#yeah my favorite genre is fantasy but my favorite authors are non-fiction writers

[always-a-slut-4-ghouls]

Someone asked me what my favorite genre of book is and I said “I like fantasy and romance” and when they asked things like “what are you reading now?” And mentioned a few authors it’s like, how do I explain that at the moment I’m reading textbooks and fanfiction?

[xarrixii]

arri, writer in progress cisgender, white, and pansexual/ace, though figure out what gender i am yourself cause i will use any pronouns (chaos)

flash/burn masterlist | pinned introduction post

i classify myself as a writer in the sorts that i am an aspiring author, and in progress in the sorts that i'm currently writing what i hope to be a published book someday.

most of it is available on tumblr in first-draft form. its name is FLASH/BURN, and i love it. (some of it is second-draft.)

name someone i talk to a lot and they'll probably agree i likely have some level of undiagnosed ADHD. i'm usually incredibly irregular, sporadic, and it's random whether i'm organized or in complete disorder.

i like to stay up super late (is this relevant?). i'm an adult citizen of the united states.

what kinds of books are you interested in? genre-wise, i'm willing to read a lot as long as it's fiction. sci-fi, fantasy, lack of and presence of magic, action, adventure, thriller.

i think my favorite books fall along the lines of following characters more than they follow plots.

do you have any hobbies or interests outside of writing? i had very long rhythm game and gacha phases, but i also enjoy a good SCP game or relaxed Minecraft server.

what font do you like to write in? lora, point twelve. i started using it years ago and now it's hard to use anything else. it looks like this:

(excerpt from FLASH/BURN Chapter 45: "Operative")

where can i find your writing? you can find anything i've wanted to post in public here, on my tumblr. i set up a wattpad for FLASH/BURN, but i haven't gotten around to uploading more than the first arc (chapter 1-22)

can i see some of your older writing? sure! there's actually older versions of most of my WIPs in my Google Drive, and if you ever want to see some of what i consider my cringiest part of life, just ask. i'm open to messages and more open to my ask box (which you are allowed to remain anonymous in).

what's your music taste? it's mostly a jumble of alternative rock music. Citizen Soldier and STARSET got me through the pandemic, and now i've begun listening to a few more better-known artists in roughly the same genre. (listen—rule number one is that it's all over the place.)

i have an entire playlist named after one character's music taste. i don't have to bother with another because it's one artist. the rest is vibes.

what themes are prevalent in your writing? you're very likely to find a lot of found family, i think. possibly a ton of moral grey. lots of non-romance.

if you're looking more into FLASH/BURN's themes, both of the above apply. my good friend clove's attributed "coping mechanisms that no longer become useful." heavy trigger warnings for child abuse, extreme bigotry, suicide, and general mental health issues. Harlow goes through some shit.

what are some things you won't write? you won't be finding NSFW-in-the-sexual-way content on this blog. i'm not really interested in it and frankly i don't want to write it because of that. i'm more than comfortable with torture, blood, gore, and horror, though i can't guarantee it'll be any good.

if you think i'm afraid to kill a major character, you're wrong, by the way. sorry.

can i send you a writing prompt? oh fuck yeah. especially some hero/villain shit. let me experiment.

who are you inclusive of? transgender people are welcome here. intersex people are welcome here. systems are welcome here. otherkin are welcome here. mental disabilities are welcome here. physical disabilities are welcome here. queer people are welcome here. aspec people are welcome here. fat people are welcome here. poc are welcome here. something something about you who is welcome here. women and men. everything fuckin' in between. just don't be an asshole and we're cool does that make sense??

i do not allow hate in this home, and let that include myself. hold me accountable.

something something about further questions, relate them to my secretary, of whom is myself and my tumblr askbox or private messages.

onwards with the WIP descriptions!

FLASH/BURN—

Harlow "Urban" Collins spent his life in and out of a kinetic detention center frequented by the best, the good, the bad, and the worst, where the only thing in common between them all was they were society's scum—fire-wielding pyrokinetics. Alph "Raiden" Roy managed to dodge the pyrokinetic rehabilitation clinics and built a trustworthy reputation for themself, their life's mission to become a police officer and fix injustices in the system that had wronged so many others. Their plan is thrown into the gutter when they have to take one too many favors from their mother and get wrapped up in the secret law-enforcers of the underworld—taking their best friend with them. This story is about two best friends finding themselves on the same side, and then the opposite, of a moral dilemma caked in death, crime, and secrecy that one man wants to bring to life, forcing them to put their system-rocking plans on hold. There's violence, bigotry, abuse, a generally queer cast, and—sometimes—there is hope. (look, a better synopsis is a problem for future me)

Placeholder Name #1—

An alchemist-sorcerer on the run and a famous knight cross paths and learn that their lives have more in common than they thought. Vaughn was accused of high treason. Leon has a string of murders to solve for her Lord. Vaughn has the missing piece to solving the murders, but Leon has to accept the cost of trusting a wanted criminal.

YELLOW MEANS FEAR—

An emotion-manipulating vigilante, her unknowing cop friend, and someone with wings from a remote magic-bound civilization end up taking on an incredibly elaborate trading ring. When Delta showed up years prior, Fare had scraped out the serial killer and locked him away—for good. She thought it would be the largest case she'd ever have, but after coming across a strange, beak-masked vigilante, she quickly began to uncover the largest slave trade Krusing had ever seen.

Placeholder Name #3—

An airship pirate who doesn't want to be forgotten meets a ramshackle inventor busying themselves as an interpreter while intercepting a cargoship. Earwyn Sol had always wanted to do something revolutionary, so when the military failed he took the next available option—piracy. Just when he thought he wouldn't go down in history for more than a few squabbles, he met a sleepless inventor translating between five languages and countless encryptions to barely scrape by alive.

Writemas—

a writing game hosted by another tumblr user that i responded to each prompt day for in december 2024, hosting potential plotlines and usages of non-flash/burn characters. check it out if you want shorter, less organized versions of my writing.

looking for more? again i encourage you to ask me. i'll tell you all about the time i moderated for a roblox group or made some shitty play named "Melody" or whatever it was. the height of my gacha phase. who am i if not embarrassing the shit out of myself?

also if you want to see my gl2 rendition of flash/burn characters it either exists or can within like three hours

[collinnmckinley]

trigger warning for mention of r*pe and sexual assault (feel free to not answer and delete if this topic is too much!)

Cannot believe you've got anons defending some of the stuff in fics and whitewashing it as just "experiencing attraction to a character." I cannot stand the pervy!141 fics. Especially because they tag it as non-con/dub-con (and sometimes they don't even include that warning, smh). Years ago, people in a ton of fandoms, especially on tumblr, all agreed that non-con/dub-con is literal rape. There's not such thing as "dubious consent"—that is 100% r*pe. Like, are we really fantasizing about r*pe??

Obviously, including dub-con/r*pe is so out of character for the 141 and COD in general. Maybe darker fandoms are more tolerant of that stuff because of the nature of their original material but I don't see COD being one of those. Especially because women in the military and civilian women in war zones are subject to so much sexual violence. And, female COD fans often experience threats of sexual violence and intense misogyny when we play online either in multiplayer or Warzone. That's literally why I have to always have voice chat disabled when I play.

Your dumbass anon™ was saying that tumblr is public so they should get to post what they want. That's totally true but guess what?? If they make their fics public, then they need to be open to both positive and negative feedback. That's part of being a writer—from someone who actually writes for a living. There's a level of vulnerability to putting your ideas and craft out there. If you can't handle the heat, get out of the kitchen. In other words, if you can't handle people critiquing your fics, then keep your stories saved on a hard drive and don't share it. End of story.

TRIGGER WARNING!!

I remember back in 2018 I just got introduced to OW fandom, let me tell you, the amount of dub-con it had was wild. I, being young and stupid, didn't understand that it's literally r*pe because it didn't mention that and it's just said dub-con, I thought it would be "oh they might be role-playing or she'll be totally okay with it later on" or " is this how they start becoming lovers cause it doesnt make sense?" and I would always comment something along the line of "she said no at first, why is she taking it without fighting? can she not get help from her friend? why is 'my favorite character' acting like this?" and the authors would be frustrated to answer my questions every time. it only took me a year to understand that people were fucking degenerates and this is not a genre that should be taken lightly because like you said, it's literally r*pe. and at the time, that genre was RAMPANT, how it is right now in cod tumblr.

and when I see all that being repeated in cod fandom, I can't stand it! it pisses me the fuck off. they think, because cod is all "war and no love" and how "hard ass" these characters are, how manly and rugged they are, they'll act this way towards anyone let alone their loved ones. if ANYTHING some of the pure, loving and soft characters I've come to known from different types of media (videogames, tv series, movies, etc) , came from military or law enforcements. not everything has to be overtly sexualized or made into some fucked up fantasy.

and yeah I'm in the same boat as you are when it comes to voice coms. I am terrified of what I might hear in it regardless of if its towards a woman or not, so rarely open it when I play alone.

all in all, that anon should not be interacting with me anymore, good fucking riddance. and this should be a lesson to everyone who thinks like that too. never fuck with or come near people who has unconditional love towards "fictional" characters and want to protect them no matter what the cost. we wont hesitate to kink shame you, at least I wont.

[spnfanficpond]

Pond Diving - Imagineteamfreewill

Welcome to today’s Pond Diving Spotlight! We hope that you enjoy this little insight to our members and perhaps even find some useful tips for your own writing. Happy reading!

Want to volunteer, send us an ask! We’re looking forward to learning more about all of you! Not sure what PD is, you can learn more here.

“Don’t Be Koi About It” - All About You

Name: Meg

Age: 20s

Location: United States

URL: @imagineteamfreewill

Why did you choose your URL: I first started out structuring my stories as imagines, and the “Team Free Will” part was pretty obvious.

What inspired you to become a writer: Reading Supernatural fanfiction inspired me to get back into writing, but I’ve always enjoyed it. My mom likes to talk about how when I was in Kindergarten, I drew a picture about how I wanted to be an author and now I write in my free time.

How long have you been writing: According to tumblr, I’ve been writing fanfiction since 2014, but I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember.

What do you do when you are not writing i.e. Job/Hobbies etc? I’m a music teacher, so I sing and play piano, and I’ve played a bit of cello and tenor saxophone as well. I love movies, baking, sleeping, and a few video games.

How long have you been in the SPN Fandom? I joined sometime around Season 8 or 9, I think. I don’t really remember!

Are you in any other fandoms and do you write for them? I really enjoy Marvel and I’ve read a lot of Marvel fics, but I don’t write for them. I like a lot of TV shows (New Girl, Parks and Rec, The Good Place, Outlander, etc), but I wouldn’t consider myself part of the fandom.

Do you do any writing outside of fanfiction? If so, tell us about it? I love to write poetry. I had a poetry blog at truenorth-ink a while ago, but I haven’t updated it recently at all. Most of my poems aren’t published or posted anywhere.

Favorite published author: I love some of the early series by Rick Riordan and I also really enjoy poetry by Nikita Gill and Atticus. Lately, I've really been getting into Leigh Bardugo's books.

Have you ever read a book that made an impact on your life? Which one and why?: I think "East" by Edith Pattou really affected me! I read it when I was in 6th-8th grade and I think about it often. I think it's something that really stuck with me and got me interested in fantasy books so much. I read it at least once a year.

Favorite genre of fanfic (smut, angst, fluff, crack, rpf, etc): I love angsty stuff, and most of the time I prefer it when it has some fluff mixed in. Straight fluff is often hard for me to read because I need something that’s more realistic for my own life and point of view. I also really like whump, but that can be a lot sometimes so it depends on my mood.

Favorite piece of your own writing: I don’t know if I have a favorite, but I loved writing Back to the Start (my mermaid series) and The Switch (a canon-divergent apocalyptic Reader x Sam series). Right now, I'm really enjoying my Consort series (a Goddess!Reader x Dean series). Creating my own rules in my own little universes is one of my favorite things to do, especially since I can’t always do whatever I want in real life.

Most underrated fic you have written: Empire. I loved getting to write Boyking!Sam because it was so different from my normal Sam stories and I did a lot of research for it. I’m pretty proud that the story never got too bloody or gory, too, so if you want some Boyking!Sam that’s not drenched in blood (for lack of a better term), I’m your girl!

Story of yours that you’d most like to see turned into a movie/tv show: Probably Back to the Start or The Switch. I think those two series would be amazing to see with J2, the rest of the cast/characters I included, and special effects! There’s so much I’d want to explore with both of them that I didn’t put into the series.

Favorite Tumblr Writer(s): @luci-in-trenchcoats, @sunlightdances, @supernaturalfreewill, @lipstickandwhiskey, @smol-and-grumpy, @percywinchester27, and @kaz2y5-imagines

Favorite fic from another writer:  I don’t think I could pick just one, but I’ve read all of @sunlightdances Dean fics multiple times. Her works got me through some pretty sucky times in my life and I don’t think I’ll ever get sick of her writing! I’ve also been reading her Bucky fics recently and it’s made me love Marvel fics even more than before!​

Favorite character to write: Sam Winchester

Favorite Pairing to write: Reader x Sam (Reader x Dean is a close second)

Least favorite character to write (and why): I don’t like to write for Crowley or Gabriel. Gadreel is hard for me even though I can do it, but I don’t understand Crowley or Gabriel’s personalities at all because they’re literally so far away from mine.

Do you have anyone you consider a mentor? No, although @lipstickandwhiskey and @kaz2y5-imagines really encouraged me in my writing!​

Do you have any aspirations involving your writing? I would love to write a non-Supernatural work of fiction to publish, but that’s a long way off.

How many work-in-progress stories do you have: Oh Lord, I have so many! I have at least four series and two one shots in the works right now. I've also got over 100 one shots/series plotlines written out in the notes on my phone and various Google Docs.

What are you currently working on? I’m currently working on a Cinderella series, my Underworld series, my Puer Rex series, my Consort series, an Author!Sam fic, and an Author!Dean fic. I also write stories for my Words series now and again.

“Pond Diving” - All About The Writing

What/who has had the biggest influence on your writing? Reading other people’s work. The intense storylines of @luci-in-trenchcoats ’s fics have gotten me to be more bold with my writing and the emotions and description in @supernaturalfreewill’s works have inspired me to let my work have more feeling.

Best writing advice you've been given: Not necessarily writing advice, but I was once told that anything worth doing is worth doing at least a little bit every day. Think about it—if you wrote even just five minutes a day, how much better will you get over the course of a month? A year?

Biggest obstacle you’ve faced in your writing: Repetition of words and commas. So many commas and so many uses of the same word over and over again. It’s a hard balance between using the word and using synonyms without sounding like I’m sitting there googling synonyms for “said”. I also tend to spend a lot of time on things that I think are super important but aren’t really important in the long run. I’m wordy as hell and my writing would be dull if I didn’t edit it as thoroughly as I do.

What aspects of writing do you find difficult when you write fanfiction? A lot of times I have these ideas that I think would make a great series but I don’t think through them, so planning out the plot of a series (or even a standalone fic) beforehand is something I struggle with.

Is there anything you want to write but are afraid to (and why): I would love to write more fics that have the characters dealing with severe mental disorders or that take place in a mental hospital, but I’m afraid that I’ll portray something wrong and solidify harmful stereotypes about what it’s like to deal with those things.

What inspires/motivates you to write: Honestly, just wanting to write things that I enjoy. Sometimes I get sick of reading other peoples’ stuff since it’s not exactly what I want, so I just write my own!

How do you deal with self doubt: Understand that sometimes it happens. You’ll doubt yourself—everybody does. If I’m doubting myself or my writing, I’ll take a break until I remember why I write. Then I’ll remember that yeah, writing for an audience is fun, but I write because I have cool ideas I want to explore, not because I need the attention or love of strangers. Lastly, I’ll reread my old fics, especially the ones I love, and then I’ll go back and edit old fics that I haven’t looked at in a while. That way I can see how I’ve improved and I don’t feel so terrible anymore! Reading my own fics is a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine, and I’ll read through my masterlists every once a while just to remind myself of the things I’ve loved, where I’ve been, and where I’m going.

How do you deal with writer's block: Like I said, I reread old fics and edit old fics that I haven’t looked at in a while. Seeing the things I’ve done before always helps to focus me. I’ll also read other people’s stuff or talk about headcanons with some friends to try and find some inspiration.

Do you plan/outline your story before you start: Lately I have been, but only because my periods of intense inspiration and productivity are getting farther and farther apart because of my job. I’ve found planning it out to be more and more helpful, especially for my series. A lot of times if I get a great idea, I’ll outline the whole plot or any significant details I want to put in that one shot/series so that I can come back to it whenever I have the time or I’m inspired for it again.

Do you have any weird writing habits: I write best in places that are unfamiliar to me or in places/times where I shouldn’t be writing. Class? Writing. Airport terminal? Writing. 4am when I have to be up at 6? Writing.

Have you ever received hateful comments on your fic and how do you deal with it? Not that I remember! I feel like there’s probably been one or two over the years, but I probably just got upset about it with my friends for a while and then got over it.

Conversely: what’s been some of your favorite feedback on your fanfic? A long time ago, when I was writing Back to the Start, I had one person who sent me asks for every single series update. I screenshotted them and saved them on my laptop. There’s one particular one where they say that they’re happier because of my writing and honestly, isn’t that what we all strive for? That people’s lives are better because of our stories? I’ve also had some pretty great friends recently who’ve made it a point to reblog and send asks/messages on all my works, which has been so meaningful that I never replied to the asks. They’re sitting in my inbox and I go through and reread them sometimes when I’m feeling down.

If you could give one piece of advice to a new and/or struggling writer, what would it be?  ​Write down everything. If you come up with an amazing piece of dialogue, even if it’s just one sentence or one person talking, or if you come up with something you’d think would be a great title… WRITE IT DOWN. It doesn’t matter if it fits into whatever you’re currently writing or not, it’ll come in handy! I don’t know how many times I’ve gone through my idea list and found really obscure lines/titles/inspiration that didn’t make sense when I wrote them down, but are now exactly what I need to finish a fic. Even if you don’t end up using it, jotting down your ideas is still writing, and that’s good practice!

[365days365movies]

May 4, 2021: The Host (2006) (Recap)

NO NOT THAT ONE

Stephanie Meyer goddamn sucks. I realize that I’m not exactly the first person to say that, but she’s terrible. Not only is she not a good writer, but she also has some very disparaging views about science fiction and its fans, which led her to make her own science fiction book and film. ANd yeah...it’s terrible! No surprise there.

So, no, not the 2013 critical and commercial flop known as The Host. No, this post is about 2006′s The Host, AKA Gwoemul, AKA 괴물. I haven’t ventured to far into the world of Korean cinema, and with this film, my repertoire includes only the films of director Bong Joon-Ho. And if that name sounds familiar...it should.

Bong Joon-ho DESERVEDLY made headlines last year when his film became the first non-English language film to win for Best Picture, and the first time Asian writers won for best screenplay! His Oscar speech in accepting best director is genuinely one of the best and most sincere speeches I’ve ever heard from a director, and I love the dude.

Oh, and if you’re wondering which film it was, then, like me, you also really need to watch Parasite. And because I’m terrified of spoilers, I’m not gonna look for GIFs of that movie. Instead, I’ll put in a GIF of one of my favorite sci-fi films, and the only other Bong Joon-ho film I’ve seen.

God, I love Snowpiercer. And if this is anything like that, I’m probably going to love this movie. Now, I don’t really know much about this film, other than the fact that it’s a monster film. And if there’s any science-fiction subgenre more iconic than monster films, I don’t know it. Well...OK, aliens, robots, and more, but monster films are still a big part of the genre. But where does that begin? Is it here?

Definitely an argument you can make, since Frankenstein’s Monster is a creation of science gone wrong, from the book to the movie. Fun fact, Mary Shelley based it on a real-world experiment by Italian physiologist Giovanni Aldini, who used a corpse to illustrate the connection between electricity and muscles. Neat, huh? So, yeah, that’s a solid launching point.

But that’s more of a horror story. What about something a little more monster-y? Well, from the UK to Japan we go!

OHHHHHH YEAH, THAT’S THE GOOD STUFF

Toho’s 1954 film Gojira is one of the most classic monster films ever made, and singlehandedly launched the kaiju genre in Japan. And it’s really well-known that it was made as a response to post-World War II tensions about nuclear warfare. Which, in Japan, is kind of understandable, no? But nothing demonstrated the destructive power of science more than that moment in history. 

So, Godzilla arrives. And the US also makes more monster movies, most of which take place in contemporary settings, making many of them lo-fi sci-fi. Now, some dipped into horror or fantasy, but the science fiction roots were there. Which eventually would bring us full circle to films where monsters were made and go loose. You know, like this:

It’s a franchise that defines the ‘90s, and lab-grown monster movies exploded around that time as well. At the same time, environmental concerns REALLY started to build by this point, and those concerns leaked profusely into film all over the world. And by the time we get to 2006...well, let’s get into it, huh?

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

In a mortuary, a U.S. military doctor (Scott Wilson) instructs his assistant (Brian Lee) to dump bottles of formaldehyde down the drain of the facility, which goes directly into the Han River. The assistant protests, but the doctor insists, despite the risk of polluting the river. AAAAAmericans.

In the river about two years later, two fisherman see something strange looking in the river. Then, four years later, in 2006, a suicidal man is about to jump into the river, when he sees something dark in the water below.

Later that year, we meet Park Hee-bong (Byun Hee-Bong) and his son Park Gang-du (Song Kang-ho), who run a food truck and snack bar near the river. Gang-du’s not exactly a hard worker, to his father’s chagrin. His daughter, Hyun-seo (Go Ah-sung), is a student who comes home from school, where her drunken uncle Nam-il (Park Hae-il) comes to her chagrin. She and her father watch TV, where his sister Nam-joo (Bar Doona) can be seen competing in archery.

As he’s bringing food out to customers, he joins them in observing something strange and massive hanging off of the bridge. And at this point, I would be running the fuck away. Literally, the news just said that there was a body found with the legs missing, and these people are throing cans at it after it plunges into the water. One girl asks if it’s a dolphin. Mother...HAVE YOU SEEN A DOLPHIN BEFORE?

NOT THIS

Yeah, this thing just comes bounding along the shore, slapping people into the water with its tail, and batting aside others. Doesn’t look like its actively killing anybody yet, but it’s definitely hurting people at least. That is, until it goes into a trailer where a bunch of people have gathered, and appears to eat a bunch of them. So, yeah, dangerous.

Gang-du, to his infinite credit, actually attempts to confront and hurt the creature, with the help of Donald White (David Joseph Anselmo). And it works, but at the cost of the creature aggro-ing onto him. Back at the snack truck, his sister’s lost the title, much to the chagrin of Gang-du’s daughter and father. She goes outside in frustration, only to be thrown into the midst of the chaos with her dad. He grabs a girls hand in the chaos, only to find that it’s a different child entirely. And...unfortunately...

The creature grabs her with its tail, and leaps back into the river, disappearing. Fuck. Poor Hyun-seo, and poor Gang-du. Gang-du IMMEDIATELY goes to get her back, jumping into the river, but the creature takes her across to an island, out of reach. That night, an impromptu funeral is held for the victims, at which Hyun-seo is being honored as well. There, both Gang-du’s sister and brother also attend, and all four of the break down dramatically and publicly.

Nam-il blames his brother for letting her die, which is unfair, but understandable. The family eventually calms down and discusses the circumstances of Hyun-Seo’s birth and death, both of which were accidental. As they do, a man in a protective suit comes out, and asks who was at the river incident. Nam-il protests this, and asks what’s going on. The man doesn’t explain, and the room is instead gassed, as everyone is ushered towards the entrance.

In the process, Gang-du (stupidly) reveals that he was hit by some blood splatter. He’s immediately stuffed in a bag and kidnapped by the authorities. Meanwhile, the news reveals that the creature is carrying a virus, and anyone who has been in contact with it has been infected. Because of this, the entire family is taken to a quarantine hospital, which oddly has very few actual quarantine procedures in place. And additionally, Gang-du is feeling a bit itchy.

That night, in the hospital, Gang-du gets a call on his cell phone! It’s Hyun-seo! She’s alive! And she’s trapped, in a sewer somewhere near the river. Meanwhile, a group of men in protectve suits are outside patrolling the river. One man finds money on the side of the road, and goes to pick it up, only for the men to be attacked by the creature. But it’s then that we discover that the creature is not killing or eating people, but simply taking them own to its lair. Also in said lair is Hyun-seo, trapped and with a now dead phone.

The next day, the family tries to get an officer to look into the call, only for the officer to be, frankly, an absolute piece of shit to this grieving family. Gang-du tries to explain, and his explanation is ENTIRELY RATIONAL, but the officer and doctors are absolutely terrible about it.

Because nobody���s listening, the family manages to escape from the hospital in order to try and save Hyun-Seo, and they hop into a van, taking it and running. This is a good place to mention that, despite this being a monster movie, it's also...weirly funny sometimes. Like, that whole scene is pretty great. After bartering with a group of gangsters for supplies (and after Hee-bong basically gives away all of his credit cards), the group manages to get a map and a new car. But they pretty quickly get stopped at a checkpoint into the city, and are nearly caught, but manage to escape and get to the riverfront. Once there, they begin searching the sewers to find Hyun-seo. And I gotta say; this may be an extremely dysfunctional family, but they’re a devoted family all the same.

Of course, that eventually gives way to arguments within the sewer itself, but that’s interrupted by a noise heard somewhere around them. They fire at it, using weapons obtained from the gangster but conclude that it was nothing. What it actually is is two brothers, older Se-jin (Lee Jae-eung) and younger Se-joo (Lee Dong-ho), homeless kids who are foraging the sewers in the abandoned city. But, of course, they eventually run into the creature, which attacks them. Meanwhile, an asleep Hyun-Seo dreams of dinner with her family, only to be woken up by the arrival of the creature, who deposits the bodies of the two boys in the sewer with her. Se-joo has survived, but Se-jin hasn’t, sadly.

Meanwhile, the rest of the family is gathered at their snack bar for the night, and prepares to set out or the morning. The to younger siblings appear to not give a single shit about Gang-du, but Hee-bong attempts to set them straight, talking about how he blames himself for the way Gang-du is now. However, the two just fall asleep during his speech. Poor Hee-bong. Also, he can apparently identify Gang-du’s health condition based on his farts because they spend so much time together, it’s dumb, and funny.

Also, poor the rest of them, because Gang-du wakes up to see the creature just waiting outside, watching them. Hee-bong fires at it, but the creature attacks and knocks over the bar. However, Hee-bong manages to hit it directly in the head, knocking it off, but not killing it. The family goes out to finish the job, but it runs away before they can kill it. They run after it, and are almost completely out of bullets. Hee-bong volunteers to go after it himself, but in the process...

Hee-bong doesn’t make it. The creature kills him, and the commotion attracts the military to their location. Gang-du is again captured, while Nam-il and Nam-joo escape, only to later be separated regardless. Meanwhile, the virus kills Donald White, the sergeant from earlier, and it continues to spread across Korea. To kill the creature, the government plans to release a chemical into the river called Agent Yellow, which feels...controversial.

Nam-il meats a colleague, “Fat Guevara” (Yam Pil-sung), who is easily able to provide a location for Hyun-seo using the number, which the cop earlier insisted was nearly impossible to do. Plus, both the sergeant and Gang-du encountered the creature together, and he seems to be just fine. Which probably means that something very wrong is happening now. Even worse, though, is the fact that Guevara’s appeared to trap Nam-il, as a massive reward is sought for his arrest. A gang of people surround hi, with the plan to capture him, but he VERY cleverly escapes by causing an electrical short, and AFTER having found Hyun-seo’s location! Nice, man! He takes off, now knowing exactly where his niece is.

Nam-joo, meanwhile, is literally living inside of the snack bar, and she gets a text from Nam-il with her location. He tags out, and she tags in, running to the location where the call came from. But she immediately runs into the creature, which knocks her down and unconscious. She manages to call Gang-du, who is currently about to be sedated. Now knowing where his daughter is, he tries to escape, only to be tackled by the doctors. He tells them where she is, but they don’t appear to listen. More importantly, the anesthetic doesn’t appear to work, much to the confusion of the doctors. Something is verrrrrrrry wrong here.

An American doctor (Paul Lazar) comes, and asks what’s wrong, and he tells him exactly what’s wrong. However, despite his words SEEMING to be heard, they once again call him crazy and delusional, and decide to give him a lobotomy to isolate the virus once and for all, like FUCKING ASSHOLES. Turns out that the virus? Yeah, it doesn’t exist whatsoever! It doesn’t exist even a little bit! Which means that this entire thing is a wild goddamn goose chase for a virus that DOESN’T FUCKING EXIST!!!

And the best thing is that Gang-du, despite not actually knowing English, still understands the words “no virus”, and know he fucking knows! However, because he knows, they now have to give him a lobotomy. Fuck me, man. Panicking, he cries for them to stop, and cries for his daughter, who’s still alive in the sewer.

Speaking of, Hyun-seo and Se-joo are bonding in the sewer, as they work to make a rope from things they find there. But in the process, they’re attacked by the creature, who know is actively eating the bodies, and presumably other people. Whoof. They manage to escape, but barely.

Back with Gang-du, who’s just gone through the lobotomy, which...hasn’t worked at all. Holy SHIT. Not sure what the hel is UP with this dude, but that’s a question in and of itself. He escapes by taking a nurse hostage, threatening them with a syringe of his blood, full of a virus that doesn’t exist!

Nam-il wakes up at the same time, not accompanied by a homeless man (Yoon Je-moon), who agrees to take him to the bridge to find Hyun-seo. In the sewer, the two kids have survived, and the creature appears to be asleep. Like a GODDAMN BOSS, she runs up the creatures back, and jumps onto a rope that she had made, and that was hanging far out of her reach. Unfortunately...the creature catches her with its tail. Fuck. It sets her down, and...lets her go? But as soon as she runs, it attacks bother her and Se-joo.

Just then, Gang-du gets to the lair, and uses the rope to climb down. Below him is a pile of bones, and no kids to be seen. The creature goes by, and Hyun-seo’s hand is dangling out of its mouth. And once again by coincidence, that’s when Nam-joo wakes up and reunites with her brother. The creature runs to the waterfront, only to be greeted by...a crowd? They’re gathered there to protest the release of the dangerous chemical into the river.

It all collides at once. The creature swims towards the crowd, Gang-du runs towards the creature, Agent Yellow is released over them both, causing the creature to faint. Gan-du runs up and grabs the bodies of his daughter and See-joo from its mouth, apparently too fucking late. Shit, man. This would’ve been avoided if they just HELPED him. Fuck. He carries her body away as more chemical is released onto the flailing creature, and the chemical causes everyone else in the area to violently hemorrhage as well. Meanwhile, Nam-il and Nam-joo arrive to see their deceased niece, grieving all over again. It’s...fuck, man, it sucks.

And Gang-du is fucking PISSED NOW. He grabs a street sign and attacks the injured creature, fueled by pure rage. Nam-il joins in with Molotov cocktails as it runs away. The homeless man douses it with gasoline, and that makes it easier for Nam-il to set it on fire...until he drops the bottle. And then, Nam-joo uses it to light an arrow on fire, hitting the creature with it, and setting it ablaze. It runs to the water, only for Gang-du to stab it through the head with the street sign, finally killing it in revenge for his father and his daughter. Fucking bad-ASS. And also quite tragic, given the circumstances.

And despite the tragedy, there is one happy circumstance: Se-joo lives! In fact, Hyun-seo died saving his life, like the real goddamn hero of this story that she is. Fuck. That’s terrible, but I’m happy that her sacrifice wasn’t in vain. From here, we fast-forward to the winter, where a clean-shaven and well-kept Gang-du is is now caring for Se-joo. The news is on in the background, but the two ignore it, happily eating together after the ordeal they’ve been through.

Whoof. That’s The Host, or Gwoemul! And yeah, that’s one hell of a movie, I tell you what. For a monster movie, it’s quite dramatic, and they don’t try to humanize the monster AT ALL. And honestly, I really like it! A Pyrrhic victory at the end, but nothing wrong with that! I’ll elaorate a bit in the review! See you there!

[p-and-p-admin]

Interview given to The Severus Snape and Hermione Granger Shipping Fan Group.  (sharing here Admin approved)

https://www.facebook.com/groups/199718373383293/

Hello Oracle Obscured and welcome to Behind the Quill, thank-you for letting us get to know you a little better.

Many readers will know you already and if they don’t I encourage them to look your works up including Teaching Miss Granger and How I learned to love teachers’ meetings

Okay, let’s jump right in.

What's the story behind your pen name?

Hmmm ... that’s kind of a weird answer for me. I wanted to choose a name that didn’t immediately indicate whether I was male or female. I’d noticed a certain freedom afforded to authors of indistinguishable gender. With no societal construct about the “nature” of the creator, the story stood on its own, without prejudice or conditioned expectations.

I brainstormed about six or seven names and then picked the one that appealed to me most. I’ve always felt drawn to the idea of oracles (those who see beyond). And I definitely felt obscured in that department. (Hell, at the time, my whole life felt obscured.)

Which Harry Potter character do you identify with the most?

I don’t know if I do. I guess if I had to pick, I’d say Hermione, as I have a tendency to be an obsessive perfectionist when it comes to work/studying. I like to be organized and plan things out. And I can be quite demanding and harsh with myself when I feel like I’m not measuring up to my own insane ideals.

But I took that openpsychometrics.org statistical quiz a while back, where you answer like a bazillion comparison questions (I did the longer version), and my highest HP match was Remus Lupin (83%). Yeah, I can see that.

Luna is my favorite character, but I don’t know if I identify with her more than anyone else.

Do you have a favourite genre to read? (not in fic, just in general)

It used to be horror/suspense, but ... I don’t know ... I’m just not as into it anymore. Maybe it’s because the real world is horrifying enough without adding fictional monsters to the mix.

Now I mostly read classics.

Do you have a favourite "classic" novel?

To Kill a Mockingbird.

At what age did you start writing?

Just writing stories in general? Maybe second grade. It wasn’t a passion or anything, just something I was pretty good at. I only really did it at school, though, not so much at home. I read A LOT growing up, so I naturally imagined that I might be an author one day. I tried to write a book when I was about 13 or 14, but less than one chapter in, I decided it was too hard. (I was NOT a Hermione growing up. Planning and perseverance were not my style.)

I took a massive break from thinking after high school (the smorgasbord of medications I was on didn’t like me using my brain too much, and my plans for college went out the window when my depression become unmanageable). I didn’t really start writing again until I was about twenty-seven. That was when I found fanfiction. I consider that when I really started writing.

How did you get into writing fanfiction?

I found fanfiction while looking for erotica. Needless to say I discovered the motherlode, and I was hooked. Over the years, I’d written bits and pieces of my own sexy scenarios (which is what you do when you grow up without the internet and you have to depend on your imagination for all your kink requirements), but I’d never really thought about taking someone else’s “story world” and using it as my setting. For a little over a year I read/devoured all the HP fanfiction I could, and then I realized I could take all the fantasies in my head and play them out with my favorite characters.

The first story I wrote was a funny/smutty Ginny/Draco thing, and it was HORRIBLE. The story and the sex were fine, but the writing was a nightmare. I submitted it to The Restricted Section, which was the only site I knew at the time, and they vetted their stories, so I had to get approved. They wrote me back saying it needed work and I should get a beta. So I went on the forum and found one (which was rather brave of me now that I think back). The person who helped me must’ve had the patience of a saint, because he/she(?) never said a damn thing about all the mistakes and shitty-ness. Suggestions and corrections were made, and I changed some of the pronouns to names so it wouldn’t sound so repetitive. The next time I submitted it, they accepted, and I got a decent response for a first-time writer (like three or four nice reviews). No one seemed to hate it, and the reviewers said the sex was hot, so I tried again, hoping to do better.

That’s when I wrote the first chapter of Teaching Miss Granger. It started out as just a oneshot. And it got a much better response. I wanted to write more, but I became extremely depressed and lethargic, and I didn’t really do anything for the next six or seven years. (I mean nothing. Unless you consider watching every episode of Law & Order CI and SVU ten times over to be an accomplishment.)

I came back to it years later, intending to add a few chapters to TMG where they have sex, but ... it just sort of evolved into the monster that it is. I worked on it pretty much every day for about a year. I’d never stuck with ANYTHING that long in my entire life.

What's the best theme you've ever come across in a fic? Is it a theme represented in your own works?

I would say love or “the power of love” is probably my favorite theme. But that includes synonyms for love as well. (Like wholeness, which is the theme of Quartet.)

What fandoms are you involved in other than Harry Potter?

None. I like other fandoms, but I don’t write for them, and I don’t usually read their fanfiction.

If you could make one change to canon, what would it be? Do you have a favourite piece of fanon?

I’ve never really thought about changing cannon. I mean, I change it to suit my fictional purposes (like Snape lives etc.), but I wouldn’t want to change canon for real. The deaths in HP serve a purpose, and while I find many of those deaths heartbreaking, that’s kind of the point. Hatred is bleak and destructive, and good people don’t survive wars simply because they’re good; bad things happen to good people all the time. As for changing something about the individual characters, I can’t get behind that either. The reasons people do things are multifaceted and complex and they’re colored by a lifetime of experiences I will never know or understand, so I don’t feel I can really judge. I can’t say I understand all the choices I’ve made in my own life, and there’ve been plenty of times where I had no choice at all. I can’t hold others to more rigorous standards than I myself can meet. We all have our shortcomings. (And that’s cool. Without them, there would be no growth or diversity.)

Do I have a favorite piece of fanon? Hmmm ... probably Head Boy and Head girl rooming together or having private rooms.

Oh! And uniforms.

Do you listen to music when you write or do you prefer quiet?

I used to listen to really quiet classical music while wearing headphones. Every little sound in the house distracts me, and I have to block it out. But lately I’ve just been running this old box fan that drowns out the noise.

What are your favourite fanfictions of all time?

Crap, I don’t know if I can choose. (Plus I feel like I’ve forgotten a lot of what I’ve read.)

My friend Desert Sea is my fav Hermione/Severus writer. Out of her stories, the ones I like best are In Their Hands and At the Headmaster’s Discretion.

After a brief search of my accounts, I’ll go with:

Do Not Go Gentle by senlinyu

Another Dream by dragoon811

The Last Twenty-Four Hours of Severus Snape by CryingCinderella

Pretty much everything by Aurette

Pet Project by Caeria

Post Tenebras, Lux by Loten

All the SS/HG stuff from snapeslittleblackbuttons

There’s a Teddy Radiator story that I like a lot, but I can’t remember the name of it. (Or what it’s about.) (Yes, very helpful, I know.)

And in a category all it’s own is Farmer Granger and the Most Glorious Cock by MyWitch. (Seriously, I read this like once a month and it makes me laugh every time.)

I read a lot of Drarry too. Drarry stories I love:

Everything by bixgrl1, but especially Balance Imperfect and In Evidence of Magical Theory

Everything by lq_traintracks (even the non-Drarry stuff). The writing is amazing.

I love all the advent stories by Saras_girl.

I like all the Drarry stories I’ve read by Faithwood.

I really like RZZMG’s writing. (No particular story or pairing.)

And I just rediscovered a story I found in 2007 (the first m/m fic I ever read). It’s a Snarry, which I know isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it was excellent. Snape: the Home Fries Nazi by pir8fancier

Are you a plotter or a pantser? How does that affect your writing process?

I enjoy a bit of both. My oneshots are all pantsed. TMG was totally pantsed. But Getting Personal and Quartet were both plotted and planned. For GP I did sort of a chapter by chapter synopsis before starting my rough draft, and for Q I went into even more detail—EVERYTHING was planned out ahead of time. The only thing that changed during the first draft was I ended up combining some of the chapters.

How does plotting affect my writing process compared to pantsing? It streamlines it. In a oneshot there’s not much to streamline; the basic story (or general idea) is all you really need. There’s not enough story to get muddled. But when I’m writing something longer, with multiple chapters, I find it’s better to know where the story is going. How deeply I go into that planning can vary. Sometimes there’s just a basic outline of the major plot points and then I fly by the seat of my pants from there. Sometimes I write out a very rough synopsis (sort of like a short and loose first draft) and then start writing as if it’s my second draft. Things inevitably get changed once I really start writing, so the planning isn’t set in stone by any means, but when I plan, the story goes in the general direction I intend without veering too far off course and there aren’t any plot holes. After I wrote TMG (with no planning) I saw that there was A LOT I could have cut or combined without affecting anything important. I learned a little more with each story I wrote, and when I got to Q, there was a lot of complicated ideas that I wanted to incorporate, and there were so many characters (and character arcs) going on that I had to plan extensively to make sure everything fit together. If I hadn’t worked it out ahead of time, it would’ve been like throwing a heap of puzzle pieces on the table but not being given a reference picture to know what it was I was working toward.

What is your writing genre of choice?

I have no idea. Plotty sex? Erotic dramady? Some of it is just straight up PWP, but I usually like to have something meaningful in there too.

Which of your stories are you most proud of? Why?

Usually the answer is whatever I’ve most recently written, as it’s the most likely to represent my current “best.” In terms of writing, I’ll go with A Brush with Magic, but Quartet is probably my best storytelling. A lot went into that (symbolism, planning, obsessive re-writes) and it holds a good deal of personal meaning to me. So, I guess I’ll go with Q due to the time and effort involved.

Did it unfold as you imagined it or did you find the unexpected cropped up as you wrote? What did you learn from writing it?

The unexpected always crops up (even with all my planning), and it’s the unexpected that makes the magic.

While I had many insights into my own nature while writing Quartet, in the end I think it taught me to trust/listen to myself more.

Later, however, it brought me a very different message. While writing it, I felt a lot of tension and anxiety; I wanted to “do it right” and present my story in the best light. But after some time away, I realized I’d been so worried because I felt as if that story represented me, as if it defined me. And the pressure of being judged worthy or unworthy had been eating me alive.

But I don’t feel that way anymore. Now it’s like I wrote all my stories in another lifetime. While they all might be a snapshot of a fraction of my mind, nothing I create ever says a damn thing about who or what I truly am. Since letting go of that, I’ve found a sense of freedom around writing. I still like to express things as clearly and beautifully as I can, but it’s more a celebration of words than a search for acceptance.

How personal is the story to you, and do you think that made it harder or easier to write?

Quartet was extremely personal to me when I wrote it, and in a lot of ways I think that made it easier to write. When I have to go strictly by imagination, I feel as if I’m missing some depth of understanding (like I’m getting the surface-level stuff, but missing the nuance). When I write from experience, it has an entirely different quality. Richer. More intimate. It’s work to write what I don’t know, but it’s easy to write the truth.

Posting, however, is an entirely different story. Other people don’t always want the truth, and if you feel like your story is an extension of you, it can hurt to have any part of it rejected.

What books or authors have influenced you? How do you think that shows in your writing?

I think everything I’ve ever read or seen has influenced me. In terms of writing, I guess I’d say I’m inspired by beauty in all its forms. When I first started reading fanfiction, I just searched for the kinks I liked; it was all about the sex (with bonus points for having a decent plot). Then one day I read an extremely well-written PWP (I don’t remember what), and the way the author described the sex was so unlike anything I had ever read, it totally blew my mind. It was art. Exquisite art. And before that, I didn’t know sex could be art. That author didn’t just recount the characters’ actions, they painted a word masterpiece—they turned porn into poetry. THAT was what I wanted in my life. And I didn’t know it until that moment.

Books/authors that stick with me:

The Harry Potter series (obviously).

Shel Silverstein (Love the poetry, but The Giving Tree is one of my favorite books of all time.)

Dr. Seuss (Always.)

Judy Blume (I still have my copy of Are You There God it’s Me Margaret from when I was, like, 10. Tiger Eyes is my favorite of hers.)

R.L. Stine (I got hooked prior to the creation of the Goosebumps series, but I had EVERY Fear Street Book he wrote when I was in middle school.)

Weekend by Christopher Pike (This was the first YA thriller I ever read. *Sigh* memories. I still have my original copy, and I still read it every once in a while. The characters and plot are great.)

Stephen King (Carrie is my fav.)

Anne Rice (I’ve read all the vampire and witch books, but The Witching Hour is the only one I’ve read multiple times. Blackwood Farm is my next favorite.)

To Kill a Mockingbird

Charles Dickens (David Copperfield is my fav.)

Jane Austen (I can’t pick between Pride & Prejudice and Sense & Sensibility.)

Thomas Harris (Brilliant writing, and Hannibal might be one of the most intriguing anti-heros ever.)

Stieg Larsson (Another brilliant writer with a brilliant character.)

The Giver by Lois Lowry (I haven’t read the rest of the trilogy. And I haven’t seen the movie. I refuse to besmirch my childhood love with Hollywood’s interpretation.)

Bridge to Terabithia (This book devastated me as a child.)

Gillian Flynn (Sharp Objects is my fav.)

Liane Moriarty (I like all of her books, especially Big Little Lies. The way she plays with the timeline is masterful.)

Frank Herbert’s Dune. (I grew up on this. It’s my dad’s all-time favorite book. And, yes, we’re looking forward to the new movie.)

Margaret Atwood (The Handmaid’s Tale is horrifyingly wonderful. And Atwood herself is fascinating. Watch her Masterclass if you get the chance.)

Steinbeck’s East of Eden (This might be my second favorite book.)

The Lucifer Effect by Phillip Zimbardo (This isn’t fiction, but it was the first book that really affected the way I see the world.)

Eisler’s The Chalice and the Blade (Also not fiction. If you’re interested in the divine feminine and a more egalitarian society, this is the book for you.)

Loving What Is by Byron Katie (The only self-help book that’s ever actually helped me.)

Daphne Du Maurier (I love Rebecca, but she also has a story called “The Blue Lenses” that isn’t really intended to be scary, but it freaked me the fuck out.)

The Secret History by Donna Tartt (Gorgeous writing, and the plot left me seriously disturbed.)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey (Gah! I love this. The writing and the story and the characters and EVERYTHING!)

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (I Bradbury’s writing style, but the plot of F451 is pure horror for any book hoarder lover.)

The Lord of the Flies by William Golding (This might be my third favorite book ever. No, wait, I might like it better than East of Eden. I can’t choose!)

The Diary of Anne Frank (How in the hell could anyone read this and not be affected by it?)

Do people in your everyday life know you write fanfiction?

No. This is my own private world, and I like it that way.

How true for you is the notion of "writing for yourself"?

Very. I write what I want to read. There are certain adjustments I make when I write for other people as opposed to what I do when writing strictly for myself, but nothing major. I refuse to write things I have no interest in, and I don’t write to make people happy. I write to please myself. (But it’s nice when what pleases me pleases others. It’s wonderful to share that connection.)

How important is it for you to interact with your audience? How do you engage with them? Just at the point of publishing? Through social media?

I like hearing from my readers. I don’t have a lot of time to interact, but I like talking to my audience and listening to their insights. I try to reply to all the comments I get on AO3 (it’s just too hard on FFN). And when I have free time (which isn’t often) I check my FB groups to see what’s going on. To me, the interaction kind of completes the creative cycle; it helps me set the story free and allow it to be. It really belongs to the reader once I’ve published, and it’s nice to see the ripples creativity creates.

What is the best advice you've received about writing?

Unless it’s absolutely necessary, stop using the word “was.” Completely changed my writing.

What do you do when you hit writer's block?

It doesn’t really happen that much, as I usually know where I’m going with my story, but there can be glitches between scenes or times when I can’t find the words for something (like ending a chapter). When that happens, I usually just leave it and come back later—I can’t force it if it won’t come.

If I really need to get it done for some reason, I read what I have over and over, adding a little bit more each time, trying out words that “sound right” and building what I need bit by bit. What I come up with isn’t always right or what I want, but at least I have something to work with. Sometimes seeing what’s wrong makes what you want more obvious.

Has anything in real life trickled down into your writing?

Yeah, just about everything Sex, depression, anxiety, personal growth, likes/dislikes, insights, interests, philosophy, all my little neuroses. Every once in a while I’ll even include some dialogue from real life.

Do you have any stories in the works? Can you give us a teaser?

I’m juggling about five long stories right now (plus a couple oneshots). And I haven’t worked on any of them in ages. I don’t know what’s going on with me; I’m just not in the mood. I don’t want to say what they are, as I might never finish them. (Two are Drarry and three are Sevmione. One is a compilation of oneshots. Four of them are completely planned out and just need to be written. The unplanned Drarry was always just meant to be for myself and I doubt I’ll ever release it.)

Any words of encouragement to other writers?

Yes. Enjoy the whole writing/creative process as much as possible. Try not to beat yourself up, and don’t try to force yourself to be better. You will naturally get better the more you write. Change is inevitable; allow it to happen. Read books about writing, and read good writers. Notice what brings you the most pleasure when you read and tap into that same pleasure when you write. Play with words and ideas just for fun. Watch and see what appears. There is no perfect.

If you’re writing about sex (because I get asked about that a lot), write what turns YOU on. Don’t try to be sexy. Don’t try to write what you think other people want to hear. Don’t worry about what other people think (at least in the first draft). If they don’t like it they can go read something else. But if YOU like it, it will shine through in your writing, and that will have a bigger impact on your reader than any activity you describe. Also, the physicality is only a fraction of the sexual experience. Don’t turn your sex scenes into a play-by-play. You’re not really writing about what the characters are doing so much as how what they’re doing affects them. It’s a personal experience, and the more personal you make it (the more honest and vulnerable you are as a writer) the more satisfying the story will be for your reader. Wise words! Thank-you so much for speaking with us today Oracle Obscured.

[citylightsbooks]

Exclusive Interview with Sheree Renée Thomas, Author of Nine Bar Blues

One of our booksellers, Caitlyn Wild, had the amazing opportunity to conduct this longform interview with author Sheree Renée Thomas. Her newest book is Nine Bar Blues: Stories from an Ancient Future, published by Third Man Books. Sheree is celebrating her book along with her Third Man “label mates” Alison Mosshart and Robert Gordon (who also have new books out) in our City Lights LIVE events series on Wednesday, October 21.

***

Caitlyn: This book is gorgeous on the inside AND the outside. This is one of my favorite covers of 2020, have to say. As I'm gazing wistfully at it here I see the subtitle, "Stories from an Ancient Future". Could you speak about what that phrase holds and conjures for you? Sheree Renée Thomas: Thank you! I wanted the cover for Nine Bar Blues to offer a visual clue to some of the characters, natural (and unnatural) landscapes, and themes in the stories. Third Man Books did a wonderful job of creating that sense of wonder and the verdant richness (cicadas, Egyptian gods, the moon, aliens, vines!) I was hoping for. 

The subtitle, “Stories from an Ancient Future” is my riff on the idea that if humanity continues onward, we’ll someday reach a point where even our imagined futures are ancient. Some of the stories in the collection are set in the near future, alternate futures, the present, and the past. What would life be like if you existed in an ancient future? If time is relative, there is always a place where we can look back at ourselves (or our imagined selves) and see the grand sweep of time. What things remains the same, what falls away, is erased and remade again? The ancient future contains some of the wisdom of our past and some of our hopes for the future. It also contains our mistakes and fears. Will we be better off then, in this imagined future? Perhaps, at least I hope so. But that depends on what we carry with us and how well we learn from the lessons of the past. For me, it’s a blending of Ray Bradbury’s Martian Chronicles and the West African philosophy of Sankofa. 

The story that really stayed with me in this collection was "Head Static". It put me in an altered state! I felt like I was watching the earth as it was being created, the deep gods and archetypes of our psyches emerging from the hum of the universe before my eyes, but in reverse. In short, I loved it! Could you tell us about the inception of the character in that story, Claire, and explain how she came to be in your mind and then on the page? That makes me so happy because Claire was one of those characters whose journey really haunted me. When I began writing her, I knew who she was but not why she was, or rather, how she had come to feel the way she did. Music became a way of thinking about the things that people share in common, around the world, throughout time. It is one of our greatest forms of expression. And music contains our deepest thoughts and observations on the world. But our culture is so obsessed with the cult of celebrity, in search of the next great thing. We worship youth and novelty, often at youth’s expense. There’s this constant drive for innovation and acceleration, while holding onto the dream of an endless life span. At what cost? To what end? Writing “Head Static” was a way for me to think about some of these ideas while exploring that deep musical connection. On October 21 we are excited to host you and two of your fellow Third Man Books authors, Alison Mosshart and Robert Gordon. Third Man also publishes another of my favorites, Janaka Stucky. As a reader I'm consistently enraptured with the authors and books they publish. I'm curious as to what the Third Man experience is like from the author's side? It’s been pretty exciting! First of all, if you ever get a chance to visit Third Man Records, go immediately because the space is just amazing. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s like a cross between Tim Burton and Ed Wood with a little Willy Wonka mixed in there? Fantastic design throughout and um, Jack White. Yeah, Jack White! Working with Chet Weise and the Third Man Books/Records team has been as close as my non-musical self has ever been to being in a rock band! There is a lot of good energy, great ideas, and collaboration, and the team is insanely supportive and creative. Between the kickass writers—poets, fiction writers, creative nonfiction—there’s a great deal of talent to just vibe with and connect. My fellow press mates are always working on new wonders, the kind of work that impacts the world—and that’s inspiring.

You are the first Black author to receive a World Fantasy Award for the groundbreaking collection you edited, Dark Matter: A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora, which was published in 2000. (HELL YES). In another interview, you said you were inspired to put the book together because you were shocked it didn't exist yet. In 2020, is there a book you are shocked that has yet to be published? What books that have come along since 2001 are you glad about? There is at least one marvelous book that I do hope to see in the world before I roll out, and there are a couple of others that seem like their time has come, industry-wise, so we shall see. Back in ’98 when I was thinking on what would eventually become the first volume of Dark Matter: A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora, I didn’t set out to create a groundbreaking project. I literally was just looking for more Black speculative fiction to read for fun, and when I didn’t find it in the bookstores, its absence puzzled me. With as many different anthologies that make up the genre, I was surprised that it hadn’t been done before. I’m really grateful I had the chance (and the courage) to do it. It’s been quite a journey! Since that first volume and the second one, Dark Matter: Reading the Bones, that came out in 2004, there have been many, many wonderful amazing books that pretty much put away the old arguments about Black writers not reading or writing this work. One book that I reviewed around the time I was working on the anthology was Nalo Hopkinson’s Brown Girl in the Ring. That novel felt like a game changer to me, because Nalo’s writing got us all so excited about the cultures and worlds we had not seen often in science fiction. She achieved this in a magical way that, while offering all the things we love about speculative fiction, rang true with a rootedness in Afrodiasporic culture. It didn’t feel like she was translating to us. Her writing, storytelling, and world building felt natural and true to itself. Today you could have a whole library of Black speculative fiction (and the scholarship that examines it), and that is beyond thrilling for me.

 Between the diverse works of N.K. Jemisin, Andrea Hairston, Tananarive Due, P. Djèlí Clark—they cover a lot of imaginative ground--and a ton of exciting YA authors I cannot even begin to name, readers have a lot of new work and new voices to explore. It’s just an exciting time.

Finally, if you owned a bookstore or small press, what would it be called and what would your bestseller or focus be? I’ve been jotting down bookstore names for years! Here are a few:  Beloved Books (this was invented during my Toni Morrison phase), focusing on the books people can’t stop discussing and all of our childhood favorites, too.  Echo Tree Books (named after one of my favorite short story writers and poets, Henry Dumas, featuring all fantasy, science fiction, horror, and such).

Haint Blue Books (so I can paint every single wall the most stunning shades of blue, focusing on excellent fiction and world folklore with tons of poetry because sometimes, sadly, people be sleeping on the poetry, lol. Don’t sleep on the poets!).  And my favorite, All Y’all Books (Southern lit and more! Plus a healthy selection of regional lit from other parts). 

I love the last one the best because I can just hear folks saying, “You know you can get it at All Y’all Books!” or asking, “Where did you get that?” “Girl, at All Y’all’s Books. They have out of print and rare books, too!”  Authors can say, “I’m going to be reading at All Y’all’s Books.” You can’t help but smile when you say that!

[megan-cutler]

I was tagged by @bookishdiplodocus for this one! (Sorry about the delayed response!)

What are you currently reading? The Dark Tower - the last book in the Dark Tower Series by Stephen King

How many books have you read this year? Six so far? That kind of makes me sad x.x I just don't have as much time to read as I used to.

How have your reading tastes changed from when you were a child? Not much, honestly, I just read more widely than I used to.

Physical book or e-book? I like and read both. I personally prefer the textile sensation of physical books, but you can't beat being able to take 100 books with you on vacation for the low low weight of one e-reader.

Where do you love to read? Anywhere I can curl up with a blanket and a pillow and possibly a cup of tea. Though I do avoid reading in bed these days because it makes for bad sleep hygiene and being an insomniac means doing every little tiny thing you can to get a good night of sleep.

What is your ideal reading atmosphere? Background noise or silent? Alone or with others? My ideal is quiet - not necessarily silence - and alone. But I don't mind reading with others if they aren't interrupting me. And I've learned to tune out the background noise when I have to XD

Are you a writer? Yup!

What was your very first baby book? Oh boy... maybe it was The Pokey Little Puppy? The first one I remember really fondly was "I'll Love You Forever" (*sobs*)

What was the first book you read on your own? Not sure. The one I remember most vividly, though was Venus Among the Fishes

What has been the longest gap between books? I usually start reading a new book the day after I finish the last one, if not the same day. It's how long it takes me to read a book XD that's the question. The Fellowship of the Ring took me about six months because it was hard to get into. That's probably the longest. Although at the rate I'm getting through the Dark Tower, there's going to be a new contender x.x

What are your favourite genres? Oh gosh, Fantasy and Science-Fiction are the big ones. I have a soft spot for a really good romance (Like The Time Traveler's Wife). I also dabble in historical fiction and most of the sub genres of everything already mentioned. If it catches my fancy and keeps it, I'll read it.

What books make you happy? I like books that absorb me into the world, make me care about the characters and tell me a good story. Even if the ending isn't happy, as long as I got a good story, I'm satisfied.

What books have made you uncomfortable? Why? Uh.. I can't remember any books that made me specifically uncomfortable. Honestly, sometimes the point of books is to make you uncomfortable with something. But there was some creepy part at the beginning of the Dark Tower that just felt totally unnecessary... and inappropriate to discuss x.x

Can you read anywhere? Moving vehicle? Rollercoaster? Sadly, no. I did train myself to read on the subway while I was living in Toronto and that translated to the train while I was in England. But generally, I can't move while in motion. Airplanes are so/so, I can sometimes manage small chunks. But in the car, never!

How do you bookmark books? With bookmarks - boring, I know. But I love me a good bookmark. I have a small stash.

Policy on book-lending? You can borrow it as long as you return it in a reasonable amount of time and in relatively the same condition you took it away in. Otherwise you replace it.

Do people know you’re a bookworm? Heck yeah XD Kinda hard not to.

How well do you take care of your books? VERY. As in, I have developed a method of reading that minimizes the amount of creases that form in the book spine while I'm reading it. And I never store them in a way that might bend or warp the covers or spines.

Can you read in other languages? Sadly, no.

What is a total book turn-off for you? Women who fall in love with men who abuse them. Also women who fall in love with abusive men because they need to be 'saved' and their magic love is the only way to do it. I'm SO done with that crap.

What is an essential element of a good book? Good characters; they are the foundation from which all good stories spring.

Genres you rarely read? Horror and mystery. In the case of horror, I just can't do it. I'm too chicken. In the case of mystery, I get too micro-managey on the details and always end up missing stuff anyway, so I don't really enjoy them. I'm not huge on thrillers either, but am not opposed to giving them a fair shake.

Do you read non-fiction? Yup! Most recently The Art of War :3

Do you read reviews on a book before you read it? Sometimes. It depends on how well I know the author and where I'm learning about the book. If it's someone new to me and none of my friends have read the book, I like to get some sense of what I might be in for before I buy something.

Do you judge a book by the cover? Yes and no. I judge by the back over - IE the description of the book, and the front insert if there is one. Pretty covers are nice, and sometimes draw me to books I'd otherwise pass over. But I don't pass over books specifically because of their covers either. If it sounds like a good story, I'll read it.

Do you read cover to cover or sometimes skim parts? Almost always cover to cover. If I'm skimming the book it's bad and I probably won't bother finishing it.

Do you always finish a book, even if it is dull? I used to. But then I realized life is too short for that kind of crap. So now I either discard a book if it loses me or skim it to see if it gets interesting again.

How do you organise your books? Oh boy XD In order of favorite authors / series. I mean, basically no one can figure out where the books go except me. Not even my husband has figured out my system XD

Favourite book this year? Dune. I'm kinda shocked I got this far in life without having read it before! I’m late to the game on this one, so tagging anyone reading this who wants to do it and hasn’t already (YES YOU READING THIS UNCERTAINLY!)

[cryptidofthekeys]

All the writer asks!!!!!!

I’ve already answered the pen n paper one so I’ll leave that one out and answer the rest haha

ink: what do you do to “set the mood” when writing?

hmmm… well to usually set the mood would depend on the type of story I’m writing, if its horror/really angsty shit then I’m definitely going for dark themed music, if its something fluffy n cute- then im gonna go for some really happy upbeat music, so to set the mood- it’d usually depend on the genre

diary: how many pieces have you written that are just for you or will never see the light of day?

……Shhh… Let’s keep those my dirty little secret… (their not nsfw, thats not what I mean by that just to clarify)

journal: do you ever write just so you can enjoy something to read?

Hmm I guess I’ve done it once or twice before, but I dont do it too often-

novella: do you prefer to write short stories, one-shots, or entire novels?

I don’t think I’ve even came CLOSE to an entire novel but, I do a lot of short-stories and ESPECIALLY one-shots, im not very good at chapter based stories or anything

pulitzer: tell about/link a piece where you felt your writing was the best.

Ooooh fuck this is a tough one, Im too lazy to link it but- in my Yan!Henrik story there were some parts I ABSOLUTELY loved and felt were p damn good and in the werewolf story I wrote as well, some good parts in there too, but I definitely feel more fond over some of the scenes in the Yan!Hen story than any other one

genre: what genre do you prefer to write in?

Honestly, I’m pretty open to genres, like- fantasy, science-fiction, etc- the whole shabang- im not too picky bout any of them-

narrator: what pov do you like writing in best?

hmmm I guess like- wouldnt it technically be in third person with the way I write, for the reader its always You and or they, I always keep a story gender-neutral so that way all readers can be who they want to be in the stories, it can give them a better chance to imagine themselves in said position, now if i got a specific thing to do, male, female, non-binary, etc- then yeah I’d do that

backstory: how did you come to love writing?

That’s a- actually kinda simple tbh- its not an interesting story- At first I was actually unsure about it, but then- the more I wrote, the more I got super into it-  It was just… super fun to me after I did it for awhile

time-lapse: how long have you been writing (as a hobby or for work)?

It’s a hobby for now, but I do wish I could open commissions- but hmm its been like, maybe 5-6 years by now, maybe even a bit longer

characterization: describe your favorite character(s) you’ve written.

You should know this for sure haha, my favorite characters to write with tho- I’ll just say who they are, all the septic egos p much except… im still not too confident with writing Angus yet, some of the Iplier egos, like the Jims, Harold, and Eric, and I’m trying to branch out to other fandoms, I like writing with David n Daniel, from the cc fandom, and I’m trying to work on Dream Daddy characters too, Joseph, Robert, Mary, etc- and then my own characters too- I dont write wiht them often but I try

carnegie: what authors and/or books/stories have inspired you to write or influenced your work?

hmmm… I get inspired fairly easily so it’d be hard for me to name anything like that off the top of my head tbh

faulkner: what tropes do you LOVE writing? which ones are your guilty pleasure?

…. Why not ALL the tropes? …okay maybe not ALL of them

o’connor: what tropes/genres do you dislike writing?

Eh, im a p open person to tropes/genres- I mean unless like a trope could count as in, like- “it was all a dream” or “you were the killer all along” or some shit like that, then that type of shit isnt REALLY my cup of tea

dickinson: what insecurities do you have about your own writing? what do you think you should improve on?

There’s a lotta things I think I could improve on, honestly… I think, its not a matter of insecurity really, more so like- no matter who you are, there’s always room for improvements, I think we all improve on things every day, writing, drawing, roleplaying, even simple things- after all, there’s nowhere to really go except forward in life, so I just tend to go with my own flow, and if I improve than I’m happy with that, if I dont? Welp, that just means I still have a bit to go-

playlist: what kind of music/songs help you write? do you have a writing playlist?

oh god I w i s h I was organized enough to fucking- have a writing playlist ashdjshfdsj, it just depends on my mood- sometimes I get distracted by songs tho-

record: have you written things based off of songs? do you like to?

…I wrote one, its a really old one and im not too proud of it, but, people like it apparently so I keep it up since it seems to make em happy and thats what matters in that regard, but nah im not BIG on writing things based off songs

nobel: have you published anything you’ve written? online or irl?

Hmmm not yet, I don’t think I’m ready to physically publish my stories or anything, although my dad does encourage it, he tells me I should find a publisher or whatever and publish some stories (it wouldnt be ones with like- characters from things like camp camp, dream daddy, etc of course- it’d be ones with my own characters)

notepad: can you write anywhere or do you have to be in a specific place and mood to write?

D e f i n i t e l y a specific place and mood, my mood’s totally off and wrong right now and its frustrating bc im trying to write but the body and brain is like no motherfucker, be in pain and hate me more than you already do

parchment: how often do you or your personal life influence your writing?

I dont… know if ANY of my personal life has… influenced my writing? not that I know of anyways

dedication: if you were to publish a book or multiple, who would you dedicate the book(s) to?

I think… I dont know who I’d dedicate the books too or anything-

trope: what’s a pet peeve you have about writing?

…honestly? The one pet peeve I, myself, have with writing is the I/Me POV- now of course its fine if others use it, it could be easier to them, or they simply like it a lot, but I myself, just- cant fucking s t a n d that type of pov

input: what’s something you hate that people say to you about writing/your writing?

Okay- I need to be honest here, bc I get a lot of them, when I constantly state that I only do one shots and not chapter stories but the whole “pls continue” “another part to this please” “Do more of this” that doesnt really make me wanna do more, it makes me wanna move on actually from any of that, like im not about that plz continue, do more!!! type of comments

critic: what’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received about writing?

Oh god I’ve received TONS of good advice from people, especially when it comes to some of the German I use for Henrik, I will admit… I’ve been severely slacking with learning my German, and I…. I deeply regret it tbh, but- I never mind and am actually grateful when someone corrects me when using a word incorrectly in a sentence or whatever

mifflin: what do you feel is your strong suit in writing?

A n g s t

houghton: what’s something you love that people compliment your pieces on?

I love all compliments tbh, I especially love comments on my angst like NO HOW DARE YOU OP, or OP wha t the f uck- my  he a r t, or anything like that- …im a sadistic lil gremlin arent I? I love breakin hearts with angst, but like any compliments I receive on my stories are all greatly appreciated, I just most of the time I dont have the time to respond to them, BUT- I do read em, every last one of em-

[bicycles-bees-bisexuals]

50 Question Book Tag For World Book Day

My darling pal @thebestoftimes tagged me in this and who am I to refuse, though i am a lame loser who hasn’t read very much since high school. I read so much in elementary and middle school that I think I read enough for a whole lifetime. Also I’m a verbose asshole so enjoy my essays on books I read 13 years ago.

Who or what sparked your love of literature?

My mom used to read to me when I was really little and my sister despised being read to so my mom stopped. It made me sad so I started reading to myself and I just kept reading and reading and reading all throughout elementary and onward.

Do you have an ‘odd’ book habit? (page sniffing/never leaving the house with a book)

If I really really really love a book I use it to press flowers, so you’ll know which book is my favorite when you open it and it’s full of flowers

Do you have a book that you think has changed your life? How?

Shit I dunno man, I feel like Tolkien shaped my creativity and his characters are characters that I truly hold dear. But Pride and Prejudice really impacted me, which I know is weird, but it was my first foray into literature written by women for women and I just loved the dynamic of the characters, the spunkiness of Elizabeth Bennet, and the style of writing.

Which book have you reread most frequently?

Pride and Prejudice because I’m a huge freakin’ nerd and whenever I’m sad P&P is my comfort book. This is closely followed by the Lord of the Rings/the Hobbit

You can meet any author and ask one question. What author would you chose and what question would you ask?

Oh shit.....ummmmmm..... Ummmmmmmmmmmm.....I would ask Jane Austen her opinion on the Lizzie Bennet Diaries(after showing her the whole series)

Best book published this year so far?

(I haven’t read any books published this year I am so sorry)

Imagine you’ve started a book and don’t like it. Do you see the experience through to the bitter end?

I am a sinner of the highest caliber and I read the end to see if it’s interesting enough to warrant suffering through the rest

What book is top of your wish list/TBR pile?

Any of Holly Blacks books tbh, I hear such good things about her work and I just haven’t gotten around to reading it yet and I really want to

Favourite place to read?

On the porch in my beach chair with a mug of tea and a blanket

If you buy books, do you lend them out? Ever had a bad experience?

I lend books out all the time. I recently had a person I considered my friend abscond to Russia with several of my books and I am not happy about it

What fictional character do you ship yourself with?

There are so many badass ladies that if I lived in their world I would flirt so hard with them and I can’t decide. Definitely Annabeth and Rachel for Percy Jackson, Hermione/Ginny/Luna from Harry Potter... Brett Ashley from The Sun Also Rises....Arwen from LOTR but also Aragorn and also Eowyn....I just love hot ladies who get in fights alright

Weirdest thing you’ve used as a bookmark.

A whole sock, it was the nearest object to me and I was in a hurry, but at least it was clean

Favorite quality/qualities in a protagonist and antagonist

I love a flawed character who experiences character growth in the story, be they protagonist or antagonist. Not even in a ‘bad guy becomes good guy’ way, character growth is just so sexy man I wish writers used it more

Favorite genre and favorite book from that genre.

Why must you hurt me in this way, making me decide. I must say Fantasy is my genre of choice, and my favorite is actually The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Best/worst movie adaptation in your eyes

Dragon is by far the worst movie adaptation I have ever seen, I remember being so utterly disappointed and gutted when I watched it, I love those books so much and that movie let me down so hard(the effects were really good for the time though I must give them that)

Do you prefer reading your own books, or library books?

I am poor so library books all the way

How do you choose your next book to read?

I read descriptions until something strikes my interest. Or Jess recommends something to me.

Your favorite word.

Flourish

Book that got you hooked on reading/how you got hooked.

Mrs Peregrins Home for Peculiar Children, which isn’t a book I didn’t expect to like and didn’t have much interest in but the opening line of “I had just come to accept my life would be ordinary when extraordinary things began to happen” it was an interesting enough hook to draw me in. I was not disappointed, it’s a pretty great book

Opinion on dog-earing, margin writing, ect.

I dog ear books and write all over them. I love books and I love the stories they contain but I don’t think the pages of each individual book are sacred. My books look loved because they are loved. Unless I’m borrowing them then I don’t dog ear or write in them because that’s rude

Top 5 immediate to read in no order

The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater

The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic

The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Lady Midnight by Cassandra Clare

Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare

Queen of Air and Darkness by Cassandra Clare

Most underrated book you’ve read

Tbh I don’t think I’ve read any underrated books. They’re all pretty highly rated

What is the first book that catches your eye when you look at your bookshelf?

My collectors copy of Sherlock Holmes because it’s beautiful and fancy and those stories hold a dead place in my heart

How do you arrange your books on your shelves?

I don’t arrange them, I just place them so that they fit, though I do keep series together

You have the power to change a book’s ending. Which ending would you change and what would you make happen instead?

Why do you do this to me.....okay I would definitely change the ending of Inheretence by Christopher Paolini. Tbh I wish he hadn’t written the fourth book at all and just left it with Eragon, Eldest, and Brisingr but if we accept this book then it must be changed. I would have liked to see more character growth from Murtagh especially, but also Eragon who really regressed in this book. And I think Galbatorix’ death was super anti climatic and didn’t really resolve all of the built up tension from the series, it was too easy and didn’t resolve anything at all.

And Eragon just abandons Arya and the riders and they separate themselves from each other after all they did together, several books of allusion to a relationship and all of the issues between them being resolved and he just leaves. The plot threads just weren’t resolved and honestly I would have to scrap the whole book for the most part and start over.

Favourite book cover?

The book covers for the Inheretence Cycle by Christopher Paolini hold a special place in my heart and are what drew me to that series in the first place. I bought hard covers just for the aesthetic of them

Which book from your childhood has had the most impact on you?

The Chronicles of Narnia, tbh, my first introduction to fantasy

When reading, what do you value most: writing style, characters, plot, world building, pacing, etc?

Characters are the most valuable to me, if I don’t love the characters I don’t love the book

Do you prefer buying books or borrowing them from a library/friend?

Borrowing, for sure

What books/sequels that are being published this year are you most excited for?

Unfortunately I haven’t read enough lately to know what’s coming out this year

Which fictional character would you want as a sidekick?

Samwise Gamgee all the way

How many books have you read so far this year?

Seven, all academic books

What’s been your favourite read so far this year?

The Heliand

You’re stuck on an island with a suitcase big enough to hold five books. What books are they?

Arghhhhh ummm.... the lord of the rings trilogy, Pride and Prejudice, and a book on survival tactics

If you had to go out to dinner with any character who would it be and why? What would you talk about?

Hmmmmm Bilbo Baggins because I wanna hear the hidden stories of his journeys

Is there a book you have such a hatred for that you would throw it off of the highest tower knowing that the last copy of it will be destroyed so that not another living soul can read it?

Inheretence by Christopher Paolini tbh

Do you believe books make nice decoration?

Yeah I do and one day I want to have book shelves displaying all my books

Do you listen to music when you read? Or do you need complete silence? 

I do listen to music because I can’t focus on just one thing at a time because I’m ridiculous

Do you have a favorite book? If not are you in the group that believes there are too many great books out there to just choose one?

I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE I CANTTTFTTTT

Do you sleep with books under your pillow.

No because I move too much in my sleep I would destroy the poor thing

Do you go to the library or do you have a book buying addiction or are you one of those lucky people who is able to do both?

I definitely go to the library because I am poooorrrrr

Own any book inspired clothing?

I have a pride and prejudice book scarf and several Jane Austen necklaces

Have you ever read a book in another language?

Yep I read books in Latin all the time and I used to read books in Spanish because I used to be smart, what the fuck happened to that who knows

Strangest book you’ve ever read?

The Heliand

Favourite type of non-fiction?

Historical Drama, in which they tell real events but in the most dramatic way possible. The best.

Favourite non-fiction book?

I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE I CANT CHOOSE (does hidden figures by Margot Lee Shetterly count? If not then I can’t decide)

Favourite subject to read about?

History, always, especially history involving regular people losing their shot

Favourite book you’ve read in school?

No Turning Back: The History of Feminism and the Future of Women by Estelle Freedman

Favourite work of Shakespeare?

Tbh I don’t like Shakespeare but Midsummer Nights Dream is most entertaining to me. Though I love merchant of Venice for all the jokes I get out of it on Bards Dispense Profanity

Character you’d love as a mom or dad or guardian?

All of them would be terrible parents and it would be so delightful but tbh I’d love to have Han Solo and Leia as my parents so I can beat the shit out of my bro Kyle Ron every time he tried to glorify space hitler

[natsubeatsrock]

7 Things I Enjoyed in 2021 that Aren’t Fairy Tail

You know the rules and so do I.

Number 7: The Hunter's Guild: Red Hood

Given the cutthroat nature of the WSJ, many series that show promise are canceled early. A lot of series got the ax this year, including Phantom Seer, an honorable mention from last year. But seeing Red Hood end prematurely was especially disappointing. It was great to see a series take the various Grimm Brothers stories and make a fighting series with it. It doesn't seem as though WSJ readers and the folks at Shueisha agreed. Here's hoping the writer gets another shot sometime soon.

Number 6: Cynical Theories: How Activist Scholarship Made Everything About Race, Gender, and Identity—and Why This Harms Everybody

Yeah, this is going to upset some people. I found out about the authors Helen Pluckrose and James Lindsay a few years ago. They teamed up with Peter Boghossian to fool a bunch of academic journalists into publishing bunk journal entries, including a feminist rewriting of part of Mein Kampf. (I wish I was joking.) Since then, the group has often teamed up to write and talk about how these studies aren't as helpful as people want to believe. I've been waiting to read this book for a while. I'm glad I was able to this year. The whole time I read it, I kept screaming "This stuff is cancer!" out loud as I read the quotes they cited. If you're interested in this but don't enjoy reading non-fiction at a graduate level, wait for their book Social Injustice to come out in a few weeks.

Number 5: Wandavision

Chalk this one up to being too behind on the MCU for my own good. I've heard a lot of praise for Far from Home. But I still have to catch up with Falcon and the Winter Soldier, let alone the movies from this year. Still, this was a great introduction to Disney Plus for Marvel Studios. After the fallout of both Avengers movies, Wanda grieves the loss of Vision by... holding an entire town hostage and creating a series of sitcoms. Most episodes pay homage to a different era of the genre going from the black-and-white era to the modern era. I'm not sure I could have expected to have as much fun watching this as I had. As a big lover of the mutants, I almost shed tears when we saw Wanda finally become the Scarlet Witch. I can't wait to see how this ties into the upcoming Doctor Strange film... after I catch up with the rest of the MCU...

Number 4: Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation

This series will likely be anime of the year for many people. However, my nod goes to the light novel version of the series. Mushoku Tensei didn't start the isekai genre or trends it uses. But it set the tone for where the genre would end up going. With the series making its name known to the West this year, it's not hard to see why. You're not getting an escapist fantasy about a guy living out his dream. Rudeus Greyrat is someone who recognizes he screwed up in his old life and is genuinely trying to make the most of his new life. This shows up in how he helps others and is tied to other parts of the series. If it weren't for certain plot points, this might have made it higher on this list. Still, I can't deny that I've had a great time reading this. I eagerly await the reaction to certain things coming up in the anime.

Number 3: Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Haha, the game with the number 3 is my number 3. I've been meaning to play this for a while. As fun as FE is, I've had extra fun playing this particular game now. My first playthrough of this game coincided with me actually becoming a teacher. I can't say that it's affected my teaching abilities. However, as an addition to the Fire Emblem series, it's great to see this game hasn't divided the community as much as many other recent entries have. It feels like every new game I play in this series becomes my favorite. However, this has been the first game I've struggled to put down in years. I'm still on my second playthrough, and I'm having a ton of fun finding out more about the world and characters. This upcoming year looks to be a big one for Nintendo, and it will be interesting to see how they impress fans.

Number 2: Komi-san Can't Communicate

Do you mean to tell me that Netflix licensed two series about a character who meets someone who helps them make a ton of friends despite their social ineptitude? And hit both out of the park? Though, I've already given EZ a spot on this list in the past. This is a series that has been hyped up for years. Shouko Komi's popularity in-universe is only rivaled by her popularity in real life. When I saw that it was getting an adaptation, I was worried it wouldn't live up to the expectations. Not because of the source material, but if the studio would do the series justice. Needless to say, those fears were widely exaggerated. This was the most fun new anime of the year (not named EZ). Admittedly, I haven't seen much new anime from this year people would consider a standout hit. However, I doubt that anything from this year would have gotten my nod over it. Word of advice, this might not be the best show to watch on Netflix.

Number 1: Fate/stay night: Heaven's Feel trilogy

To think these are the Ufotable movies making the top of my list. One of my big anime goals for the year was to get into the Fate series. I have a ways to go with the millions of spinoffs. But I've seen all of the main adaptations of the series. Part of me wanted to give this spot to Carnival Phantasm, just because. However, I can't say I enjoyed anything I went through this year as much as Heaven's Feel movie trilogy. Allow me to vastly oversimplify this series. Fate/stay night is a visual novel involving a series of battles involving famous mythical and historical figures fighting alongside people who use magic. There are three different routes: Fate, Unlimited Blade Works, and Heaven's Feel. I'd have liked UBW with a different ending, and the adaptation for Fate isn't great. Heaven's Feel provided a ton of satisfying endings for characters I didn't think would get happy endings. This especially goes for the main heroine of this route Sakura Matou. I fell in love with her even during the first Fate adaptation. Watching Heaven's Feel made me willing to fight anyone who would see her unhappy. Also, screw Shinji Matou.

(This is an aside for the Fate series. If you want to get into the series, here's what you need to know. Either go through the UBW television series and then go to the movies first or Fate/Zero. Once you finish one, watch what you missed. You can go through the old Fate/stay night anime before UBW if you want, but it's horribly dated and mixes things from the other routes. You can also just go through the visual novels and get into whatever you want from there. Anything else is extra.)

As honorable mentions, the PV for Chainsaw Man might be one of the best anime I've seen, and the series will likely have a spot on this list. I did enjoy the Case Studies of Vanitas anime but not enough for it to make the list. I've been rewatching the old Sailor Moon, and I've been having a fun time. River City Girls is a great game that I can't wait to see the sequel for next year. Hilda and Cobra Kai will get new series additions after I post this, and it looks like they'll continue to be amazing. And, if you haven't given EZ a chance, the anime is an underrated gem. Give it a shot before the second season adapts some of the more crazy moments in the series.

Speaking of which, here’s my EZ list. See you!

[comradecowplant]

WELL it was an easy read and I finished the book already. I gotta do a classic Dani Vents About a Story post that will include significant spoilers, so be careful if you are reading/want to read The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargraves. I’m about to bitch about it a lot, but overall it was an interesting book that I’d still (mostly) recommend if you have an interest in historical fiction surrounding the Norwegian witch trials.

Most of it was really good, although a few theme threads and character arcs completely fell apart in the final act. I knew it was going to be dark-- again, 17th century witch trial shit-- but the actual “murder my favorite characters” bit thankfully didn’t begin until pretty late in the story, which lets the focus remain more on the lives of the women vs their horrific deaths. The author does a (mostly) great job at creating interesting characters you fall in love with, and succeeded immensely at bringing the landscape and village of Vardo to life.

BUT 

IN THE LAST LITERAL FOUR PAGES, THE NARRATIVE TOOK ALL THE MEANING THAT THE PROTAGANISTS HAD CREATED OUT OF THEIR HARDSHIPS AND THREW IT OVER A CLIFF (LITERALLY! & EACH USE OF THIS WORD HERE HAS BEEN THE PROPER USE. although i guess a fictional event cannot be truly ‘literal’ BUT WHATEVER I AM NOT GETTING LOST IN THE WEEDS WITH PEDANTICS). I am so fucking mad, and it serves as a reminder to why I typically don’t read/watch many period pieces these days, unless it is a period setting in a fantasy/sci fi world. So many people think that in order to bE rEaLiStIc when writing about periods in history, you simply MUST be as grimdark as possible, especially with conclusions, but I find that perspective boring and uncreative as hell. Bitch it’s already fiction! it’s already lies! you are god in the universe you write, have some courage and don’t concede to established tropes that center on garish suffering to define the experiences of historically (& contemporaneously) marginalized people! At least in a medieval-set fantasy story, you get the vibes of the historical setting, but also your friends can swoop by on a dragon and rescue the innocent pants-wearing fisherwoman who is about to be burned alive by the racist woman-hating church.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love a story with a messy & unhappy ending. I even love an occasional grimdark story! But as I get older, I see & feel more the evils which inspired these historical events and how they still burden our world today, and I do not enjoy spending my free time reading/watching movies that are centered on suffering for suffering’s sake-- if I want a story about senseless violence & the underdogs who never win, I will just turn on the fucking news. SO, for me, the dark stories I do enjoy cannot just be traumaporn in a difference shell, the darkness has. to. make. sense. You can’t spend 300 pages on a woman overcoming her grief of losing her brother/father/fiancé/half her village & learning how to be a #StrongIndependantWoman, then have her just kill herself on the last page. It just isn’t narratively good, it just isn’t! And to be clear, the author could have gone WAYYYYYYYY darker in many places throughout the book & did not even come close to going full grimdark. I think overall she greatly succeeded at balancing hope & hopelessness. It was done so well in fact that I was lulled into a false sense of security that maybe just maybe there might be a way out for our ladies, a conclusion that didn’t end with the kind of complete misery that historic fiction tends to skew towards. But there is this overwhelming sense in the final few pages that, probably due to the aforementioned loyalty to perceived “historical accuracy”, she hadn’t included enough suffering (even though there is PLENTY of tragedy to go around by that point) & she didn’t know how to finish the story. So when in doubt, kill 👏 those 👏 gays 👏 (although we don’t know the fate of the other woman, who has entire chapters given from her perspective, but Meren just says bye & we never hear about Ursa again 😤)

Which brings us to, yeah, it did have gay shit like I thought, and up until the garbage of the last four pages, it was a very touching romance. But it too concluded in a way that is only satisfying if you squint, and adds to the inconsistencies that I mentioned above. I’ve never in my life said this before, and it makes me ill to even type this, but, *sob* it probably would have been a better story if the two women had remained platonic friends and no touch-a the booba. I know a lot of people think I’m One of Those cringe queers who will read/watch absolute garbage just if there is a queer person (which tbf I definitely also do sometimes, & it’s actually very valid of me, thank u very much), but if that were true I would have finished that awful Warming Trend book that I blogged about like 2 years go, or read any of the hundreds of stupid “subtext” trash that folks like to recommend, or ship Supercorp (no offense to anyone who ships them, I get it, Katie McGrath is hot, but come on, there is a perfectly good lesbian already on the show), or watched Glee. No, I do actually have some standards--  Are they super high, as a love-starved reader/viewer who uses romantic fiction as a primary means of escapism/coping with my shitty life? No, lmao. But as a writer, and as a queermo, nothing grinds my gears more than a badly executed lgbtq+ storyline.

Anyway, I just finished the book an hour ago so my crankiness & disappointment is raw and thus I am all over the place with this rant. I hope I’m not coming off as being too hard on the author, because despite it’s flaws, I am very glad to have serendipitously found The Mercies, and I look forward to checking out KMH’s other works. It’s been a long time since I’ve dug into a book and read it in just a few sittings like I did this, repeating “just one more chapter” for hours until it’s suddenly 3 am, and despite the fuckery to my sleep schedule it contributes to, the feeling is good-- it brings me back to simpler times when I actually was able to experience an ease from the constant uneasiness I always carry in my chest. Idk, moral of the story is that reading is fun, & when I get stuck in my Bad Turns & don’t read for months, it becomes easy to forget how much solace can come from a mid-quality but seductive (not in a horny way. but sometimes also in a horny way, lol) novel. Like, most of my reading these days is miserable 20th century theory or other academic/non-fiction writing related to our depressing capitalist hellscape & impending climate disaster, and The Mercies helped me remember that my roots lie in fiction. It also has me inspired to revisit a couple of historical fictions projects I have laying around, aND MAKE A WOMAN-EMPOWERMENT, ANTI-RACIST, QUEER AS HELL PERIOD FICTION PEICE THAT DOES NOT END IN COMPLETE GARBAGE! And in the meantime, I shall be revisiting the works of Sarah Waters, the only bad bitch I know of who writes queer historical fiction without relinquishing her characters solely to the suffering they experience ✌ 

If anyone has read this far and has any books/authors to recommend (wlw focused preferably, historical fiction or any genre as long as the story itself doesn’t rely on the tropes I touched on, recently published also preferably bc I have a long list of older books/authors but i don’t keep up with new releases like I should, & a lot of the ones I know are white & cis so PLEASE send reccs for more diverse stories/authors if you have them) 

[jedi-anakin]

tag games!

tagged by @shirewalker, thank you so much!

I decided not to just pick one, so I picked four and did all of them. Of course you don’t have to do all four, or any if you don’t want to do that. 🙃

tagging @admiralsamilyn, @bellamybalke, @borntosavethedoctor, @jennalouisecolemans, @tonystarkz and anyone who would like to do that

all games under the cut

1st game! Ten Questions Tag Game

What’s the earliest story you remember writing?

It was a Jonas Brothers fanfic. I was twelve.

Which do you prefer to write? Short stories of longer ones?

Long ones. I tried the short ones, but it’s just impossible for me. I put a lot into the world building and the characters and sometimes it takes chapters for me to actually get to the main plot. Also I usually plan ahead pretty early in the story.

Do you think your writing is ready to be seen by the world?

No, dear god, no. I'm very insecure about that, mainly because I was very bad at it in primary school. And I believe it was the thing that made me work it out, but I’m still too insecure to do that.

Which OC would be the best company when writing and which would be the worst?

Hmm. I think the best would be Kenna. She is a writer herself, so she would be pretty helpful.

The worst one would be Bonnie. She is from a story I cannot really put under any genre yet and she is the type of person who doesn’t like to sit around and do something like writing. She would rather be out and protest and fight for her homeland.

Do you have a favourite world you’d give anything to visit?

I would love to visit Narnia, I mean for someone who’s favorite animal was and is a lion, meeting Aslan was goals. Also the Land of Oz. This one is still goals. I love that world so much, the whole Nonestica is just so unique and fascinating.

Any writing rituals? Special place, special time of the day, special medium to write a draft on, etc.

I like to write in the afternoon much better, but the best ideas always comes after 10 pm, so sometimes I found myself still writing at 1 am. My drafts are so messed up, I’m happy if I can manage to get a decent one. Currently I’m planning a story and even though I started writing the first chapter, I found myself planning for four years after the first chapter takes place. Gonna be a looong story.

What’s your favourite genre to read AND to write? 

For reading I like sci-fi and fantasy, but lately I only read non-fiction books. For writing I’m the best drama. I do love to write sci-fi and fantasy, but I always find a big plot/story problem that stops the writing for a certain time. Lately I only wrote drama and it’s actually a lot easier than I suspected. I have two story in that genre and both are turned out to be really great. But I hope I can do some good sci-fi / fantasy too.

Do you have friends that write too?

Sadly, no. My flatmate doesn’t even likes to read. :(

If you could have a writing cottage anywhere in the world, where would it be?

I think in the Alps.

Favourite author and how have they inspired you/your writing.

I don’t remember which author made me write for the first time (I think it was Dan Wells), but then I didn’t write for years. And for the second time, it was actually a fanfiction that made realize that I have to write and I cannot give it up.

2nd game! 5 Things

5 things you’ll find in my bag: keys, calculator, wallet, pen, phone 5 things you’ll find in my room: twelfth doctor funko pop, angry birds plushes, books, surprisingly two plants, star wars calendar (with Rey this month) 5 things that make me happy: my fave webcomic updating every thursday, seeing my dog (or any dog tbh),  the smell of freshly baked cinnamon rolls, seeing the stars, listening to my favorite songs 5 things i’m currently into: giffing/editing, writing, reading, watching, eating 5 things on my to-do list: be less pessismistic, sleep more on weekdays, write something that I’m fully proud of so I can show to my fam, pass my late spring exams, be more confident

3rd game! Get To Know Me

How tall are you? 163 cm / 5'4"

What color are your eyes? Green, blue, brown, grey.

Do you wear contacts and/or glasses? No

Do you wear braces? No, but I had them for 2,5 years

What is your fashion style? Cheap??

When were you born? 11th August, 1997

Do you have any siblings? Nope

What school/college do you go to? Commerce and marketing

What kind of student are you? The tired one

What are your favorite subjects? History, English

What are your favorite movies? Anastasia, Back To The Future, Bedazzled, Pirates of the Caribbean, Star Wars, The Mummy

What are your favorite pastimes? Good old “watching some TV show or film”, writing, reading, playing some phone game which I wouldn’t like to name.

Do you have any regrets? Sure.

What’s your dream job? Never had a specific one.

Would you like to get married? Yeah, sure. It could be fun, with the right person, of course.

Do you want kids? Maybe someday.

How many countries have you visited? 5

Do you have a significant other? No.

4th Game! Another Get To Know

Age - 20

Birthplace - hungary

Current time - 11:38 pm

Drink you had last - tea

Easiest person to talk to - my dog???

Favorite song - how deep is your love

Hogwarts house - slytherin

In Love - with fictional characters, sure

Jealous of people - always

Killed someone - only bugs

Love at first sight or should I walk by you again - first sight, I only walk if I have to

Middle name - I don’t have one

Number of siblings - zero (sometimes my parents call the dog my sister or just mess up our names)

One wish - a calm week

Person you called last - my mom

Question you are always asked - “do you have a boyfriend?” also followed by “still don’t?”

Reason to smile - hello there

Song you sang last - two hearts by phil collins

Time you woke up - 6:50 am

Underwear color - black

Worst habit - thinking people are laughing at me, when they obviously not

X-rays - nope

Your favorite food - cinnamon roll

Zodiac sign - leo

[blu-b]

Hi! For the ask-thingy! How ‘bout 2+3:tropes you wanna try and tropes you wouldn’t touch; 9:which fic was hardest to write;12:which fic inspires you most of all;35: dub/noncon -yea or nay?; and let’s end with 37:talk about your current WIPS! Whenever you have time,all or none! (ps-i was gonna ask about smut but because you have written some of my FAVORITE scenes of hotness it was kinda moot) Have a great day!!!

Thank you for these! :D

2. Is there a trope you’ve yet to try your hand at, but really want to?

Off the top of my head I can’t think of anything that stands out. I mean, I haven’t done the obligatory coffee shop AU for any fandom yet, and some of the other common tropes, so there’s still that ^^. But I can’t think of anything, you know, super extra that I’d say I definitely need to write one of those. 

3. Is there a trope you wouldn’t touch with a ten foot pole?

I’m not sure if you can call it a trope or if it’s more of a genre of itself, but I’m not interested in / attracted to Alpha/Beta/Omega stuff and genderswap at all. Nothing makes me click the X faster than these two. That’s not to say I won’t dabble into intersex or gender issues in general, but I just don’t see the need to make a male character into a female one (or vice versa) just for the sake of it. That said, I do have a fic started where Loki is a woman, but there’s a reason for that and he’s not going to stay one for long ^^

9. Which fic has been the hardest to write?

I’ve answered that one here, but let me say that the second hardest to write was This Pain that numbs my Heart, because I really, really wanted to get the characters right in that one, and I wanted it to feel real, like something that could be in the gossip news tomorrow while at the same time being plausible enough to also happen to these people. And it’s hardcore RPF, so that’s always a challenge because unlike with a fictional character you don’t have certain liberties, you constantly have to question yourself “Would this person really do X or Y”?. Plus, you have to keep it on the respectful side, so yeah.

12. Is there an episode above all others that inspires you just a little bit more?

Hmmm not sure I understand this correctly. Like, an “episode” as in a certain scene in a movie, or an event in an actor’s life (a premiere or a con or something like that), or another fic? Well, if it’s a scene in a movie….idk, the first Hobbit film in general still inspires me. The Stone Giants sequence in particular, ouch, that gets to me every time. As for real events, haha, Aidan and Dean at Hollycon will forever be my Aidean!fest that I draw inspiration from ^^. And fic…that’s so tough because I’m not the type to re-read anything frequently, so there’s not really that one fic that I always come back to, but there are a lot of amazing writers whose style is a great inspiration for me, as in “I wish I could write like X one day”. I’ve recently read some incredible stuff in the Thorki fandom, so I think I’m going to compile a rec list in my AO3 bookmarks sooon (because I suck at coming up with author’s names and fic titles).

34. What are your thoughts on non-con and dub-con?

You said 35, but the dub con question is #34 so I’m answering that one; in case you’re interested in 35, I’ve answered that here. So, my thoughts. Would I write it? Yes I would, and I actually have, both non-con (rape) in At the End of the Rainbow as well as highly dubious consent in Blood Slave. In my opinion, it’s a vast and interesting field to delve into; certainly not a pretty one, but there’s two things I like about it. Firstly, trying to get into the perpetrator’s head and trying to understand why someone would do something like that to another person - without being apologetic of the deed itself, of course, but I’m not one to simply roll with the “well s/he did it because s/he’s evil” trope. There have to be motivations. In Rainbow, it’s a fixation issue combined with a sense of absolute entitlement, so in essence there’s something wrong in the mental department. Sometimes it’s revenge, or jealousy, or control issues that triggers a person into inflicting non-con or rape, and I like to explore these motivations. Let’s take Mitchell in Blood Slave for example, he never thinks for one second that what he’s doing to Anders is not what Anders would choose for himself. He doesn’t even see the consent issue, while Anders slowly accepts the situation and even comes to think that he enjoys it. And that’s the second aspect that interests me from a writing POV: all these little inbetweens, like what’s the difference between non-con and rape? When does dub-con become non-con? Can a character go from dub-con to actually enjoying it, or is that a rape fantasy, or Stockholm syndrome? There’s no clear line between all of that, and even more than the physical aspects I’m interested in the psychological implications on both sides.

37. Current WIPs

Right, I’ve answered that as well here, but if you like, let me get into a little more detail. 

So, there’s this Hobbit piece that I started writing, idk, two years ago. It’s about Thorin and the loves in his life, so it covers Bagginshield, Thorinduil and Dwalin/Thorin. I usually don’t say that about my own stories, but it’s a beautiful piece of writing that came to me on a train journey and flowed out within an hour or so. It just needs some final touches, but I haven’t been in the right mood yet :-( Here’s a paragraph from it:

​For a moment we stand in silence, the elf, the dwarf, and the hobbit, reunited by memories, and there is a smile on all our lips as our thoughts travel back in time. Then we look out onto the sea, at the grey ship that lies waiting, and we know that it is time to say our farewells. Memories pass between us as our eyes meet for the last time; pleas to keep them safe in our hearts for as long as we live. Before long the ship sets sails and we watch it pass through the gap, the sun embracing it with golden arms as it passes out onto the sea and is seen no more.

Then there’s an Anders/Mitchell medieval AU that I forgot to mention in my other answer. Anders is a witch in that one and Mitchell is a creature that’s been keeping an entire country in fear, until he gets captured and imprisoned. It’s rather dark and touches on a lot of religious / historical issues.

​The boy sighed as he made his way through the crowd. All these people knew so little. It wasn’t their fault they were so prone to fall for superstitions, but Anders felt appalled by their stupidity nevertheless.
Yes, it had been a bad year; the worst so far in a row of many bad ones. A merciless winter held the land in its grip for far too long, freezing the soil to a rock-hard layer and delaying the ploughing and sowing that was so vital. Summer in turn had seen little sun and a lot of rain. Harvests had been poor already in the years before, but this time crops had died on the fields, struck down at the roots, rotting at the stem before they could bear fruit. A hailstorm of biblical proportion had destroyed most of the land’s vineyards earlier this year. People were dying from hunger in front of their empty bowls. And the war took on the remaining ones. Some said that death on the battlefield was merciful compared to the alternatives.It was no surprise people began looking for a scapegoat.

As for the Thorki ones I mentioned, it’s a mixed bag of smut, action, hurt/comfort and a lot of dabbling into magical issues because Loki being this master sorcerer just gives me a huge kick (and also sibling incest and canonical mpreg). Since you complimented on my smut writing (ahaha, thanks for that!), I’ll just leave this here for you:

​Thor chuckled, stroking lightly along the line of his brother’s arousal. 

“I can see that.” A thought occurred to him then. “I didn’t say that out loud, did I? Are you in my head?”

“As much as you are in mine,” Loki replied huskily, pushing his hips into Thor’s warm hand. “Although I’d rather you were in another part of me right now.”

“Loki…” Thor half-moaned, palming himself through his breeches.

The movement prompted his sibling to open his eyes, emerald and coal, half-lidded, dangerous and intriguing, pupils wide and black and gleaming with lust.

Thor had never been so hard in his entire thousand years of existence.

Thanks for asking; I hope my answers were okay :D

[stirringink]

25 Questions Tag Game

@hannahcbrown​ tagged me! :D thank you! :D it’s long so it’s under read more. But I tag @theroseofmarch​ @andtheotherwriter​ @writinginmysleep​ and @scribble-dee-vee​!

1. Is there a story you’re holding off on writing for some reason? not particularly

2. What work of yours, if any, are you embarrassed about existing? a multi chapter fan fiction. but people keep commenting on it, so I can’t leave it lol

3. What order do you write in? Front of book to back? Chronological? Favorite scenes first? Something else? I like starting with scenes where the characters are surprised/confused because those make it easy to explore them. You learn a lot about a person by how they react to an unexpected situation. Then I try to write chronological but take breaks for favorite scenes

4. Favorite character you’ve written? There are a couple that keep coming back lol but I really like my character Chameleon. He is a good boy.

5. Character you were most surprised to end up writing? Bard, who’s half human, half tarantula. I know. I was surprised too.

6. Something you would go back and change in your writing that it’s too late/complicated to change now Eech I’ve dropped an entire book bc it’s impossible to salvage and no amount of changes will save it

7. When asked, are you embarrassed or enthusiastic to tell people that you write? I’m relaxed-confident. I write, that’s what I do, and I’m not ashamed.

8. Favorite genre to write I looove writing fantasy and creative non-fiction

9. What, if anything, do you do for inspiration? Go outside. I go somewhere new, or take a walk around somewhere old.

10. Write in silence or with background music? Alone or with others? Background music for sure, since I’m always listening to music, and I can write alone or with others.

11. What aspect of your writing do you think has most improved since you started writing? Hmm. I honestly don’t know.

12. Your weaknesses as an author? Setting. I hate setting. I skip setting when I read (mostly) and so I can’t write it either lmbo

13. Your strengths as an author? Characters and dialogue.

14. Do you make playlists for your work? Yeah, but only really for fight scenes or scary scenes bc those are the ones I can’t jump into the mood for by myself. Other than that, just my usual music.

15. Why did you start writing? Because I liked it, probably. I started writing stories as soon as I knew how to write and I drew my stories before I could write.

16. Are there any characters who haunt you? Yes ///sobs. I’ve abandoned their stories and they don’t want to die with their plot

17. If you could give your fledgling author self any advice, what would it be? You don’t know everything and that’s okay. Be open to constructive criticism.

18. Were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? What were they? Maybe as a teenager, but right now I have my own writing style. Whenever I read, though, I pay close attention to style so I can use what I like.

19. When it comes to more complicated narratives, how do you keep track of outlines, characters, development, timeline, ect.? I have a pretty good memory for the most part but I also created a file with sorted information

20. Do you write in long sit-down sessions or in little spurts? Long sit-downs because I’m a slow writer

21. What do you think when you read over your older work? “I wrote??? setting??? when did I lose this skill???”

22. Are there subjects that make you uncomfortable to write? Religion. I am religious, but I am uncomfortable portraying my own religion much less anyone else’s in fiction because it’s very sacred and I don’t want to portray it wrong.

23. Any obscure life experiences that you feel have helped your writing? hmm random conversations that I don’t remember anymore

24. Have you ever become an expert on something you previously knew nothing about, in order to better a scene or a story? Oh my gosh lol what writer doesn’t do that. I’m never an expert because I don’t dedicate years, but you bet your bottom dollar I’ve learned a crap ton about random things

25. Copy/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you’re particularly proud of.

Micah stuffed his face under the covers, refusing to answer. If he said anything else, he’d tear up and they’d both know that really, he couldn’t get his thoughts to stop spinning and he wanted someone to give him a rough pat on the back and reassure him everything would work out, everything would be fine, it’s just the flu and no one’s going anywhere.

Isaac stood, sending the chair scraping back, and followed Sydney out of the infirmary. Micah kept his eyes closed as the lights dimmed.

[physticuffs]

Thoughts on Male Fantasy Authors Writing Female Characters*

*(mostly. it digresses. this is specifically a comparison among Neil Gaiman, Jim Butcher, George R. R. Martin, and Guy Gavriel Kay--possibility of minor spoilers, although I’ve tried to avoid them. any plot details given should be unspoilery.)

You know, because this wasn’t already written about enough, or something.

I’ll start by saying this: I actually don’t care very much when male authors don’t write women the way I prefer to see women portrayed. Neil Gaiman is one of my favorite authors ever, due to his word-smithing and world-building, and I haven’t found his match for evoking a feeling of eeriness like he’s writing about a world more true than our own. On the other hand, he definitely is a little weird in his descriptions of female characters. I particularly noticed this with the way the witches in Stardust swear by their sexual organs and the attention Shadow pays to Zorya Polunochnaya’s breasts in American Gods. (Shadow. Chill. FFS.) I’m probably forgetting other instances, because I’ve felt this way multiple times in Gaiman’s writing--it makes me go why the fuck is this relevant? and jolts me out of the story. (Some of his short stories get even more bizarrely sexual; there’s one about an STD that changes your personality. It was pretty uncomfortable, but it was probably supposed to be.) Another complaint I’ve seen is that his female characters aren’t that well fleshed-out, but honestly, neither are his male characters. And Gaiman is aware he’s doing it. I’ve read interviews and essays where he clearly states his love for established bodies of myth and stock characters. That’s fine; it’s the way he prefers to write, and in my eyes he’s a damn fine writer. (I love his poetry too.) Heck, the fact that I love it so much despite my preference for non-stock characters (and fewer interjections about breasts) says a lot. Gaiman, good job for doing exactly what you were trying to do.

Also, I felt more able to forgive Gaiman for the female character sexualization after a discussion with a friend of mine who introduced me to Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files. I like the speculative nature of urban fantasy but Harry describes the sex appeal of literally every woman he encounters. And in the first few books, there’s a lot of ~sexy evil~ going on. I was telling my friend how uncomfortable it made me and how I thought it was a major flaw, taking me out of the story, and essentially my friend’s response was “I’m sorry it makes you feel that way, but Butcher isn’t writing these books specifically for you. And remember, Harry’s a straight guy and you’re not. I can see why it would take you out of the story, but these books are from Harry’s perspective, and that seems pretty realistic and in-character to me.” (The conversation was a lot longer than that, but that was the main point.) And you know...yeah. I do have to remember when critiquing any author that, whatever my opinion, they’re not writing specifically for me. (Except my queen Shannon Hale, who probably couldn’t have written better books for my 12-year-old self if she tried.) The continual rehashing of sexiness in Butcher’s books is boring and uncomfortable for me personally, and feels kind of lazy. But Jim Butcher isn’t trying to be a Great Author writing the deepest and cleverest books in the world--he’s trying to write somewhat pulpy genre fiction, and that’s fine. The man turned out one 300-page book a year for 14 years straight. He has his thing and he sticks to it. Butcher, good job for doing exactly what you were trying to do.

What I find way, way more annoying is when an author thinks they’re doing a great job and they’re...not. George R. R. Martin, I’m looking at you. Actually, this isn’t just about women, it’s everything you do to make your books so lurid and gratuitous. But women come into it, because sexual violence is good for shock. I remember that interview a while back when the interviewer told Martin he wrote women “really well and really different” and Martin said, “I’ve always considered women to be people.” Everyone loved it and was like “Tell ‘em!” and I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I’d ever seen, because everything in Martin’s writing is about trauma and shock value. To be fair, my problem with Martin’s writing is sort of beyond the women alone. His characterization, the way he writes their personalities, I’m fine with that. I don’t think Martin would be any worse than most authors about writing women if he didn’t go for the cheap shock, but he does. Here’s the question I asked myself when I started thinking about why Daenerys’s storyline bothered me (since she’s a major favorite with fans): why is she thirteen? No, really, why does she have to be thirteen? It changes nothing important about the story if she’s aged a few years, except that the reader doesn’t go “Oh my god she’s having sex with Khal Drogo!” Viserys groping his own sister and telling her he’d let an army rape her, just to be a jerk? Shock value. Yeah, Martin is trying to show us how evil Viserys is, but it’s pretty lazy writing. I do believe that Martin considers women to be people--it’s just that his desire to make everything worse overrides that. 

None of this stood out in such sharp relief to me until I read Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay. Halfway in, I knew I was going to devour every other book by Kay that had a similar style, the same way I felt after first reading a Gaiman novel. Like Martin, Kay writes fantasy stories based on real historical places/events, albeit a little more on the history side than Martin does. (I haven’t read any of his other books yet, but Under Heaven is much closer to the An Lushan Rebellion than ASOIAF is to the War of the Roses.) Like Martin, Kay loves political details and visual descriptions, both things that I love to read. Like Martin, Kay writes about violent events and characters going through incredibly hard journeys. And Kay is far more subtle than Martin. Kay doesn’t need Martin’s almost fetishistic details of violence. Kay sketches it for you, but the focus is on the characters’ reactions. Kay has bad things happen to female characters without making me feel like the bad thing is The Whole Point. One of the things that particularly struck me was when a young woman is sent by her family to marry a foreign stranger, whom her people consider grassland barbarians, in order to secure a political alliance. So basically, the way her story starts is very similar to Daenerys’s, and you feel very sympathetic for her on her journey. But she’s twenty-two. Oh, and the family member who arranges the marriage for her is a lot more complex than Viserys and, y’know, doesn’t violently grope anyone. In another scene, a city is attacked and overrun by enemy soldiers. The reader learns that women are raped and send as slaves to the army, and characters react to that knowledge, but it’s not portrayed firsthand or given graphic details. It’s just enough to know that it happened. Then the focus is on the characters. People excuse Martin because he’s trying to portray a realistically harsh world, but Kay is writing about a world just as harsh and difficult to navigate as the world of Westeros, and he does it without the gratuitous violence, both sexual and otherwise, that Martin uses. I think Martin really does just enjoy writing about violence, and making his characters very young, and it’s disingenuous to pretend that it has to be that way in order to make you understand. We don’t need to see all that. 

I think in a way, it’s also telling how Kay reacted when asked a very similar question to Martin, about how he wrote female characters so well. In an interview I read, Kay said he was uncomfortable with the question, because it implied that everyone should only be expected to write people who matched their demographics, and that was going above and beyond by writing interesting female characters. But Kay didn’t want to pat himself on the back, he wanted other authors to demonstrate a similar level of empathy toward characters. Martin...Martin’s work I wouldn’t struggle with quite as much if he were as up-front as Gaiman and Butcher about the way he writes. But when his answer to “how do you write women so well?” is “I think women are people,” it gives me the sense that he thinks he has the focus just right no matter the audience. The way Butcher writes about women frustrates me because I don’t like hearing the character describe how sexy women are before I know anything else about them, but there’s still a level of self-awareness about it that enables me to take a step back. But the way Martin writes about women frustrates me because he thinks it has to be that way. He writes women just fine! They’ve got personalities and everything! Depicting that level of rape is just necessary for the world-building, okay?

Kay has lots of female characters that are cool and interesting and complex and occupy different roles in the story, and when they undergo pain and trauma directly on the page, it truly is necessary. It’s genuinely part of the story. (As is true for the pain of all the characters, to be clear.) One of the most touching and well-written scenes in Under Heaven contains the death of a major female character. She dies because she has to. It is what the story requires, and it is better for being as understated as it is.