Yes, this is the only picture I have in it 😂 (I already needed to delete that picture lmao)

21. Favorite wlw musician? Kehlani 😍

26. Are you more of a cat person or a dog person? Dog

29. Do you usually ask other women out or do you wait for them to ask you? I think I usually make the first move more often than not but it’s definitely a turn on when people ask me out first. I’ve been told I’m intimidating 🤷🏻‍♂️ but I’m definitely not scary, I promise.

37. Coffee or tea? Teaaaaa

41. What is your sign? I’ll give you all three! Leo, Sagittarius, Capricorn

47. Talk about how your day went It’s been pretty lazy. I’m visiting my parent’s right now and we got in an argument last night so I’m not in the best headspace at the moment. I have a couple hour drive back to my apartment this afternoon that I’m dreading so I’m laying in the sun to procrastinate rn.

48. Talk about your dreams/aspirations for the future At the moment I’m hoping to eventually just be happy. Like that’s my only goal, in whatever form it comes in. I’m an early education teacher currently but I’m hoping this upcoming school year I’ll have a new job as an art teacher at a primary school! Eventually I’d like to be in love and have our own place together and do lots of traveling!

[marlena-vincilasera]

Girls play better // Victoria x Fem!Reader PART 1

Pairing: Victoria x Fem!Reader

Genre: Fluff, wlw, Smut

Summary: Y/N’s dating history always seemed interesting. Not because she was wild and dated around a lot. But because between the small amount of guys she ever got with, they all had one thing in common- playing a bass guitar. It definitely became a joke within her friend group, that she had some weird kink for the deep sound the instrument makes. While brushing it off as an accident, she was realising there must be something more to it - after all, the guys from her favourite bands were also mostly bassists. She was never really sure about her sexuality, but procrastinated from thinking about it too much. One night, a friend of hers takes Y/N to a concert of her new boyfriend’s band. When the girl holding the bass walks out, Y/N is left speechless. The way the bassist moves and thrusts her hips while giving her all on the stage has the reader left in shock. Maybe she needs to admit to herself that liking women is not such a wild concept for her.

And with Victoria’s help, she is soon going to find out, that girls, amongst other things, definitely play better. 

WARNINGS: swearing, alcohol, mentions of sex, sexual themes, no smut just yet

IT IS FINALLY HERE! After postponning it for three weeks due to my health problems and not knowing how to manage time, I finished the first part! I didn't make it in time for pride month, but we need some gayness all year around, right? 

I hope you all enjoy it! 

y/f/n or y/b/n - your friend's name/ your best friend's

y/e/n - your exes name

TAG(S): @theimpossiblehologramtree​

//

Two months ago

„I can't believe he would do that! I feel completely worthless now,“  you were sobbing while hugging your best friend on the couch in her parents' house.

You ran straight to her when you saw your boyfriend's tongue in some other girl's mouth. While you were together only for six months, you felt a connection to him like to no one before. You weren't expecting him to break your heart, not this way. Your friend on the other hand, was always vocal about her opinions on him. She never liked him, but even if she felt like it would end this way, she would never say no to you, when you needed her close.

„I am really sorry about it, bestie. But you know how these musicians get...,“ she tried to rationalise the situation.

You pulled away from the hug, wiping tears away from your face. You knew that band guys always had a bad reputation and you had your fair share of guitarists in your short life. It was this weird coincidence, that all three of your exes played bass. Even your favourite members of famous rock bands were all bassists. You never thought about it, until one of your friends pointed it out that the guys you liked all shared this interest. There were many jokes about it, how you were on your way to become a groupie and the ocassional „yeah, cause bassists do it deeper.“ Everything in all great fun though.

But none of them treated you this way before, until y/e/n. He was the first one you actually imagined the future with. He certainly didnt see it the same way, despite saying the opposite.

„You really make it seem like he was some kind of big rockstar,“ you pointed out to your best friend.

She chuckled.

„He certainly acted like one. Except for having groupies and doing coke in the backstage, he wasn't even liked by most of his bandmates and he was getting drunk off the cheapest vodka in the bar.“

„Well, he was definitely liked by the girl whose throat he was tickling this morning,“ you made yourself upset again.

//

Today

You were chilling at /y/b/n's house, as you did most of your free time. You just got off your morning shift, when she called you over for lunch and to share some news with you. You were spreading in front of the TV, barely paying attention to the cooking program that was on. Whild scrolling through the instagram feed, you heard a voice from the kitchen.

„Love, the lunch is ready, get your ass over here,“ it was your friend, shouting over the sound of setting plates down.

„Uuuugh, okay mom,“ you groaned as a joke and got off the sofa, making yor way to the kitchen.

As you walked through the door, something smelled a bit burnt, but you decided to ignore it for now. When you sat down at the table, in front of the plate set for you, she started her speech.

„I have something to tell you,“ she was scooping your portion of rice noodles with veggies and tofu onto your plate. „I might have a boyfriend.“

You just looked at her and gave her a big smile.

„You are joking, right? Since when?“ you were obviously curious.

You started stuffing your mouth with the food as she started telling her story.

„Nope, completely serious. We've been seeing each other for about a month and we just made it official yesterday. I didn't want to tell you yet because I wasnt sure how you would feel about it.“ She also dug into her food, waiting for your response.

„What? I am so happy for you! I would never be jealous or anything, I'm way over that douchebag of my ex boyfriend. Besides that, it's not about me, but you,“ you reached over for her hand on the table.

„So who is he? Do I know him?“

Y/b/n shook her head with a smile.

„I don't think so. He's from Rome, average height, skinny. Has a blonde shaggy haircut and beautiful hazel eyes,“ she paused to drink water from the glass set in front of her. „And get this – he plays in a band.“

You almost choked on the noodles she cooked for you. She was never the type to go for musicians, so this came as a huge surprise. „Well fuck me with a chainsaw, look at you. Please tell me it's not bass, because I will scream,“ you laughed at your friend. „What's his name? Can you show me a pic?“

She quickly pulled out her phone from the pocket of her jeans and pushed the lock button. While bringing it closer to your face, you saw her lockscreen picture had a quite handsome man on it. He was sitting on the bed with a classic Stratocaster in his hands and the picture had a black and white filter over it. He fit her description perfectly and you were satisfyied that the guitar he played was just an electric.

„His name is Thomas and is such a cutie. We met on Tinder and clicked right away. He was staying in our town for two days, when they played a concert here. I admit, I thought it would just be a one night stand, but it turned to so much more. We try to see each other as often as possible, although either of us has to travel for hour and a half, but its worth it,“ she continued explaining and the smile on her face was growing wider. You could tell she was happy and that warmed your heart. Your best friend deserved everything in the world and so much more, she was really a kind person.

She kept showing you more pictures of her new boyfriend, swiping through her gallery. When she came across the picture of him, sitting next to three more people in a dim light, you looked up at her, waiting for her to tell you more.

„These are his bandmates. They call themselves Måneskin, which stands for „moonlight“ in Danish. They are all really nice, I have met them already.“

The people in the picture were all really attractive. The brown haired man had such a symmetrical face, he looked like a model. The other guy in the picture, except for y/b/ns boyfriend, had this intimidating look on his face that almost turned you on a little bit.  You were particularly drawn to the only girl in the picture though. There was something about her that caught your interest. You weren't quite sure why you felt this way, but she stood out, and not just due to the fact that she was different sex than the rest of the band.

„Theres actually a reason for why I wanted to tell you today. They are playing a gig near us tonight and I want you to go with me!“ she cheered with  excitement.

You weren't so happy when you heard, as it was nearly 4pm and you still had to go home to get yourself to look presentable.

„You couldve told me sooner, I look like a mess. I have to wash my hair, shave, do my makeup and pick a cute outfit! You can't just drop this information on me like that.“  

Y/b/n tried to calm you down. „Relaaaax, it's literally 5 minute ride to your house and 30 minute ride by the bus to the venue. The concert start at 8, you have plenty of time to get ready,“ she said while cleaning up plates from the lunch you just had. „Besides that, you don't need to shave, its not like you're getting lucky with another bassist tonight,“ she raised an eyebrow at you.

„Hey! I can shave to just feel confident for myself, not for another mediocre man!“ you got playfuly angry at her, while she started laughing.

„I am joking, obviously. Unless you wanna switch it up tonight and bang the taken lead singer or a drummer, who doesn't really hookups, you're out of luck. The bassist is the only girl in the band, Victoria. You wouldnt want that, right?“

You grew a bit nervous, going back to the strange feeling you got when you looked at the blonde woman. She was beautiful, but not in the „I wish I was her“ way. You couldn't grasp the concept of what was going on and why this question made you feel uneasy. So you went with the only answer acceptable in your head.

„Right. So I am not getting any tonight, noted.“

//

The clock was showing 7:05, you and your friend agreed upon meeting at 7:15, at the bus stop that was just a few meters from your house.

You chose to put on your favourite flowy black dress that are slightly off-shoulder,paired with dress shoes. This outfit didnt particularly look like you're going to a rock concert, but it was one of your favourites.

When you closed the door behind you, you could already see y/b/n at the stop. You quickly ran across the street and walked towards her. When you were just a few steps away, the bus arrived.

„Perfect timing,bella,“ y/b/n scoffed at you while pulling out her wallet, as the door opened.

You both bought the tickets and made your way to the back of the bus. It was almost empty, so there wasn't any trouble with finding a seat. You chose the one next to the window to feel like a true protagonist.

 The whole ride, you were talking about how excited you were for the night and how you can't wait to meet Thomas and his friends. You wanted to make good impression, as they all seemed cool and you thought that you can never compare to them.

„So, I sent Thomas a picture of the two of us together. He showed his group and they all said that they are equaly as excited to meet you as you are to them. Ethan and Vic both asked if you were single, apparently. You might have a chance with the drummer boy, sis.“ y/f/n explained, sending shivers down your spine once again. Maybe it wasn't because the long-haired guy showed interest in you, but the opposite actually. It might've been a joke, sure, but the girl is the one, who got your heart racing.

You were never quite sure if you are straight, but were too scared to even think about it for more than few seconds. You were always close with other women, but always brushed it off as a friendly encounter. Even if you liked the way someone looked, you always convinced yourself it's because you would want to be them. Now with the picture of Victoria, that your friend showed you, and the ones you found on Instagram on your way home, you had the same feeling. You really liked looking at her and even the pictures where she had no makeup on, she looked so beautiful. There were some risky shots of her on the feed as well. She was almost nude, only covered by some clever censorship so it doesn't get taken down. You would be lying if you said that you didn't look at them for way too long, trying not to hit like by accident. You really didn't want to think about your sexuality right now.

„Didn't you say that I wasnt getting any tonight?“ you asked her, trying to brush off the thoughts that were racing through your mind.

„I might've been wrong about that, ooops,“ she smiled at you with her teeth out.

„We'll see how the night goes.“

//

You were standing really close to the stage. Of course, you had VIP tickets so you didn't have to wait in line. The concert was about to start in 10 minutes and people were still hoarding into the club.

You saw y/f/n smiling at her phone, where she had messages from her boyfriend backstage. You couldn't help but peek a little, which was obviously a mistake. There was a mirror selfie of Thomas straight out of the shower, which he must've sent her some time ago. He was almost naked, only towel around his waist and you realised that it was definitely meant for her eyes only. When she looked at you, you quickly tried to look a different direction, not to seem suspicious.

„I can't wait for the concert to start, they always have the best outfits and staging and you will love it!“ she squeeled with excitement.

You let out a little laugh. „Okay, calm down, groupie. I bet the backstage looks great too, huh?“ you were teasing her, as she always used to do to you because of your exes.

She frowned and tried to seem angry at you, but couldnt hold in the laugh. „Hey! Not funny! But I guess that's what I get for making fun of you all the time, right?“

You nodded your head with a smile.

Just in that exact time, the lights went off. You realised there were many people around you and you didnt even notice all of them coming before.

When you turned your head to the stage, different colored lights were starting to shine. The crowd started cheering and a few moments after, you saw a figure running from the back of the stage. People got even louder and you saw the long-haired man sitting down behind the set of drums. The person who was running to the center of the stage turned out to be Thomas and he was soon followed by Victoria. Once you saw her, it was like the world around you stopped. She was wearing a short plaid skirt with a tank top. The red fabric around her waist had you hypnotized. Her beautiful blonde hair falling right along her breasts, almost framing them. She was holding her bass, that had Girls bite back written on it. „I wonder if she really does,” you thought to yourself. Completely mesmerized, you almost didn't notice that the lead singer, Damiano was already at the center of the stage.  

„Good evening, Tivoli, how are you guys doing?“ the lead singer shouted into the microphone and it was the only thing that got you out of your daydream. Many people around you were screaming their lungs out.

„As you probably know, we are Maneskin and we came from Rome to play for you tonight. Are you all ready?“ he said while fixing his mic into the holder.

The fans cheered once again.

Damiano smirked towards the audience, „sounds like it. Let's go, guys!“ he said while looking at his bandmates behind him.  They started playing the intro to Zitti e Buoni.  

You and your friend cheered along, as she didn't let her eyes go off her boyfriend.

//

The concert was amazing. You both enjoyed it and you even cried a little, when the band played Coraline. You really tried not to focus your whole attention to Vic the whole time, but it was quite impossible. When she looked your way, because she noticed your friend, you could've died.

„Okay, people. We are having so much fun, but unfortunately, this is the last song of the night.“ Damiano walked across the stage to Thomas and grabbed him by the waist. „Thats why I'd do whatever you want,“ he said and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

The crowd went crazy and you looked at your friend, smiling. „You jealous?“ you teased her.

She shook her head and looked up again.

Thomas began playing the intro of For your love and soon the rest of the band joined in.

As they were getting on with the song, there was so much sex appeal on the stage that probably no one could breath properly. Damiano was left shirtless, as you heard he usually does every concert. Your friend was singing along, as she already knew the lyrics and was exchanging suggestive looks with her boyfriend.  

Through an interlude, while Damiano went to take a sip of water and generally just walked around the stage, Vic dropped to her knees at the stage right in front of you. She was strumming the strings of her guitar while moving her hips towards you. Your friend was screaming and cheering her on, but you were left speechless. The sinful thoughts you had as she was thrusting into air with her bass on her crotch made you wish that no one around can read your mind. Soon, Thomas joined in and now they were facing each other, both playing their parts really well.

As they were getting up from the ground, your friend earned a wink from her boyfriend at which she did a fainting gesture. Vic laughed at them and smacked Thomas ass as he walked away. You had to laugh.

//

The security was leading you and y/f/n backstage. Girls around you were shooting dirty looks your way, filled with jealousy. They probably weren't aware that the girl next to you was the guitarist's girlfriend and you were just tagging along.

When you entered the dark corridor, everything seemed mysterious. As you walked a few steps, you saw a little light at the end. With it, there was also Thomas, all sweaty and exhausted, smiling your way. Your friend did a little run and soon landed in his arms. They were giggling with excitement between the little kisses they placed on each others faces. You awkwardly stood next to them and waited.

„Oh, baby, this is my best friend, y/n I told you about!“ y/f/n introduced you. Thomas smiled towards you.

„Hi! I have heard so much about you!“ He came closer to you. „I would hug you, but you probably wouldn't like that right now“

„Oh, it 's okay, I am already sweaty as well, whats the worst that could happen?“ you pulled him into a quick hug.

Soon,you followed him to the dressing room, where the rest of his band was relaxing.

Your eyes were automatically drawn to the lead singer on a couch. He was sitting just in a towel around his waist, smoking a cigarette and looking into his phone. Then there was Ethan, packing some of his stuff into a bag.

„Y/F/N, my favourite girlfriend of Thomas ever! Not like he has had many  before.....I am not going to save it, right?“ Ethan gave her a look with grin on his face.

„No, not really. But it 's okay, I know my boyfriend used to be a whore.“ Your friend laughed and went to give the drummer a hug. Everyone in the room laughed out loud as well.

„Hey! Not cool!“ Thomas pretended to be offended, but was fighting his laughter back. Y/f/n went on to hug Damiano as well, and you saw Ethan approaching you. Remembering the information from before, you felt your palms sweat.

„You must be Y/N. Im Ethan, pleasure to meet you.“ he reached out his hand towards you with a smile. You quickly wiped off your hands on the dress you were wearing and reached one of them out to shake his. When you felt his tight grip, you also noticed him looking you up and down. It definitely made you feel weird, as well as bringing pink tint to your cheeks. He seemed to notice, as he raised his eyebrows at you.

„Nice to meet you as well,“ you quickly tried to bring the attention to something else. „that 's two members down. Two more to go.“ You turned your body towards the couch, where the lead singer and your friend were sittting.

„Oh, yes, my apologies for not introducing myself, but your dear friend attacked me before I got the chance,“ he stood up while your friend was giving him a dirty look. You marched towards him, meeting halfway. „My name 's Damiano and I am really tired, so if I sound bored, it's not because of you. Just a heads up.“ He pulled you into a hug.

„Y/N. Don't worry about it, I look and sound like I haven't slept in two years all the time.“ you pulled away with a chuckle.

„Would you guys mind if I use the restroom? I drank a lot of beer and its getting to me,“ you asked around the room.

„Sure,“ Thomas nodded. „Do you need a guidance or just the instructions how to get there would be enough?“

„Just the instructions, please.“

„Well then, when you walk out of the door, you'll go to the left and walk into the other dressing room, thats marked with the number 294. When you open the door, you'll see a lot of our shit pilled up, but just ignore it. There's a door to the toilets and showers.“

„Thank you.“

//

When you opened the door, the only light you saw was coming out of the bathroom. You tried to reach for the light switch, you couldnt find any on the wall. Not thinking anything of it, you just walked towards the other door, trying to get your job done and get out. As you were getting closer, you heard the water was running. You peeked through the door, curious if it wasn't only left running by someone on accident. Quickly realising it definitely wasn't, you saw a slim figure behind the glass shower door. There was fog all over, but you soon figured out that it was Victoria.

Trying to not be creepy, you turned around and made your way towards the door through which you entered. Unforturnately, you didn't realise there was a subwoofer casing in front you, which made you trip and soon, you saw yourself falling face first into the ground. It didn't hurt, but you were definitely left shocked and exposed. Quickly getting up as soon as possible, you pulled your dress down and made your way to leave once again.

„Oh look, what a nice way to introduce yourself.“

You heard a voice behind you.

Soon realising, that it was Victoria, who has gotten out of the shower upon hearing you fall, you had your stomach in a knot. There was no way out now, so you just bit the bullet and turned your body towards her.

There she was, standing wrapped in a towel. Damp hair, smudged makeup and the light framing her body. You would be lying to yourself if you said this sight didnt spark a thought. You quickly realised that you were quiet for way too long, just staring. Being a creep is not the first impression you want to leave on people.

„Uh, sorry-I just-I needed-I needed to go to the bathroom and then I saw you and tried to go away and I almost died on the way out.“

Vic just chuckled and made her way in your direction.

„Good thing I saw you bent over that casing, at least were even now, since you saw me naked already.“

She made a turn to the left side of the room, turning the little lampshade next to a couch on.

Suddenly, you were feeling anxious, wanting to leave the room, as you felt like you invaded her privacy.

„You're y/f/n 's friend, right? At least I hope so, because otherwise Id have to call security on you. That would be awkward.“ Vic said, rummaging through her backpack full of clothes.

„I 'm glad to spare you the awkwardness, I am Y/N and she is indeed, my best friend.“ You sat down on the couch next to her.

„Oh cool,“ she replied to your comment, „she told me quite a lot about you when we met the last time, I feel like I know everything about you already. Plus I saw your ass now, so thats good.“

„I am really sorry for showing you my ass,“ you tried to apologize.

„It's a nice ass though, nothing to be sorry about.“

You were getting flustered. Seemingly, the conversation was leading nowhere, these kinds of compliments were normal amongst the band, from what you heard. You were still feeling uneasy, as there was a half naked woman next to you.

„So, Y/N,“ Vic sat down next to you, leaving the activity from before behind.  „Is it true you have a thing for bassists?“

Your heart was pounding and you kept looking at the ground, trying to figure out what this is supposed to mean.

„I mean- I guess so?“ you went with a confusing answer.

Vic crossed her legs and you turned your face up to her. You saw her smiling to herself.

„When I heard about it, I thought to myself that I must be really lucky that such a beautiful woman likes something that's a big part of me. Ethan also finds you attractive so I knew he would try to get you to like him but I basically prayed that you also like women, so I had a better chance, haha,“ she paused her rant to tuck a string of hair behind your ear. Your heart was pounding and you couldnt believe all of the things you just heard. It truly felt like you were dreaming.

„I even put on a little show on the stage right in front of you, so I could spark an interest. All of that mightve been useless, though. So the important question is, do you like women at all? And do I have a chance?“

You must've looked like a deer in the headlights. The whole situation didnt feel real, and you thought you probably had too much beer and this was all just a dream after you passed out drunk. But it really was true and you were sitting in front of this beautiful woman, asking you about something you're not so sure about. You decided to go with an honest answer.

„I really don't know. You're awesome and hot and you can play the bass really well and to be honest, you haven't left my brain the whole day. But its so hard for me, as I am still not sure what it all means and I have always procrastinated figuring out my sexuality. I just never felt like thinking about it, because it would become real. But now, it's obvious there is something going on and ugh, my stupid brain is making me anxious.“

Vic raised her eyebrows at you, smiling wide.

„So maybe let's not think about it for now and just do whatever you feel like doing, you can figure it all out later.“

„Well, I really feel like touching your skin and kissing your lips right now, but I'm not sure,“ you built up the courage to let it out of your system.

„Do it.“

//

[girldirectionsource]

hey!! could you recommend any long wlw fics?? preferably more than 70k words. thanks:)

Hi! Unfortunately, there aren’t that many longer girl direction fics but I do have two amazing ones to rec you that are both over 100k:

You Make Lovin’ Fun by @homosociallyyours

Harry is a 28 year old travel writer at a gay magazine who gets the assignment to go a lesbian cruise. She figures it's a nice chance to have some fun in the sun, but she's not expecting much else-- even if her partner and best friend are both encouraging her to hook up with someone while she's there.

When she locks eyes with a gorgeous silver fox from across the room, she starts to think she could've been wrong. There are lots of things standing in the way of anything real happening with her and Louis, but that doesn't stop them from falling for one another. True love isn't always easy, but they do make lovin' fun.

Crazy and Infectious by @star55

“Y’know,” Louis starts. “While we’ve got our phones out, you should give me your number. In case they ask who referred them.” “Oh, they don’t do that,” Harry replies as she locks her phone. “They’re not the kind of company who keeps tabs on who refers who.” Louis raises her eyebrows and smiles at this beautiful girl. “Harry,” she says slowly. “I’m hitting on you.”

A Shades of Pink story in which we flash back to find out just how Louis and Harry actually got together.

(If you haven’t read it yet, the entire Shades of Pink (Crazy in Love) series is over 400k at this point and I highly recommend checking it out!)

more under the cut!

And then here are some recs between 50k and 70k:

I love your demons (like devils can) by ariadne_odair

"I am right here," she says loudly, and she can almost hear the crack when Louis' head whips around to stare at her.

"Why?" Louis asks, and Harry feels her insides shrivel up and die.

Harry didn’t plan to join the football team. She didn’t plan to sleep with the captain of the football team. She definitely didn’t plan to sleep with the closeted captain of the football team, who promptly acted as if nothing happened and left Harry a pathetic, pining mess.

The Changer and the Changed by @homosociallyyours

It’s the spring of 1977 and Harry Styles has just moved to New York City after graduating college. She knows she’s a lesbian. She just needs to figure out how to meet other lesbians.

Louis Tomlinson works at a popular women’s bookstore in the Lower East Side, Womon’s Direction, where she spends her days reading feminist literature, writing poetry, exchanging friendly barbs with her boss Niall, and dreaming of finding someone to love.

When Harry and Louis meet, their connection is instantaneous. Slowly but surely, Louis welcomes Harry into her community of women. Stonewall veteran and old school butch Niall; Liam, a land dyke who’s moved to the city for love; and Zayn, a lesbian musician who’s been ostracized by a vocal part of women’s community for being trans, welcome Harry with open arms, ready to help her find her place in New York City’s bustling lesbian scene.

It’s a time of growth for everyone involved.

If I Was Stronger by @haloeverlasting

Harry’s fingers find her lips, in a silent moment of wonder and reverie, and her knees wobble as she’s assaulted with the image of Louis, right here in her bedroom, with her light blue eyes, and her gentle hands, and Harry feels an overwhelming rush and longing to reach out and touch. She imagines Louis stepping towards her slowly, treading lightly with her fingers on her cheek, where Harry’s dimple may appear, and whether Harry would like it if Louis’ thin lips found hers.

With her eyes closed, she imagines Louis standing very close, and she finds the wait to be agonizing, but when she goes to close the distance, there’s no one besides herself in her bedroom.

Harry lets out a breath she hadn’t even realized she’d been holding. She feels tingly, and hot, and absolutely terrified, but the next time she looks in the mirror, she sees someone she knows intimately. She sees that girl with bright green eyes, and unruly hair, and parted lips, and she loses her breath a moment, because while she knows that girl inside and out, she hasn’t been honest with herself until… well, now.

“I might be gay.”

A Girl Direction AU where Louis holds universes inside her, and Harry just wants to hold her.

That Smile and That Midnight Laugh by @uhoh-but-yeah-alright

Harry’s never noticed how lovely Louis really is. Maybe it’s just that she’s usually so guarded – a little tense, a little irritated, a little put out. At least when she’s at school, and also usually when she’s around Nick, which are the only times Harry has really seen her. Until tonight. Tonight Harry’s seen her with her guard completely down. Too busy laughing and enjoying herself to remember to be prickly, maybe. She seems different.

It feels different.

A Ferris Bueller's Day Off AU that picks up right where the movie leaves off, and imagines what might happen if Ferris' girlfriend and sister become friends. And maybe something more, too.

Sea Asunder by @cupcakentea 

It’s only then, as Anne elegantly sits at the other end of the table, that Louis realises there’s a third set of cutlery and plate laid out on the side between them. She feels something twist in her belly, right when the sound of small heels coming closer echoes from the drawing room. She looks at Anne’s side, where the door she came from remains ajar. But she realises, as the steps slow down, that the one on hers is wide open. She feels the hair on her neck standing up slightly with what feels like a shift in the very atmosphere of the room. A gravitational pull that passes right by her side with no words, no sound, just a disturbance of the air. There she is.

A Portrait of a Lady on Fire AU

i must admit i thought i’d like to make you mine by @disgruntledkittenface

Louis fell apart when her ex broke up with her and moved across the country. Just as she’s starting to move on, Zayn comes back to town for their mutual friends’ wedding – with a new girlfriend as her plus one.

Blindsided and scrambling to save face, Louis lets herself get talked into a fake relationship with her new friend Harry. Their arrangement makes Louis feel pathetic and embarrassed, but it’s only going to last a few weeks. She just has to get through the wedding – what could happen?

And here some fics I found while putting this together that I haven’t read yet but which look good!

into the great wide open by @ficshl

It only took a week or so for Harry to truly get into the routine of life on the road. They woke before dawn each morning, ate a small meal, packed up the tent and rounded up the livestock, all before setting out. On a good day, they could make it twenty miles. There hadn’t been many bad ones, but Louis confessed that on a previous trip there had been a solid week where they hadn’t made it more than five miles a day. Soon, Louis promised, animals would start going lame, and wheels would start breaking, and people would start going hungry. The beginning was the easiest, and the end was doable only because the hope of finishing the trek fueled everyone. It was the middle bit, with the tedious marching hundreds of miles from any settlement, that people succumbed to the journey.

Safe and warm in your coat of arms by frenchkiss

If she's being completely honest with herself, Louis didn't want a girlfriend. She had fully intended to head off to university, fuck around a bit, and be the lesbian that her hometown hadn't let her be.

Too bad fate wanted to throw a spanner in the works. A tall, curly haired cherub of a spanner who tends to answer to the name Harry, to be exact.

Me, Her, And The Moon by star55

All Louis wants to do is survive secondary school and her A Levels, be the best sister that she can possibly be to her five sisters, and train as hard as possible to be her family’s future alpha. She doesn’t expect to meet her mate on the first day of school and have her entire world changed.

[anne-writes]

Yaoi Fandoms; Representation or Fetishization?

1,305 words, 5 min~ reading time. Seperated into 25 paragrpahs for easier reading/writing. I worked on this while very sleep deprieved so comment an edits uwu. Essay under the divider. 

TW: Sarcasm, slight meaness (from me and others), inappriopriate messages to minors, censored cursing, babies?, I’ll update if I figure out any more.

+===========================================================+

It seems whenever a thing in the media with plenty of men in it (youtube groups, bands, shows, ect.) will eventually come out with an MLM ship. This isn't inherently bad because men loving other men is amazing. Good for them. I'm so proud. The problem comes from the stans focused on this ship/couple. 

Stans, am I right? The majority of unneeded cancel-culture and cyber-bullying. (Note how I say unneeded) I don't actually mind a lot of stans, probably since I don't use Twitter often. 

Now my problem with stans is they find a content creator (musician, artist, YouTuber, ect.) and they try to make this person fit into their specific box of expectations via bullying, and fear of being cancelled and their career ruined. 

This sucks for many reasons, because, these content creators are still human, right? Stans don't usually seem to know this and put these people on an unreachable pedestal. Kind of like your parents who expect you to stay the same gifted kid throughout your life. It eventually gets exhausting. Let's put this train of thought on hold for just a few minutes.

Now all of that brings me to my point of writing this. Are yaoi fandoms a good thing or a bad thing? Are they asking for representation or fetishization of their faves? Are they trying to get more LGBTQA+ creators known or are they looking for their uwu gay babies? 

I think the question boils down to, who is writing the majority of the fanfiction and what kind of fanfiction is it? Are straight women writing your gay man smut for other straight women to enjoy? I think this is a good telltale if your yaoi fandom is good or bad. 

Now, I don't mind straight women writing gay characters having sex, having angsty sex, discovering themselves and falling in love, and straight women reading it,  because good on you for not caring about what kind of romance story it is! Everyone loves a good romance story for the many different tropes, I'm partial to enemies to lovers. 

I do have a problem when it's not really meant as romance and more something for straight women to get their rocks off if you catch my drift. Getting off to a gay relationship because it's gay is really weird in my opinion. (I'm looking at you, straight boys who watch lesbian porn). 

It's quite weird to get off to these kinds of relationships and leads to fetishization. We already are trying to tell the straight boys this, but the gays aren't around for straight people's porn-watching pleasure. It's the same as women liking gay men for being gay. Or men liking lesbians for being lesbian. 

I feel that a lot of Yaoi stans aren't asking for representation more so are they asking for two men making love for their pleasure. This leads to the box of expectations that seem to come with every stan. (I told you we'd come back to that earlier point) 

As soon as the ship is adopted by stans, it seems to always get joked around by the content creators associated with it. Examples can include, Harry Styles and Louis Tomlinson, and Dream and GeorgeNotFound.

There's now the notation of 'well they brought it up so it must be true!'. And so, if the content creators continue making jokes about their shipname, the more of a cultish following grows and the more expectation for this to be real. 

This is pretty dangerous, as whatever one of those men gets a girlfriend, or a partner that isn't this specific person? Then the fandom turns against the 'traitor' and tries to solve any problems standing in the way of their ship. See Babygate. Whether or not you believe in that situation, the way they (stans) treated the families was just downright terrible. 

I mean sending porncaps to an underage minor? Just because you think the actress might also be the same girl that the minor's brother got pregnant, wtf. (Apparently, those larries aren't very approving of sex workers and porn actors/actresses /maybekidding,whoknows)

As terrible as that situation was handled and everything, it does show what kind of people those stans can be when something or someone gets in the way of their perfect ship. 

They also share the argument of 'this man is in love with another man, so he is gay' which makes me think they're even less so wanting representation. Because representation at its finest would be all sorts of sexualities, genders, ect. not just one specific sexuality.

Representation can come without fetishization. Many content things have been able to accomplish this. For example, some nice MLM webcomics can be found on Webtoon. Blades of Furry is quite cute, and perfect for all my furries out there. Boyfriends is about a Poly MLM group of 4. (Kiss it goodbye, Not So Shoujo Love Story for you WLW in need) (I wanna be a cute anime girl for my trans cuties.) (The Four of Them for a story about a group of kids discovering themselves.)

You can ask for representation without it being about the actual sexual component. LGBTQA+ smut is good for communities with these kinds of ships, but it shouldn't come at the cost of sexualization. Their relationships shouldn't become all about sex, because a lot of people do actually have the ability to keep it in their pants y̶o̶u̶ ̶h̶o̶r̶n̶y̶ ̶f̶*c̶k̶s̶. 

Posters being obsessed with their top and bottom components and how this person has to act a certain way because they are a top or a bottom are just the same people who think dom and sub roles need to be in every relationship. Who cares about who's the top or bottom when we can just care about their love? 

I'm not here to tell you not to ship MLM ships or WLW ships, or any of that. Honestly, that would just be hypocritical of me. I just want people to realize that by allowing yaoi fandoms to sexualize these kinds of relationships, you are solidifying a point in your brain, and other impressionable people's brains that gay people are only for sexual enjoyment. 

Whilst I think that IRL ships are pretty weird, everyone is going to probably do that anyway. Just allow that person to be straight, or any other sexuality, allow them to have other partners and don't make their entire life and career around one little thing. 

Don't expect people IRL to obey/act how YOU want them. They're humans too, and relationships are complicated. Maybe down the line, your fave comes out of the closet, but you shouldn't force them to come out just because you can 'sense' it. 

It's their life, it's their sexuality/gender/identity, allow the choices to be theirs. Forcing someone out of the closet makes you a d*ck. No matter what. No 'but it was so obvious!'. No 'well it was true!'. Forcing someone to reveal a private detail about themselves is creepy and d*ckish. Who cares if you're right, you could've harmed that person's homelife or anything. Maybe they wanted to keep it secret because who are you, as the fan, to dictate what they can share with you. 

And so, I leave you with some final words. Not everyone has to be gay, as much as, not everyone has to be straight. Sexuality and Gender identity are a spectrum and you cannot decide anyone else's. Allow people to be who they are, and don't stalk people. That's f*cking weird. 

I hope you all have a fantastic day/night/whatever. And next time, think about if your actions will be helping the community or not. I'm sure no one means to harm it, but it's ok to check in with yourself and your actions every once in a while to better yourself.  

[5ivebyfive]

Do you ever find yourself wanting to talk about the lovely ladies we love who kick ass? Those formidable characters, lust-worthy ships, amazing actresses and musicians, or sportswomen? Do you want to talk to other people who love them as much as you do and appreciate works depicting them? There’s now a Discord server for you! Over at ladies who kick ass you can talk about all of these amazing ladies and make friends! 

We have a large selection of channels to choose from with fandoms ranging from Power Rangers 2017 to She-Ra to the DCU/MCU, ships from Trimberly to Fuffy to Posie (our ships do currently lean heavily on the wlw ships, but all ships featuring a kickass lady are welcome!), and a great list of incredible real life women who kick ass. In addition, there are channels for your hobbies and interests as well as a main chat.

Initially, while we find our footing, I am capping off the number of members at 30. This can expand in the future, but I need to see what the interest level for it will be and see how everyone flows together before we raise that number. 

Interested? Then message me with your answer to the below question so I can get an idea of who you are and what you like!

Off the top of your head, who are six ladies who you think kick ass? Fictional or real.

Amazing edit made by: @bluearrow126​.

There are so many fandoms to tag, but tumblr won’t let me do more than 5 at once. I promise I’m not leaving anyone out!

[thatwasthenightthingschanged]

hey sarah! after discovering artists like maisie peters or conan gray because of you (and absolutely LOVING them), I really started trusting your taste in music. therefore, I was wondering what other musicians you’d recommend, maybe even some songs of those artists (ones you really really like)? wishing you a wonderful Christmas (in case you celebrate!) and a wonderful 2022! 💗

ahhh it always makes me so happy when people find my fav artists bc of me so thank u🥺🥺💕 I will, in fact, put together a playlist of my favorite songs I discovered this year in a couple of days but until then:

1. wrabel: seriously HE'S SO GOOD. especially if you like gut-hitting sad songs. he made a lovely song about trans experience a couple of years ago ("the village") which is great! this year I absolutely fell in love with his debut album ☺️ my fav songs from on there are probably "london", "wish you well", "cars", "let love in" and "love is not a simple thing to lose"! he also got a Christmas ep!! I love "sometimes Christmas is hard" from there because I feel like we need more songs abt how Christmas is not always great if u got struggles in your family & this song is really soothing for that 🥰

2. Katelyn Tarver: (it's a theme here: sad songs agkslh) you might still know her from her role of Jo in Big Time Rush ☺️ my fav songs of hers are Never Fade, Don't Let It Change You and Somebody Else! I also recommend her project with the front singer of the band Parachute (their duo is called REAVES) and especially the song Never Was by them!

3. luz: if you're looking for a small wlw artist! she doesn't have that many songs out yet but I rll love "the author", "I'm lonely" & "permanent +1"!

4. Sody: yes somehow I love British female artists ahmslhs her song "Bitch (I Said It)" is a certified bop for all of your anger, but I absolutely love her songs "Whole", "Charlotte" (!!), "butterfly" and "time again"!

5. Violet Skies: known for my fav song I discovered last year, "This Could Be Love"! but this year I listened a lot to her EP "Lonely" and the songs on there are also rlly good!!

6. Maude Latour: for your Lorde vibes! my fav songs are "Lovesick" and "Block Your Number"!

7. Oh Wonder: they're the cutest little couple duo! with their songs it's kinda luck whether I like them or not but some of my favs are "Hallelujah", "Lonely Star", "This Christmas" (BEST CHRISTMAS SONG EVER IMO) and from their newest album "Don't Let the Neighborhood Hear"!

happy holidays and hope u have a great new year too, anon! 🥰💘

[bisluthq]

hi I was wondering what your favourite sapphic songs of Taylor's are? cause kaylors make such a big deal of the 'male perspective' in songs like our song, love story, mine. and I agree that wanting to experience that is gay in itself. but those songs just feel so straight country love songs that I really cannot see them as sapphic, particularly given that she also sings from the 'female perspective' to the man. so I wondered which songs feel most sapphic to you?

Ohh boy yeah the male perspective (except Betty where it’s gay in concept and feels very like when 15 year old me was obsessed with Blue Mountain State lmao) never screams gay to me. Let’s do a roundup of sapphic lyrics and themes.

In Teardrops on My Guitar, Taylor says: “Drew walks by me... Can he tell that I can't breathe? And there he goes, so perfectly... The kind of flawless I wish I could be.” Now the whole song’s unseen pining is pretty gay to me. Like I say, there are unrequited straight songs but it’s very like... “why aren’t you understanding that I’m right here? How can you be so blind?” In Teardrops Taylor seems very aware that this person (well boy in the song) won’t ever notice her.

And sure we could say “well she has poor self-confidence” but then there’s that line in the bit I chose: “The kind of flawless I wish I could be” - why is she comparing herself to a boy? Do I want to be you or do I want to fuck you is such a big mood for queer women especially young queer women. I dunno, like my first few late elementary/early middle school crushes (and my first few crushes were on girls) were very like: “Do I want to be her? Do I want to be her best friend? Or do I want her to hold my hand? And why does her holding my hand make my heart beat faster and seem to have no effect on her?” There’s a definite way queer women compare ourselves to the object of our affections that straight women don’t seem to do that makes “my crush is the kind of flawless I wish I could be” feel extremely sapphic to me.

Oh bonus one from Teardrops: “The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star / He's the song in the car I keep singing. Don't know why I do” - why doesn’t she know? Like what’s confusing about this situation? She likes this dude why is it such a big fucking deal that she does? And again why does she want to be like him?

Anyway yeah that whole song.

Also Invisible is gay af. Like if you reverse the pronouns it’s the universal queer woman’s story of being in love with your friend. And this bitch is into some dude who isn’t anywhere near good enough for her and your affections are invisible but if she only knew - and she won’t - the two of you could have something beautiful together.

Stay Beautiful also reads gay but apparently she wrote it in the fourth grade so maybe her vocab was just bad idk.

On that album, Tied Together with a Smile and I’m Only Me When I’m With You are formally, officially, according to Tay’s explanations about her female friends btw. If you listen to those two songs and then the first two I listed they’re... not that fucking different lmao. It’s that same idea of “you get me and I just want you to be happy”. It’s all just... gay...

Fearless is probably one of the least gay albums overall IMO (tho I’m open to people making stuff gay) but it does give us the title track which is very fucking gay lol so it makes up for the number of straight sounding songs on here. First there’s this bit:

We're drivin' down the road

I wonder if you know

I'm tryin' so hard not to get caught up now

But you're just so cool

Run your hands through your hair

Absent-mindedly makin' me want you

Man “I wonder if you know” is exactly that feeling I was describing like, I wonder if you realize this is more than friendship? I wonder if you know that I want you. And the “you’re just so cool” isn’t as explicitly “I want to be you” but it’s also got some of that shared energy. This person is so cool that them running their hand absent-mindedly through their hair is making her feel some type of way and yet she’s not sure if the person knows that. Now why wouldn’t this extremely cool guy know that the girl he’s giving a lift to is possibly interested?

Then there’s this bit:

My hands shake

I'm not usually this way

But you pull me in and I'm a little more brave

It's the first kiss,

It's flawless,

Really something,

It's fearless.

Why does this first kiss require so much bravery? It’s not her first ever because “I’m not usually this way” implies she has been in a similar position before. And then:

And I don't know why but with you I'd dance in a storm in my best dress

Fearless

“I don’t know why” - well because you like this person! Girl, you’re into them. Oh, you’re not sure why because it’s a girl? Also lbr discussing clothes with your crush/partner is a very gay girl thing so just that addition of “my best dress” in the context of the rest of this incredibly gay song is... gay...

Oh and a bonus point:

'Cause I don't know how it gets better than this

You take my hand and drag me head first

Fearless

Making that big a deal of handholding and saying it requires bravery is, you guessed it, gay af. 

Untouchable also delivers some gems: “Untouchable like a distant diamond sky / I'm reaching out and I just can't tell you why / I'm caught up in you” - I mean this is that whole vague confused forbidden vibes I spoke about before and the “And when you're close I feel like coming undone”. For me, it’s the fact that this person’s mere presence is enough to make her undone and she’s begging for a “taste of Heaven” feels... gay...

Jump Then Fall is also pretty damn gay to me. It’s got that dangerous “this could be dangerous” thing going on (“I had time to think it all over and all I can say is come closer”) but it’s also positive and... she’s saying jump and I’ll catch you which... like I get that it could be metaphorical but generally with het couples the dude would do the catching. Like if it was just that it’d not be that gay but again, the whole thing... is...

Whoa, oh, I need you baby

Don't be afraid, please,

Jump then fall

Jump then fall into me

Baby, I'm never gonna leave you

Say that you wanna be with me too

'Cause I'mma stay through it all

So jump then fall

Jump then fall, baby,

Jump then fall into me, into me

Like why are they both so scared? Why is she convincing herself and this person? What’s the danger? Is it just meant to be a “loss of virginity” song?

Then there’s the catching bit I mentioned:

The bottom's gonna drop out from under our feet

I'll catch you, I'll catch you

When people say things that bring you to your knees

I'll catch you

Idk man. It’s gay.

By the way for two unrequited songs that fundamentally feel straight to me, look at The Other Side of the Door and You Belong With Me. I’m not saying you can’t have queer readings. But both of them have that “blame” angle to the guy’s lack of interest or inability to requite her feelings. Like she’s saying “I won’t tell you what I want or that I want you but you should figure it out ya big dummy!��� which is inherently different to that “I know this is completely pointless and I’m barking up the wrong tree” energy of the other songs I mentioned. “I’m worried you’ll hurt me” songs are also different to “if you stand close to me I’ll completely fall apart but I can’t let you see” of... like... Untouchable.

Hey Stephen has the “I can't help it if you look like an angel” line but it’s generally straight for me because:

Hey, Stephen,

I could give you fifty reasons

Why I should be the one you choose.

All those other girls—

Well, they're beautiful,

But would they write a song for you?

Do you see what I mean it’s like “I know you might not want me but you should” and that’s not a sapphic vibe. Like that’s to me what makes her gay sounding songs so much gayer like they capture a very specific feeling - being confused on if you want to be her, be her friend or fuck her dumb ass.

On Speak Now Taylor adds another type of gayness into her repertoire. She does the “I’m singing about a guy but it’s all about a girl” thing in Better Than Revenge. Now I know she has been called out a lot for this and she herself has now said obvi girls don’t steal your boyfriend BUT that’s not the part I find interesting. It’s shit like: “She thinks I'm psycho 'cause I like to rhyme her name with things” - like girl, that is psycho. Being obsessed with the fact that she is wearing vintage dresses is weird. And Taylor does this in the title track with her lengthy descriptions of the bridge compared to ZERO description of the guy. Not even “looking so handsome” - like there’s nothing. But the bride is “floating down the aisle like a pageant queen”.

Idk this is only three albums and only like my favorite gay bits and I already have so many and I haven’t even gotten to Treacherous 😭 I think I should make a hashtag for this and carry on later.

The point is, for me, it’s not about her singing a back and forth with a guy and a girl. It’s capturing supremely sapphic wlw feelings that I’ve never seen a straight female songwriter or musician convey, even where I’ve loved their music and felt it strongly resonated with me for other reasons.

[queerchoicesblog]

The Handkerchief

Hiya, folks! So, as previously announced, the wlw writing project continues after a break with a miniseries set back in the City of Lights - & Love - at the time of the Belle Epoque, at the turn of the century.

Time for Léa to go back to the Moulin Rouge to return a handkerchief..

Hope you enjoy it: if you do, please consider spreading the word!

Next chapter out on Monday....

Tagging: @scottishqueer

Previous chapters: Paris, Paris ; One Night At The Moulin Rouge

_________________________

The following day I wake up with the notes of the can can still echoing in my ears. What a night! We kept talking of the Moulin Rouge in awe when we found a table at our usual bar in Montmarte. Marcel and Alain, rather tipsy, even tried to perform the high kicks and we burst into an irrefrenable round of laughters. As a result though...this morning Marie and I are both late for work. The boss is not happy: our supervisor, the most hideous old lady you'll ever met in your life, informs us that we will work extra hours to make it up for it. We nod, wincing, and she adds to go find her later: for now we just have to hurry, clients are waiting. In the end, she assigns us both extra hours for the week. My heart sinks yet I find myself laughing thinking of how she reminds me of my Mother dear: she would surely believe this is the right punishment for my foolish night out.

One week later I go to the roof to eat the fresh baguette Marcel kindly delivered us early in the morning. Marie and I always go there unless it's pouring rain or snowing, even if it's cold. It just gives us the impression to be finally out of this building for a while since we're not allowed to leave during working hours. To be precise only for deliveries, but most of the clients come directly to the atelier to collect their orders and we have a bunch of boys hired specifically for the deliveries. So it's awfully rare that one of us leave during the day: our hands are needed here, the supervisor use to say, cold and dry. It never fails to amaze me how she shifts into a complete different person with our clients. Whenever they're admitted to the laboratory for taking their measures or trying a finished dress, she even sings praises of our hard work and mastery. Two-faced bastard. Marie and I often joke that this atelier is not that different from a factory. On the roof we can catch our breaths. The ocean of black roves in front of us, punctuating the blue of the sky gives a new perspective even to the worst days. A chilly gust of wind blows in my face and I wrap myself in my coat. "Getting cold, huh?" Marie comments. I nod and bury my hands in my pockets: if they're too cold, working will be harder than usual, I should try to keep them warm...or get myself some new gloves since my old ones are worn out beyond salvation. My fingers touch something soft and I pick out a plain white handkerchief. The dancer's handkerchief! I totally forgot about it...she must think I've stolen it or something! I will bring it to her tonight after work, with my deepest apologies. She was so kind to give it to me even if there was no need to, it was an accident...Élodie was her name. Our time is up and we go back to our work. For the first time in months, I receive a generous tip from a loyal client out of the view of our supervisor and as the other colleagues leave around closing time I am left with a little moment for myself. A foolish idea crosses my mind. I retrieve my needle and some burgundy thread from my desk and start sewing roses at the handkerchief's edges. When I'm done, I contemplate my work and I'm quite satisfied: it's one of my favourite motives. But something is still missing...after a moment, it hits me. I pick up my needle again and sew the name "Élodie" right in its centre. When we're finally allowed to leave too, I tell Marie I need to return something to a friend, I will join her home later. She nods, she will save some stew for me for when I'm back. As I walk alone towards Pigallle I realise one thing: this time I have no ticket. That could be a problem...fair enough, I'll try knocking at the secondary door of the backstage. Luckily I still remember the way and thank God it's open: a couple of musicians -I wager - are smoking in the little court on the back. I approach them and asks them where I can find Élodie. Is she performing already? The two men look clueless. They ask me to repeat the name but no, it doesn't ring a bell. I'm confused... They call others from the inside and a couple of colleagues and another man I recognise as the male dancer of the show I attended join them. They repeat the name but nothing. I explain that she works here, I saw her dancing last week with the only other dancer present there. He looks pensive and asks me to describe her. "Maybe I know her by another name" he adds, encouragely. I oblige and before I can complete my description he stops me, nodding. "Yes, yes I know her and you're lucky, mademoiselle, she's here tonight" I let out a relieved sigh and he smiles at me. "Follow me, I'll lead the way" He guides me inside, explaining that generally they know each other by their stage names there, he only knows the birth name of another dancer and it was by accident. There isn't much time left before the next act but he will go call her, he says when we reach a room I've never been before. "Wait here, away from the cold" he smiles and disappears into the corridor. I thank him and look around. Wooden lockers cover the walls, on each one a different name: this must be where they keep their belongings and coats if the changing room is somewhere else. Naively I thought the two rooms would be just one. I hear the voice of the kind dancer in the corridor. "Lila" he calls, knocking loudly at the door to be heard over the lively murmur on the other side. The sound of the door clinging open. "Lila, there's someone for you" "Right now? But we're on stage in ten or so Ziegler said" "Don't shoot the messenger, darling! Locker room" When I hear a groan and steps approaching, I feel like dying. I picked the wrong time, she will have one more reason to be mad at me aside from keeping her handkerchief for so long. I close my eyes for a split second and take a long breath to calm me down. It's fine, Léa, you couldn't know, you don't belong to this world...you will just return the item, profusely excuse and leave before she's late for the act. At last, Élodie walks in and freezes in place, taken aback by my presence. But it lasts the blink of an eye. She quickly recovers and crosses her arms. Her face relaxes almost immediately. "Well well who have we here" she playfully starts, sauntering closer. "Bonsoir, seamstress-poet Léa, long time no see" A genuine smile brightens up her face and I'm surprised she remembers my name: our encounter was brief and accidental, she must meet tons of people in a week. I also cannot help but notice that she's glowing: she's ready for the stage and her costume is simply perfect for her. Whoever picked it must have a good eye for this things: the blue bolero and gown enhance the pale complexion of her skin and the red stockings add a playful tone to the whole outfit. "Yes, I'm very sorry about that, for taking so long...I've been working overtime these days and...but I picked such a terrible time, I'm so-" "Oh that's fine, worry not about that: I'm ready to dance" She spins in front of me, making her skirt twirl. The hems stroke my coat like gentle waves. "What brings you here tonight? I started thinking you forgot about me" she smiles, a childish pout on her lips. "Oh no, I would never!" Again, just like when she assumed Marcel was my boyfriend, words come out a bit blunt out of my tongue. As I feel my cheeks warming up, I bury a hand in my pocket. "I came to return you the handkerchief you kindly lent me. I wanted to give it to you sooner but..." I say, handing her my work. "Oh right!" she laughs softly. "You're just in time, I was thinking of complaining to the gendarmerie tomorrow, first thing in the morning" she winks. She examines the handkerchief with a puzzled face. "But this is not my handkerchief" "I forgot to tell you: I took the liberty to add a little embodery while I was at the atelier. To make it up for such a long wait" I explain. "I did it without thinking, I realise now that you may dislike my idea" She blinks and looks back at my work, the roses and her name. When she meets my gaze again, she's smiling. "Dislike this? Don't speak nonsense, this is gorgeous!" Another dancers steps in to put back a scarf in her locker. "Carmine!" Élodie calls her, excited. "Carmine, look! My friend here made this. Now I have a handkerchief with my name and decor just like a real gentlewoman! It's a fancy thing, isn't it?" The dancer takes a look over her shoulder. "Very fancy" she confirms before nodding at me. "Great job, Lila's friend" Then she takes her leave, reminding Élodie that it's almost time to go. She nods but her eyes are still fixed to my work. She looks back at me whispering "thank you" and throws her arms around my neck, swaying the two of us. I'm taken aback by her sudden gesture: I try to minimise as I hug her back. Before parting, she presses a kiss on my cheek. "It's not nothing! It's a beautiful thing you did and I will cherish it. Look, I'll wear it tonight on stage" She gently places it into a small pocket on her bolero, one hem showing. She flashes me another smile, shier than her usual ones. "You didn't have to go through all this trouble for me though" I protest that it was a great pleasure, no trouble at all. She reaches for my shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze before giggling. "But look at me! You're so kind and I always find a way to grow a stain on you" I look at her confused, looking down at my coat. I find nothing wrong? That's when I feel her thumb run on my cheek. She must have left a mark with her rouge when she kissed my cheek before. I lean to the touch, out of instinct, and I feel suddenly nervous. Ashamed of my reaction even if it felt so easy to just lean to that caress. I'm saved by a baritone voice in the corridor. "On stage! On stage, ladies! Who performs in la quadrille?" "Coming!" Élodie answers to the call. "I'll take my leave too" I say, clearing my throat. Her hands find mine and I look into her eyes again. "Oh no, don't go...stay! You can watch the show from backstage" She guides me back into the corridor, never letting go of my hand and surfing through the row of dancers lining up behind the velvet. When we reach one end, the curtains goes up and the first row of dancers starts running toward the centre of the stage. She places her hand on my cheek again. "Wait here and enjoy the show, I'll be back before you know it" she whispers leaning close to be heard over the furious notes of the can-can. Before I can say anything, she turns with a smile and joins her colleagues on stage. The view from here is no less magnificent than the paying spectators' one. A multitude of colours, cheerful shrieks and the enraptured faces of those witnessing this crazy wonder. I hide behind the curtains not to be seen even if I doubt anyone would notice me with the crowd on stage. The dancers are impeccable as usual, the same grace and perfection I remember...I find myself wondering if they're real or made of the substance of dreams. I feel so honoured to be here tonight, a secret spectator away from the crowd. I cannot refrain myself from clapping my hands to the maddening rhythm even if I swore to myself to be as quiet as possible...one simply cannot not join in when the can can is on. It pumps so much joie de vivre into your veins! From time to time I catch Élodie looking in my direction as she dances. I smile and clap my hands faster as if to encourage her. When they line up for the cartwheel line, she runs up to the last spot, the closer one to the end of the stage and to me. I wonder if she did it intentionally and I shake my head at the thought. What a silly girl I am! The dance goes on until the spectacular routine isn't over and the whole room echo with applauses and appreciative whistles. Some even throws roses to the stage. With playful reveries, the dancers take their leave and run into the backstage corridor, laughing and sharing comments about the perform and the audience. I press myself against the wall not to obstruct their way. One hand grabs mine and I turn to see Élodie. Her hair askew, sweat glistening on her forehead at the light of the gas lamps, her grace is still intact, maybe even enhanced. "You stayed" she says, panting for the furious dance but with a smile on her lips. I nod, giving her time to catch her breath. "Another breathtaking performance, I don't know how you do it but you were all amazing" She flashes me another proud smile. "Flatterer" she giggles. "Listen, wait for me as I change, will you?" Before I can say anything and after a quick squeeze to my hand, she disappears into the changing room. When the door closes, I can only do one thing: wait for Élodie.

[dorizardthewizard]

So I watched the Eurovision movie

Uh, I have a lot of thoughts because this is the closest we’re gonna get to the real thing this year ;^; First, the positives!

What they got right:

Overall, I like that it wasn’t really taking the piss out of the competition – whether you agree or not with how it was portrayed, the creators do have a lot of love for the show and that is reflected in how much it means to the characters. I think it was fitting to start with the kids watching and being inspired by ABBA’s win (I’m always up for showing people where the group’s fame started), and making it their life goal to perform in the contest. Just like Lars and Sigrit, many musicians in Europe grow up with Eurovision being an annual tradition and it’s their big dream to one day perform on that international stage, so yeah I think it decently showed how important ESC is here.

They got the overall vibe right too – most of the songs really felt like Eurovision songs (maybe a little dated but still), from the Viking-Europop opener to the Lordi-aesthetic one to whatever the hell Russia was doing. I don’t think Greece’s song was something they’d ever send though; it fits the character but not what the country typically sends. Then again, Estonia have sent an opera song in Italian and Romania sent yodel rap so actually, I take back that statement. They were missing a Balkan ballad though! Staging was on point – I think it was filmed at the Tel Aviv stage so that’s obviously a factor, but big angel wings and hamster wheels also bring a lot of familiarity :P No pianos being set on fire though, which, in a movie with so many on-stage disasters, is honestly surprising.

Of course there’s also the past contestant cameos, for that I’ll say one thing – needs more Verka. Maybe some contestants from earlier years would have been nice too, at least we did hear Céline Dion’s song in the song-along. Would also have been nice if the whole mashup was Eurovision songs, instead of throwing in some other ones just to make it more recognizable for non-Eurofans. Otherwise, the mashup was really seamless and sounded good.

Another thing the movie got right was European’s attitudes to Americans, not sure how I feel about it since the movie was made by Americans, but it’s self-aware and pretty funny :P There’s also the funny gag about countries not wanting to host because of how expensive it is, not sure why a guy working for the national broadcaster would care about that but looking at Iceland’s population size, I wouldn’t be surprised if he was also an economist for the government or something.

What they got wrong:

Of course, there were some things they didn’t quite get right. First of all, did the UK win for it to be hosted in Scotland??? Unless Australia won, or some other country that didn’t want to host or something. They actually made a joke about UK getting zero points, but they said it’s because no one likes us, when in reality we just send the blandest songs :/

There were also a whole lot of technical inaccuracies like Sweden breaking the rule on number of people allowed on stage, big five countries taking part in the semi-final (come on, how can you not get that right? Maybe they were afraid Americans wouldn’t recognise half the flags? :P), the contestants were just sitting by themselves in some room like it’s The Voice or something, their delegations nowhere to be seen, and then there’s the total lack of security or planning around the competition, with Lars just running around doing whatever. The countries presenting their votes in the semi-final stood out as well, but since we didn’t get to see the final I can brush over it, just so we experience the voting somewhere in the movie. Wonder why they didn’t use past contestants for the points announcements? They also had the French one speaking in English but you know what, they remembered to make sure he was standing in front of the Eiffel Tower so I’ll let them off :P

One thing that did bother me was how hard the movie tried to make us think the Icelandic song was a failure, except the song wasn’t even bad so they had to resort to all the incidents on stage. They even had that complete silence after the hamster wheel incident, and there is NO WAY that would ever happen – even the null points songs get cheers! In fact, people would cheer harder, and I don’t think Graham Norton, or anyone for that matter, would be that surprised that people remembered the song and actually gave it points (oh yeah, great to see him in this!).

Okay, some of those inaccuracies were nitpicks, but they’re just fun to point out. I don’t think they quite nailed the portrayal though, but more on that later.

The movie itself:

Judging the rest of the film, the humour really didn’t do it for me- it was just kind of jarring that one half of the movie felt like your usual light-hearted music contest film that was fairly rooted in reality, then the next there’s a dismembered ghost of Demi Lovato and a guy getting stabbed by Elves??? I know it’s classic Will Ferrel random comedy but honestly, those parts could have been cut out of the movie just fine, it’s like half an hour too long anyway and you can tell by the way the humour drags. It can basically be summarised by the ending scene where Lars is yelling at the Americans and then just keeps going, and I know that’s the joke in that scene but they do this throughout the whole movie – something will happen and the characters will keep reacting back and forth and it’s honestly exhausting. That might just be me though, maybe I’d prefer more witty and self-aware humour in a Eurovision movie but I guess non-fans wouldn’t get half the jokes so they went for over-the-top ridiculousness ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

As for the characters, Sigrit was great; she’s a good mix between cute and weird. Lars is… annoying tbh, maybe I just don’t care for Will Ferrel's character type but when Alexander asks Lars what he can possibly offer Sigrit I was like “yeah Lars, what CAN you offer?”. Their relationship was cute though and his arc about caring too much about winning was decent, it does kind of resonate with Eurovision because yeah, lots of countries will revamp their songs to have English lyrics and the style is increasingly converging to Americanized radio-friendly pop music. I do wish they’d focused more on this conflict, rather than bringing in a love square (?) with Alexander and Mita.

Speaking of Alexander, I actually liked how they portrayed the Russian character; he wasn’t a villain, he was fun to watch and was genuinely happy to see Sigrit succeed. I did not expect them to go there with the whole “there are no gays in Russia” thing – I laughed but also actually felt for the guy, and his friendship with Mita was peak mlm/wlw solidarity, it was sweet.

The ending:

For me, this is where it goes American Hollywood style and kinda reminds me of Madonna’s speech about everyone being winners. Felt like I was watching Camp Rock for a second then (which is funny since Demi is in this movie) – all the other acts are fun songs but we’ll just change ours to a ballad so it must be more heartfelt and resonate with the audience, as if a good chunk of ESC songs aren’t ballads already!! To be fair, they do well in having it be a personal song about her hometown and adding in parts in Icelandic (although I’ve heard it’s so butchered you can’t understand what’s being said), it’s a sweet ode to one of the best parts of Eurovision – celebrating where you’re from and making your country proud.

Wish they’d focused more on that tbh, we really could have done without Lars speaking to the audience – that’s the more Hollywood moment for me and kind of reminds me of acts that try to connect with the audience like it’s a concert. Sorry but we don’t do that here :P Instead of the “music is feeling”-like message, it would have been nice if the movie was more directed towards celebrating why the contest is so big and important even decades after it began, and how it literally brings an entire continent together for one night. This would have been nice especially because of all the cynicism towards ESC and its dismissal as just a dumb, campy event with no quality music whatsoever.

Huh, I just remembered there are no live instruments at Eurovision so how everyone can hear the piano at the end is beyond me, also the instrumental kicks in despite the fact that that song has never been recorded in a studio, let alone able to be played out loud onstage. But I’ll just imagine that’s for us to see, the audience actually just heard her singing and nothing else. I don’t think it would have been that impressive, so Iceland probably won everyone’s hearts through memes instead :’D

Overall, I don’t think the movie was terribly offensive or anything, just some silly fun that missed out on the potential of better portraying the Eurovision spirit. I might eventually watch it again, but with skipping out half the comedy :P

[taylortruther]

I just wanna say I head canon Ivy as wlw and I also think taylor is straight. When YNTCD came out she said she was just an ally and when Hayley Kiyoko critiqued how Taylor was allowed to write songs about guys and it being okay because she’s straight, taylor stepped in and agreed. She might be straight but she’s an ally. I don’t think she would care if people related any of her songs to their life and made it queer. She might be straight but she’s not homophobic. I remember when Toderick Hall called her straight and asked what she would do if her son was gay, and let me just say I think Taylor has always been a well-intended ally, but I think she has been more vocal in the last few years because she came across as homophobic in her early days. I am also queer and I do want her to be bi, but I don’t think she is and I often think many of us hold onto hope for her to be bi when she’s not. This might sound harsh, but the amount of analysis I see relating her songs to queer subtext is more than what most people do to queer artists with actual confirmed queer songs. It’s a little frustrating. With that being said, some people are homophobic here. I think there is room for both of these conversations, and even though TS is straight, that doesn’t mean we can’t make her songs about queer people. When she said Betty was written from a man’s POV it also solidified to me that she’s straight, and can’t see things from a queer perspective. It is a little annoying that because of this, fans will use what she said as ways to be homophobic. Also, with that being said, people will use Taylor using language like “I’m an ally, I’m not gay, I’m not part of the comminity” too literally and because of this, will say she’s being sexually ambiguous when in reality she’s not and it’s a HUGE disservice to queer artists. These both can exist at the same time, and imo only LGBTQ+ people should have these conversations. Straight people don’t need to defend her straightness. I get it. She’s straight, but a lot of people relate to her music and find queer coding within them even though TS herself is not gay. It’s a balance and again I want to say no straight person needs to defend her heterosexuality. At the end of the day most people know she’s straight, and at the end of the day she’s not going to be effected by people making her art queer— I just will say it does effect other queer artists too because I find myself subconsciously supporting straight artists more than queer artists. I want to have these conversations, but I’m afraid a lot of the people who want to have them are only having them because they’re homophobic and want to defend her straightness.🕵️‍♀️ Also!! When TS said that about Betty she said it from a place of straight privilege imo. Of course she said it was from a man’s POV because that’s what her first instinct is. Doesn’t mean it’s an excuse for people to be homophobic af. Big difference. Okay I’m off to stream the gayest song of all, Ivy.

i agree with many of your points here - this is all very well-reasoned. most days, i also think we are giving taylor too much credit... then i think, but why would she say a man was the type of flawless she wishes she could be??? and i know what you mean by wanting to be critical and thoughtful with these discussions but knowing it would just get co-opted by people who were using it to defend their low-key homophobia. :/ 

and i believe taylor wrote betty from a dude’s perspective because she makes a choice in the way she sings it, that i think is supposed to reflect a “male” voice. and... honestly, maybe you could make that some argument for dorothea. but like i said in my last dorothea post, i don’t care if taylor is straight? i still ~experience~ some of her songs (like ivy, dorothea, betty) as gay. but that’s escaping some people, i think. 

also also... i don’t think we should take the discourse here as a “disservice” to the queer community. we can do both. we can support queer musicians and also ponder taylor’s motivations even when it’s reach-y. at the end of the day, i think it’s nice that taylor has shown so much support for the LGBT+ community and she doesn’t shy away from songs that she knows people will wonder about. 

[petekaos]

I, a starved wlw, just want to thank you so much for that super cute earnpear character bit! They are so cute and I adore their relationship, canon or otherwise. You're doing the important work! And thank you for mentioning kehlani and l devine too, they're amazing sapphic musicians! Take care and have a nice evening! ☀️🌸

hi hi nonnie! oh i’m so glad you enjoyed that, no need to thank me! i love earn and pear so much as well and i hope they get more screentime in still2gether, we shall hope. and kehlani and l devine make such wonderful music! i enjoy them a lot and i think they fit earn and pear quite well :^) thank you for this lovely message, take care as well!

[hennesseyok]

ummm hi !! so i’m nori n i’ve been outta the rp game for a hot minute but miss rona has me without shit to do so im back !! plz excuse this literal garbage intro but we out here !! i am so down to plot the fck outta her ( she needs bandmates for her band ... n also a name ... ahem ... ) n honestly am v open to anything, so plzZz dont hesistate to message me on here (im not hip with the kids so i dont have discord ??? yet ??? ) n e wayz heres my cutie sadboy babie hennessey eeek !! i love this group already ah !!

kristen stewart. cis woman. she/her. ❝ can you hear painfully obvious by harmless coming from apartment # 408 ? that must mean hennessey rhodes is home. the twenty-six year old is currently a member of a local band and they live with 2 roommates. they’ve been living in the village for four years and residents have gathered the scorpio’s enigmatic yet detached demeanor. ❞ nori. 21. she/her. gmt -6.

s t a t i s t i c s full name: hennessey leighanne rhodes nicknames: rhodes, h, hez, daddy [ anything thats not “henny” lol she hates that name eek ] dob: oct 25 1993 sign: ☼ scorpio, ☾ scorpio, ↑ capricorn sexuality: queer [ wlw, nblw ] birthplace: new albany, mississippi known languages: english, some bayou french siblings: none a e s t h e t i c s + pinterest drunken walks home from the bar, matching stick n poke tattoos, worn in band tees, red-tinted bedroom lights, unmade beds, empty swimming pools at 3 am, sunrises on apartment rooftops, shelves of filled leatherbound notebooks, lightwash denim, half wiped off sharpies on skin, bruised knuckles on soft hands, blood pacts with best friends, freshly bleached hair, gentle forehead kisses, the smell of vanilla and tobacco b i o ☆ the child of two born again evangelical christians in the small town of new albany, ms, hennessey was brought into a world of devout religion and an “all american” mentality ☆ located in northern mississippi near the tallehatchie river, new albany had a population of just under 7,000 when hennessey was born. being in the bible belt of america, mississippi had a ruthless reputation for homophobia, transphobia, and racism. all things that hennessey was brought up surrounded by. ☆ her parents were through and through rednecks that tried to get their lives on track after her mother was knocked up at 19 [ thus her name… ahem ] ☆ the early years of her life were spent fully devoted the church, she was baptized at birth and was fully indoctrinated into her religion until her freshman year of highschool ☆ hennessey starting experiencing same gender attraction as early as she can remember, but never acted on anything until junior year. after a local high school party she found herself in the bedroom of the town preachers daughter. ☆ a whirlwind romance began, the two were inseparable and were thought to be the best of friends by everyone in town. but, when playing with fire, someone is bound to get burned. or the whole town can go up in flames, and that’s exactly what happened. ☆ the two were walked in on one night and it was enough to strike the match. all of new albany was disgusted and enraged; they wanted the rhodes family out of their town, even going so far as to claim that the devil had come in the form of the family to destroy the good people of mississippi. ☆ excommunicated by her family, she finished highschool at 18 and took of running as fast as she could. she bought the cheapest bus ticket she could afford, and landed on the couch of a local blues musician in nashville, tn. he took her in and taught her everything he knew about music and, by proxy, black culture. ☆ after leaving new albany, her worldview shifted foundationally. she’s been in and out of central booking on riot and protest charges, so she’s pretty much stuck doing this music thing due to her criminal record ☆ from the ages of 19 to 22 she spent between nashville, atlanta, brooklyn and detroit, playing music, going on benders, and getting between the sheets of as many girls as she could  [ she basically went on a rampage lol ] in the process she picked up a pretty gnarly coke habit that she’s still trying to shake. so she says, at least. ☆ she landed in new york where she finally started a semi-successful band and decided she wanted to start building a life n thats when she ended up here !! q u i c k  f a c t s ok imma try to wrap this up cus i know its getting long lol but n e wayz heres like a tl;dr summary ☆ grew up in a racist, homophobic, backwards town; was outed for being gay and hasn’t spoken to her parents since she was 18 ☆ she’s a v talented musician and her rising in capricorn makes her want to be successful as fuck, even if she has to do some shady shit to get there ☆ she started a band and their mild success landed her in brooklyn. she needs bandmates !! i purposely didn’t name the band so connections could help make it a #Band.... ehehe ☆  she’s a ride or die friend and 10000% one of the #boiz, you can usually find her doing some dumb shit with her best friends. once u have her loyalty, she’ll be by your side no matter what happens ☆ v flirty. like, will flirt until u invite her back to ur place only to bail and go hang with her bandmates lol. ☆ she finds it hard to open up [ i know… how fuckin CLICHE ] but all she wants is someone to actually hold her n tell her that its okay not to be okay ??? give me that soft gay shit ??? ☆ shes a lil bit of a player but only becus she’s bored. its never her intention to hurt someone but girls often get attached and her scorpio ass isn’t the best at letting em down easy ☆ once she left, hennessey basically tried to shed all trace of her hometown from her, but she has a slight mississippi twang to her accent that only comes out when she’s really mad or rly close with someone [ she hates it sm and hates when ppl comment on it lol ] ☆ she’s forever writing songs, like 9 times out of ten if u cant find her, shes prob holed up in her bedroom, cigarette in hand, writing some sappy shit about a girl she hooked up w after her latest show [ kiiiinda wanna do a plot w someone she’s super into but the person couldnt give less of a fck about her ?? like yes bithc we love a role reversal ]

um ya thats it i will def be developing her way more i know this is so shit but im tryin my best here plz dont read me if shit don’t add up. love yall hehe. also plz plot w her she needs besties and hookups and love interests !!

[thecarmillacurator]

Season of Love movie review and news for new Natasha Negovanlis movie.

So two things: First, Carmilla’s own Natasha Negovanlis will be in Tello Film’s 2020 Holiday Movie, “I Hate New Year’s.” Woot woot!  Check out Tello’s twitter (https://twitter.com/tellofilms) for more information.

Hey @tellofilms​ may we have an Elise Bauman cameo, pretty please? Or Kaitlyn Alexander? Or Sharon Belle? Or Anne Briggs? You get our point. You’ll get a built-in Creampuff bank of pre-purchasers and free social media marketers for your trouble, guaranteed.

Second: Season of Love. I rented Tello’s Season of Love Holiday film online yesterday and greatly enjoyed it. I’m not a Hallmark Holiday movie kind of lady, but this definitely had more gravitas than I see in Hallmark movies, and in my opinion to call it a ‘Lesbian Hallmark Movie’ would be unfair to the film. It’s simply more elevated than that.  I even liked it enough that I’ll be re-watching it today. For my in-depth review, click to go beneath the cut below.

What I liked: The couples had chemistry ranging from good to really good. (There’s no Hollstein-level chemistry here, but that would be asking too much for mere mortals, wouldn’t it? Just kidding.)  I enjoyed the romantic arcs. It was a romantic comedy, but wasn’t all the typical Christmas fru-fru (though it was still a lot).

Couple #1: Mardou and Iris. Mardou (Laur Allen)’s performance was especially well done, and the character had more engaging subtly than you typically see in  Holiday movies. For you to understand that Mardou has been in love with Iris (Emily Goss) for years but has been exercising mature and caring restraint to not show it, to carry the movie, the role *had* to be portrayed with not just body language, but with sincere facial expression, especially with the eyes. Props here go also to choices made by the writers and execution by the director relating to the actors’ interactions and positioning.  Iris’ performance was almost as good. I say “almost” because while the story gives Mardou a very serious, almost tragic role, Iris’ role shoulders lower levels of comedy in addition to the serious undertones of what her character is going through. This is accomplished through physical humor and situational levity (often related to depression-related awkwardness) with brief forays into the ‘useless lesbian’ brand of awkwardness. (One scene is *truly* a laugh out loud moment, and Emily Goss’ facial and body performance here was right on point. I had to pause the film just to finish laughing, and then watched the moment twice more just for fun.)

Couple #2: Lou and Kenna. The arc between the brewery owner, Lou (Jessica Clark), and welder, Kenna (Sandra Mae Frank), was a super cute idea in theory, and was actually super cute in terms of how it was carried off, though it needed more situational authenticity. This arc gets plenty of laugh moments, as that’s its primary role in the plot. Lou is beyond adorably clumsy. The filming/artistic decisions relating to how Lou sees Kenna in various supermodel-esque mini-shots are cringe-worthily hilarious. The mix-in fact that Kenna is deaf and Lou has to figure out how to navigate this is both heartwarming, because it brings in something society generally sees as a disability and again, the basis for a good part of the humor. The actors have good chemistry together. The height difference is again, ‘super cute.’ Lou’s blatant pining and angsty awkwardness is both relatable and charming. Kenna is fun. Her roommate is also fun.

My nitpick: (Nitpick? Maybe just disappointment over a missed opportunity...) This arc is where the film slips into a Holiday movie trap of not being authentic to setting. The reason this is a real shame is because both brewing and welding, combined into female love interests, is a hot idea for a wlw story. And so I wanted to see an actual female welder and a female brewer, rather than just pretty people given the titles.  I know enough about brewing from watching documentary shows, visiting breweries, and doing my own research (I’m a long ways into a WIP of my own that involves a brewery and a brewmaster incidental as a sub-plot to my main plot) to see that Lou is a brewery owner only in name only, with no real development given here, nor attempt to make it look or feel real. The same goes for the welder: I’ve never welded, but my father has, and I grew up with a fair bit of rag-tag rural living and was around equipment and welders enough in my early life to know that nothing about the way Kenna is portrayed makes her being a welder authentic.

I give this arc a thumbs up. It’s just... it could have been amazing instead of simply good.

Couple #3: Janey and Sue. The final arc is between Janey (Janelle Marie) and Sue (Waverly Earp Dominique Provost-Chalkley). They’ve been on-again-off-again sweethearts since high school, but life keeps getting in the way. Janey is in the military and Sue is a musician with performance anxiety related to singing in public. She also has a recently-ill mother, and finances are tight. This arc has some sweet elements, and the actors are cute together. I’ve not yet entered into the Waverly kingdom of fangirling, but Dominique is definitely a talented actress and plays the role perfectly: It’s impossible not to be engaged with Sue’s emotions and experiences through Dominique’s expression of her.

There are some bittersweet notes throughout this arc, and it is by far the most complex relationship of the movie even though it is secondary or tertiary in the film. In reality, it could have been the most impressive of the three stories, if the film had given it an ending that was realistic relative to Sue’s particular brand of anxiety. (Spoiler: They didn’t. Here is the one truly glaring point where the movie falls prey to the Holiday movie curse: Something unrealistic happens, essentially an invisible fairy-plot mother waves a magic wand behind the scenes and a personal struggle for Sue that shouldn’t be overcome so easily- if at all- suddenly is.) It would have been more powerful if Sue’s arc had ended without the typical holiday triumph in the ‘resolution’ stage that follows the narrative ‘crisis,’ and instead used the ‘crisis’ stage as a springboard for Janey and Sue to grow through the realities of her anxiety together, coming to a deeper understanding of the other, and maturing their love.

Music Bonus: The song Sue/Dominque plays at the end is fabulous! I would buy it on iTunes in a heartbeat if it were available. (It’s not. A big ‘why not’ aimed squarely @tellofilms​.)  There’s a music video on Tello, which you can see (but it might be pay to access). There’s a version on youtube, but be ware that whoever put it up isn’t officially related to the film or the song/song writer/performer and their transcription of the lyrics is off in several places.  With how incredibly well Dominique sings, it would be great to see her reunite for a song with Natasha Negovalis (previously together in the Carmilla Movie, 2017) in Tello’s future 2020 Holiday film, since it will be about a music star.

In conclusion: The stories were decently solid, and were definitely enjoyable.  There’s plenty of kissing scenes ultimately, so there’s payoff. It’s sweet. It’s cute. It is all HEA. There was humor mixed in throughout. It could have handled a higher production value, as sometimes between sets and sound, you can tell it’s not quite up to a movie theater release standard. It would be nice to see it not be every one of them all perfect-looking people. But, that being said, it does well.  While well above the typical Hallmark holiday standard (for me, anyway), there were places where the stories could have taken on a bit more depth. (Oh: Just to warn you: There was one bizarre moment in the middle at a Christmas party with an encounter that felt out of the blue, didn’t make sense given who was theoretically invited to the party, and jerked me hard out of the viewing experience. Also, I suppose it could be a trigger for some people, though it’s relatively mild. I understand the point they were trying to make, and agree with it, but it did not belong in this movie, or at least in this scene.) 

If you have the $6.99 spare to do the digital three-day rental, or $14.99 to purchase (I rented but will probably go back and purchase as well), head over to @tellofilms​ and take the risk. It’ll be a holiday pick of mine for years to come.

Please watch it if you’re so inclined! Doing so will hopefully brighten your day, and will help support the people who make generating wlw content of increasing quality possible for all of us to enjoy.

-- Happy New Everyone from @thecarmillacurator​