#when will i write that book review

[cranberrylane]

still thinking of this fluffy, YA, stem-themed, romcom-ish book i read a few months ago... i feel insane for being so hung up on it like it may be cartoony, cliche and basic to some but it was something to meeeee

[marzipanandminutiae]

Reading “A Rather Haunted Life” and so far I have five main thoughts:

1. The author is such a great biographer generally that she really spoils her writing even more by utterly refusing to engage with any aspect of Jackson’s life through a homoerotic lens, than if the rest of the book were mediocre

2. Seriously, she addresses it once and that’s basically to say “yes, she wrote about being accused of lesbianism in college to the point where a male crush lost interest in her because she was so close with her best friend – whatever the actual nature of the relationship might have been, which is uncertain – and yes, she loved The Well of Loneliness, and yes, at least one of her books has seriously sapphic themes (and yes, she got so frightened- not angered, frightened -by having those themes pointed out that she wondered at her own fear, in private correspondence). BUT SHE NEVER SAID “hey I want to fuck women” SO PROBABLY NONE OF THIS MEANS ANYTHING AND SHE WAS 100% HETERO.” I mean. Come on.

3. Yes, Shirley Jackson seems to have experienced attraction to men. I would not say that she was a lesbian by the modern, usually exclusive definition. But like… There’s academic caution about a historical figure who never openly clarified her sexuality, and then there’s naïveté or outright homophobic erasure of queer possibility.

4. Fuck Stanley Hyman; all my homies hate Stanley Hyman

5. I need to read more Shirley Jackson I need to get weirder

[bmpmp3]

sorry to be a bit of a hater but i do wish youtubers weren't so scared of making their videos just like, "reviews", whys everything gotta be a "video essay" all the time. every day my recommendations are filled with 40 minute videos titled "_____: An Underrated Masterpiece" where the first like five minutes are reading the wikipedia definition of "masterpiece" in a somber voice with dramatic themed text on screen. please just tell me how good or bad you think something is and use the rest of the runtime to explain why. you dont need to put on all these airs

[greenerteacups]

Hello GT, I absolutely love Lionheart!

I published my first fic and have been dealing with some criticism; it’s not anythjng super hateful, but it’s not anything meant to make me improve either. I’ve been feeling sort of down because of it. My question is: have you ever dealt with hate or criticism before? What is your attitude towards it?

I find your work and answers on here super insightful and inspiring! I hope you have a nice day ❤️

Fuck em. Like, seriously, just fuck em. There's a time and place for writers to take critique and be strict with themselves; it's necessary for any artist to grow. That place is with a chosen group of creatives whose work you admire and whose judgment you trust. A rando on the Internet, while they may in fact be the next Marcel Proust, probably isn't. And I was raised to believe that while it's appropriate and kind to pay compliments to strangers when they're performing — just as you'd smile at a busker on the sidewalk, and or compliment a chalk artist — it's not appropriate to criticize them when what they do isn't to your tastes. They're providing you with their art for free. No one forced you to read it; no one forced you to listen. If you don't like it, it costs $0 to shut the fuck up.

Also — that thing I said about artists taking critique? That assumes that you're doing this out of a desire to improve your writing, which, while noble, is not actually a thing you need to do if you're a hobby writer. I like trying to improve; it makes me feel good. But at the end of the day, I do this for fun. I do this because in my real job, I am ruthless and self-critical and try really fucking hard to do well, and you need parts of your life that Aren't Like that. You need parts of your life where you're not worrying about whether you're Doing It Right. And living without that anxiety of critique is, paradoxically, the only way you'll find the artistic courage to take risks and develop new skills. Everyone is a little bit rough around the edges to begin with. (Not saying you're a beginner — you merely said "publish," and I certainly wrote a lot of things before I started publishing! But every artist is always trying to develop new skills and techniques; in the grand scope of things, we're all beginners.) Giving someone blunt critique when they're in the beginning phases of their journey as an artist is about as helpful as screaming at your six-year-old kid because he can't swim the butterfly.

And the thing is, these people will bluster and say "well, I'm just being honest, I'm just trying to be helpful," but like: mmmmmmno, you're not! You're not. And it's disingenuous to say so. Because if you were actually trying to be helpful, you would introduce yourself, offer your skills as an editor/beta reader, and start building the relationship of trust that grounds any meaningful co-creative partnership. People do not just accept random critique that comes flying at them from the blue nowhere. And issuing it in that form is the best way to make them hostile, defensive, and unreceptive to it. Delivering harsh feedback without a context of care and support is almost sure to fail as a method of actually changing behavior, and either (1) you know that, and are doing it anyway — presumably because you want people to know how Terribly Clever and Better At Writing you are, or (2) you sincerely have never thought about the effect that context and word choice have on how other people receive your meaning.

Which tells me you are the last fucking person on the planet I want writing advice from.

[the---hermit]

If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

I read most of this book in two days. I really just spent two whole days diving into this book and I had such a good time. I don't know why I waited this long. I read a few so called dark academia books in the past few years, and this has definitely been on of my favourites. I definitely liked it more than The Secret History, the setting is indeed similar but at the end of the day the stories are two whole different things and this one was way closer to what I normally like. It was fast paced and captivating, I ended up loving the characters and their dynamics. I liked it so much that in my rating I ignored the fact that I thought the plot was a bit predictable, and just gave it five stars. I had a lovely reading experience, I hadn't fallen into a book like this in a good while and it was so good to do it again. I normally don't love the first person narration, but to be honest this book made me reconsider it. It's one of those books I will probably reread in the future.

[yasmeensh]

Paleolithic Media Catalogue

Hello everyone :) Short story first: When I began brainstorming for my prehistoric story, I started wondering what other prehistoric fiction there is out there. I was not familiar with it and have not seen much. That's when I started my grand literature review and began a search for what fiction exist out there. I wanted to know what kinds of stories are being made with this time period. What are the common themes or recurring ideas (I found lots of humans and dinosaurs works. And time travel). Since I've had a growing collection on my computer, I decided I should keep on enlarging it and put it online. It's nowhere near complete. I'll slowly keep accumulating the collection as I find more. I only have fiction books and comics right now. I still need to work on the film section.

You can access the blog here!

***

As for where I am in my reading, the one's I've finished reading are Earth's Children series (book 1-4. Dropped it afterwards lol. I made a post on with fanart) Dance of the Tiger and it's sequel Singletusk (They were good! I'll upload my review on the blog), and Sisters of the Wolf (It was ok!). I got my hands on The Inheritors and excited to start reading it. I REALLY want to read the Shiva trilogy, but I found no PDF online... and it's out of print :( There is certainly old copies on ebay. And I want to read Chronicles of Ancient Darkness. There seem to be lots of good books out there.

[hanzajesthanza]

"the michael kandel translation of "the witcher" short story can't hurt you!!"

the michael kandel translation of "the witcher" short story:

[lordharmony]

i don’t think i can talk about everything positive about veilguard until i talk about how utterly dismal the trans representation in this game is. yes, especially with taash. because yeah…i do think it being bad is not something to ignore like i see so many people on here say you should “because any rep is better than none.” anytime gender came up while playing veilguard i had a massive pit in my stomach, and i came in with the maybe the most open mind about it. i know for some it was the first time they've seen a non-binary character in a video game and that's why they're less harsh than i am. that has never been the case for me, i have non-binary and trans characters i very much enjoy and don't need to rely on one game to do the job for me.

but this conversation always turns into “oh you just hate non-binary people that’s why you have a problem with taash!” actually i think the game itself has a problem with non-binary people given all they could say about it is “you’re non-binary if you hate being a woman.” or talked about clothes. that’s about the extent we get to explore gender identity in this game. well that and “trans people valid.” we need to shelf the word valid for a while i think. i wish trans rep wasn't written primarily for a cis audience all the time, because i'm so tired of getting talked down to in a conversation i don't need to have.

[benkyoutobentou]

Ranking the books I read in Japanese this year

It’s the end of the year and I don’t think I’ll be finishing any more Japanese books this month, so I thought it would be fun to rank what I read! I read twelve novels in Japanese this year, hitting my goal (but not quite reading one a month). There won’t be twelve rankings here, though, because I read multiple books from the same series and will be combining those.

9. コーヒーが冷めないうちに - 川口俊和: This book just didn’t do it for me. I listened to it on audiobook in February for a target language listening challenge and got stuck in a vicious cycle of not paying attention because the story was boring me and being bored of it because I wasn’t paying enough attention. Most other people I’ve seen who have read it in Japanese also thought it was boring, though, so I’m not mourning any loss.

8. 宝石商リチャードの謎鑑定 - 辻村七子: I really wanted to like this series but the negatives outweighed the positives so much that I only read the first volume. The most damning part of this for me was that I couldn’t stand the writing style. It was extremely confusing, and having a language barrier on top of that just made it miserable. I’m really glad I read this with others because I was not the only one who found the writing style to be ridiculously confusing for a book that doesn’t even handle confusing or difficult topics. Seriously, the writing was so bad that I considered continuing the series in English. But the characters were good.

7. あん - ドリアン助川: Now we get into the books that I enjoyed, just not as much. I liked this book well enough, but it was just a bit middling. I wasn’t overly invested in the characters or story and I found myself wondering how on earth this story could go on for another hundred pages. It was sweet, but ultimately I don’t think the story will stick with me at all.

6. ちょっと今から仕事やめてくる - 北川恵海: This was another audiobook read and although I know I enjoyed it, I really don’t remember much about it. I’m also not sure if the twist, which I did think was really good, actually happened or was something I misunderstood (I’m pretty sure I understood it though). Overall, this one goes on the to-reread pile, just as soon as I can find a physical copy of it.

5. 旅猫リポート - 有川浩: This was an adorable story perfect for cat lovers, but the end had me a little bored. Honestly though, it was quite the experience to go from being a bit bored to crying my eyes out in the span of ten pages. The writing style and the main cat’s perspective was super charming as well.

4. 人間失格 - 太宰治: This was my first classic in Japanese and wasn’t as difficult as I expected. Dazai’s writing style is a pain in the ass, but I will admit that it started to grow on me as the book went on and now I find it endearing. It also wasn’t as depressing as I had heard it was, and I really enjoyed getting a perspective of that time period.

3. 美しい彼 - 凪良ゆう: I only read one volume of this, probably exclusively because I suddenly couldn’t stand romance when I had fifty pages left of this. What can I say, I love a good toxic gay romance. The writing style is chronically readable and the story is super engaging.

2. No. 6 - あさのあつこ: I’m a fan of the anime for this and the novels have not let me down. I’ve only read two so far, but the story and characters are super gripping. I really love the emphasis on dialogue in this series, I really feel like it makes the characters pop more. The only problem I have is this odd quirk in Asano’s writing style, where the majority of the series is told from third person point of view, but will suddenly switch to first person point of view for a single sentence. It’s not enough to deter me, but it is a little odd to see.

1. キノの旅 - 時雨沢恵一: My number one favorite read in Japanese this year and no one should be surprised. I’m a massive Kino fan and read three volumes this year. I love books that I can analyze the hell out of and this is exactly that. Additionally, I think the writing style and the way both Kino and Hermes are characterized adds so much to both the stories and the underlying meanings that Shigusawa is trying to get across.

[multongsisig]

Goblin King Does His Chronicles Lying On Bed Like Schoolgirl

[werewolfetone]

It’s so funny when a publisher sticks a quote from a notable figure on the back of a book in an attempt to add credibility but the notable figure in question is someone u can’t stand and so it has the opposite effect

[bunnidid-reviews]

I struggle so much to write reviews for the things i really like. I read a good book over two weeks ago but I got so attached I had to forcibly get myself into another book so I wouldn’t feel so dissociated and lost about it ending. I think I got really parasocial with a book?

Im so normal about medias guys

[spideyhexx]

the rest of my pwmov notes <3

Chapter 33

“Bernard, Alex whispers one night, might be god, and I snort into my white one.”

SLIPPING HIS HAND AROUND HER NECK?

The drunk falling to the floor together oh my god

Too many wine

OF COURSE HES WEARING A BELT

oh my god though the whole lead up to the way they kiss…his hand in her hair and tilting their heads oh my god like I said before emhen knows how to write a good lead up to a kiss

“Ten years of friendship flushed down the drain just so I could know what Alex Nilsen tastes like.”

Yk you guys would’ve had this solved if you just talked

Chapter 34

Oh poppy :( it’s actually so heartwarming to see she actually went to therapy

Chapter 35

Her parents are so sweet :(

Schools not out until two thirty I STARTED TEARING

Sarah being so nice about it :( unexpected but yk what refreshing

“I’ll help you take down wallpaper I hate taking down wallpaper.” CRY

I want to punch Alex

Chapter 36

Oh Alex :( oh no THEY BOTH WENT TO THERAPY

oh he’s so afraid to just be in love cause he loves so much and cares so much oh no :( he’s overthinking the future

Men crying >

Epilogue

“Like a vacation you don’t have to go home from.”

^^ I was sobbing at this idc how cliche it is

Down to the bones!

[theriverbeyond]

book update, i started reading the spirit bares its teeth today and it is REALLY GOOD (currently on ch 4). highly recomend picking it up im excited to read more. also i am reading it as a PHYSICAL BOOK (‼️‼️‼️) which is a real game changer tbh. ive been on a streak of ebooks/audiobooks for convenience/reading while driving-ability for the last several years but there really is nothing as good as book in my hands

[docholligay]

I love looking over someone's blog and trying to figure out if they're an earnest person who can be talked to and is actually curious or someone who is like, 19 and right about everything. (i also was never incorrect at 19, it's just the time)

Anyway, if you want to read a very very good book about the actual history of the hamburger, I really recommend Josh Ozersky's Hamburger: A History. He does have his little annoying tics, but his history is good--the man was a history doctorate and a food writer--and I think it would provide some clarity on the question.

In short, Germany invented the hamburger in the way India invented tikka masala.

[roguemonsterfucker]

don't mind me i'm just watching some monsterfucker movies for 'research' purposes