#best and most successful awful person in fiction

[icescrabblerjerky]

Just got to The Eye Opens in my Magnus relisten and wow, what a funky little villain Elias Bouchard was. A+ good job my dude, you got everything you ever wanted.

#Elias Bouchard #best and most successful awful person in fiction #you go buddy #the magnus archives

[ystrike1]

Hwang Young's Misery - By Yeaze (9/10)

Yandere for profit. An author that writes miserable stories about psychotic love, just to get clicks. He meets an obsessed fan. One that wants to role play every part of his most popular story from beginning to end, even though it's not finished yet. What ending will satisfy the monster? Hopefully, not the original one he had in mind. He has to change the plot, in order to survive.

"Sheldon" is a lonely but successful webtoon author who sacrificed everything to get to the top. He has never written a happy story. He believes endless drama is what thrills viewers that are trapped in their normal, everyday lives. He gets rejected countless times. When his first webtoon gets approved he doesn't expect it to be a success, but it is.

Hwangyoung's Phantoms. It's a long-form yandere thriller about an author with a weak mind. Poor Hwangyoung. He relies on his doting lover for affection and stability and money. Dohyuk is the ideal partner for a lonely author. He is patient and kind and he manages Hwangyoungs schedule and he takes advantage of Hwangyoungs poor memory to sneak into his life. Dohyuk originally wasn't dating Hwangyoung. He lied about that while Hwangyoung's metal health was very low. Hwangyoung doesn't even remember his own name. He should be in a mental hospital, not a relationship, and his loving partner is downright dangerous. Hwangyoungs mental state will continue to decline if he doesn’t get help, but Dohyuk doesn't seem to care as long as Hwangyoung relies on him.

It's a layered thriller.

"Sheldon" isn't in a relationship. He's in an awkward hook up situation with someone, but it's not going anywhere. He's very lonely. He's drunk when he meets Dohyuk. Dohyuk is his biggest fan...and he looks exactly like fictional "Dohyuk". He even has features that aren't common in Korean men, like super deep dimples etc. Hwangyoung falls for the compliments. Dohyuk's smile is so familiar, and he is crazy handsome.

They flirt.

"Dohyuk" is not his real name. He brings "Sheldon" home. When Sheldon is dead asleep he uses a hammer to fracture his leg. I'm telling you right now the depiction of this injury is extremely realistic. Due to a combination of pills and alcohol "Sheldon" doesn't figure out what happened for a while. He is in panic mode for a few chapters, unable to move or negotiate in an unfamiliar house.

He is not a super genius.

He is an author.

"Dohyuk" almost murders him several times when he tries to escape. He gives up, and Stockholm Syndrome comes in...kinda. He thinks he's using "Dohyuk", but it's clear that the kidnapper always has the upper hand.

"Sheldon" doesn't have very many close relationships. His life has been his webtoon for several years now. The third season is about to begin. Nobody finds him for three months. "Sheldon" isn't an awful person or anything, but when his friends don't get an answer they just assume he's working.

"Dohyuk" uses this to make "Sheldon" even more lonely.

Also he calls "Sheldon" "Hwangyoung".

"Sheldon" based his yandere story around people in his life. The main character is based on him and his loneliness. "Dohyuk" picked up on this, and now the author must literally play that role.

The role makes him break down constantly. "Dohyuk" is not a perfect captor, but he is well prepared. It takes months for that wounded leg to heal as well. When he is healed his spirit is broken. He continues to write his webtoon, but he lives in fear of "Dohyuk". His kidnapper is his biggest fan, and his opinion is the only opinion that matters.

He knows, deep down, that he will lose his leg again if "Dohyuk" doesn't like the new chapter.

Or the ending.

His mind is not in the best condition for several reasons. "Sheldon" is a fully grown man, and "Dohyuk" isn't magic. The kidnapper uses underhanded methods to keep his favorite creator weak. "Sheldon" downs a cocktail of pills every morning. He manages to spit out some, but his mind is muddled by illegal substances. He can write, but he spends most of his day in bed. He has constant headaches, and consistent stomach pain throughout the story.

"Dohyuk" only cares if he has the ability to write.

Nothing else matters.

He thinks his true love will be fulfilled after the story is written. Then he will act out the love scenes with the real "Hwangyoung".

"Sheldon" has been in denial for quite some time. It's clear that his friends are worried for him. He isolates himself. He only writes disturbingly sad stories. He has trouble with romance, and creating relationships in general. He's got depression, and he hasn't admitted that to himself yet. He has been interviewed before, and the press was shocked to hear that his thriller BL is based around people he knows. He is scared of committing to his casual lover. So he wrote about that lover pining for Hwangyoung while he is kidnapped by Dohyuk. This happens in real life as well. Wo-ilk returns pained to see "Sheldon" with a handsome new lover.

"Sheldon" has never been normal. He just doesn't know it yet.

He is extremely hard on himself. He makes fun of himself for "acting like a wimp" even though being kidnapped was not his fault. His thoughts turn to self hatred pretty quickly, and this causes him to fall prey to Stockholm in just a few months.

I thought it was strange.

From the very beginning he believes no one will look for him. He doesn't have a shred of hope. He thinks he can save himself for a bit, but then he gets lonely...and he just can't function.

It's a somewhat normal reaction, but it happens too fast.

He has no faith in his relationships.

He writes season three, but he doesn't try to ask his editors for help. It is too dangerous. "Dohyuk" is watching through spyware, but he seems to believe his coworkers don't care either.

He gets better at manipulating "Dohyuk", but it's...not enough? He is fooling himself. "Dohyuk" is incredibly happy. "Sheldon" plays the role of "Hwangyoung" every time he leaves his room. Heck, it even escalates to him acting as soon as he wakes up in the morning. He is losing. His "victories" are just "Dohyuk not killing him", "Dohyuk letting him walk around the house" etc.

He's so caught up in the story.

He can't see the light anymore.

I assume his actual sort-of lover tries to break in, because I can't imagine him escaping on his own at this point.

#yandere #male yandere #yandere male #yandere boy #recommendations #recs #rec #recommended #webtoon #Hwang Young's Misery #yaoi manhwa #yaoi

[is-the-owl-video-cute]

Ok so we all know hp is bad and hp fans are genuinely sus and Not Good people..But are fans of other things such as twilight, mcu, certain horror movies with awful directors, or even things such as rock singers in the 80s who made amazing music but they were Awful. Can people enjoy these things and still be a good person? I've wondered this for a bit and your hp reply was great!

The questions you have to ask yourself are “is [bad person] benefitting from me engaging with this media in some way” and “is [bad person] actively using their success in media as a way to fight for legislature that oppresses a marginalized group”. You also have to analyze if the media itself reflects whatever makes the creator bad.

JKR is a unique case because she uses profits from Harry Potter to fund hate groups and push anti-trans legislation into law. She uses her platform specifically as a means to harm other human beings actively, and her works are rife with racism, antisemitism, sexism, fatphobia, ableism, etc. etc.

It isn’t just a matter of JKR having a bad opinion, she weaponizes her media to groom her fans into TERFs and is directly placing trans people in danger, especially in the UK.

Fans of movies made by Harvey Weinstein or whoever are generally not being groomed to be sexually abusive because he wasn’t using his media as a weapon, he was using his money as a weapon for harm. Do I think people are inherently bad for liking Pulp Fiction or whatever just because the executive producer is a sexual abuser? Not really, because for one thing he’s in prison and can no longer benefit from any profit that movie could make and for another he was just the executive producer for most of the movies you’ve actually heard of, not a writer or director. Death of the author works a whole lot easier if the author is actually dead or otherwise off the table, and how tainted the media is by their involvement is proportional to how involved they actually were with the media.

So something like Mindless Self Indulgence is hard to justify still engaging with even though Jimmy was arrested because he was the direct artistic influence for his music and had more or less full creative freedom with it. I wouldn’t personally say it reflects great on a person to enjoy art made by a known child molester, but that doesn’t mean you have to hate Spy Kids or whatever just because someone on a very large team of people involved who didn’t really have creative control on the project was a bad person.

It’s case by case with a lot of reliance on using best judgment.

[dustteller]

What are some fantasy books you consider represent colonialism wrong/from a very white or colonial pov?

Sorry you dont have to tell which books etc you were vagueing im just genuinely interested !

Hmm, this is tough bc for the last three years most of the books I've consumed have been for college, and most of the stuff on Imperialism has been nonfiction for my PoliSci classes. When I wrote that post, I wasn't just thinking about books, but about media as a whole.

Now, I want to make it very clear that I don't necessarily consider any of the following works ✨️Problematic✨️ because they fail to capture certain elements of Imperialism/Colonialism (I'm using the terms interchangeably bc they're similar enough that in fiction they tend to get glomped together, but they're actually technically two different things but also It Does Not Matter). I don't consider a white person not completely grasping colonialism a moral failing. My issue is less moral and more of annoyance at how so often we hold up white people as the standards for writing about something *they didn't even write about well*.

And with that point made: Avatar. It's Avatar. Not the blue people movie (that one's awful, but I don't think I need to explain why), it's AtLA. Listen, I really do love AtLA. It's a great show that does an excellent job at demonstrating that just because something is targeted to children it doesnt have to be dumbed down and can still tell an incredible story. I also think that the showriters did a lot of research in order to write the Fire Nation and it's imperialist actions. It touches on a lot of elements of imperialism that a lot of other media fails to capture. It's a good show, it really is.

But it is still a children's show written by a bunch of white people. It annoys me to no end that people hold it up as The Pinnacle Of Anti-Imperialist-Colinialist-Racist Writing, the Golden Standard To Which All Things Must Be Held, when really its Baby's First Look Into Politics. It was WRITTEN to be Baby's First Look Into Politics. Half of its target audience is still literally munching on crayons.

I also don't like how it handles a lot of things. A lot of people have brought up Hama, but I also think that it doesn't do a great job with the Jet stuff. Again, its a children's show. Its HAS to show the right socially accepted moral lesson that Pacifism Best and Killing Bad. If you study real life imperialism tho, extremism is its natural consequence. Almost always, when there is a successful revolution, it IS led by extremist groups, because those are the people most willing to sacrifice themselves! I think AtLA does a good job at portraying Jet and Hama as sympathetic, but it also goes very hard on the Still Bad angle. The thing is, Aang's my way or the highway deal only really works because he's the Universes Specialest Boy Avatar. I don't think there's much of an aknowledgement that there really isn't much that people like Jet CAN do if its not turn to more extremist measures. I know a lot of white people are very pro-pacifism and love clean revolutions, but thats just. Not how it works.

If you're part of a colony, the sad reality is that you Will continue being a colony unless you can find a way to perform a mass upheaval of the existing system. And, sadly, the only viable way to do this for a lot of the colonized is violence. And violence born in anger is not known for being Clean and Pretty and Morally Just. I don't like the trend of holding colonized peoples solely accountable for their actions in response to the incredible colonial violences of an empire. I get to murder you indiscriminately, but you can't dare to murder in my general direction back, or you're just as bad as I am. Actions don't exist in a vacuum.

I think this is where AtLA's view on politics is weakest, because I feel it fails at providing a viable alternate measure to the actions of Hama and Jet. Aang, and by extension team avatar, has a privilege that they don't have access to. They're just mean to sit there and wait to be saved, I guess.

Also we spent three seasons seeing the after effect of a single shitty Emperor that the Avatar trusted deciding he was gonna be shitty and starting a hundred years of imperialism like some evil aureliano buendia, only to at the end immediately put Zuko on the throne? Maybe Zuko is a good emperor, but can you guarantee his kids will be? His grandkids? What happens if he gets murdered, Azula gets to take the throne and starts Being Evil again? The system remains unchanged, and it can still be abused in the exact same ways.

I bring up AtLA because I think it demonstrates these two aspects that I think make a lot of Imperialism According to White People (IAtWP) narratives fall flat to me. I use AtLa as an example precisely because its a good story, because I want to demonstrate that getting some stuff right and putting in effort and ending up with a good product doesn't mean that a work WON'T have these issues.

Generally, IAtWP narratives will have a very morally pure view on rebellions and demand higher levels of moral righteousness from the colonized than it does from the oppressed, or they will be overly dark and gritty and "realistic" and will refuse to interact with the morality of the setting, being an Everyone Bad, Actually narrative. Secondly, IAtWP stories tend to see Imperialism as a Good People/Bad People issue. Usually they will aknowledge the failures of an imperialist system, but they will still uphold the "superiority" of the imperialist system by treating it as the only way to govern, ergo revealing that they cannot conceive of alternate methods of rule.

On that second point, white american/european people who live in an imperial system never seem to grasp the idea that those poor suffering colonized masses are also capable of the concept of innovation. I think where a lot of white leftists fail when interacting with anti-imperialist rhetoric is that they limit themselves to the anti-imperialism. They can recognize that imperialism is bad, but they can't concieve of the colonized as anything BUT colonized. Even while free, they are Free From Imperialism. The truth is, we have entire fields of scholarship discussing the intricacies of how to navigate freedom. There's internal debates in politics and public and academia about how freedom will work for us. I'm going to talk now from a puertorrican/latin american perspective, since that's my field of specialization. Freedom is not an abstract concept to us. We have spent decades examining the fabric of our society to find alternatives to the current system. Here in Puerto Rico, the modern independence conversation dates back all the way to the 19th century. For most of that time, Puerto Rico and Cuba acted in conjunction when it came to academic matters. Until Castro, you did not discuss Puertorrican independence without Cuba also being talked about, because there was a very strong solidarity between the two nations. This is, of course, without mentioning the work that Haiti and the Dominical Republic also shared with us, as well as a wider Latin America. If you read W.E.B Du Bois' essays on imperialism, he does not focus only on Africa, but he also frequently talks about Latin America and Asia and MENA and even some European nations/ethinicities/racial groups when discussing unity. If we look at Political Science, the Dependence Theory, which is one of the frameworks through which imperialism and colonialism are understood today, was pioneered by Latin American and South/South East Asian academics in conjunction, academics of dozens and dozens of countries that worked and interacted and argued with each other to create a field of scholarship that directly countered the trends in white academia of the time. Even more colloquially, I do not know a single Puertorican that knows the basics of the history of the Philippines that does not solidarize with them and consider them our siblings in the same way that we think of the rest of Latin America. The Global South is not composed of a bunch of meek little victim nations, isolated within our own colonial bubbled, but of over a hundred countries that actively interact with each other's ideas.

I find white authors and creators often do not understand the level at which imperialism has effected the very way that we think about the world, or at the level to which we talk to each other about it. To them, we only exist within the context of interractions with our colonial powers. They often underestimate the level of solidarity in thought that has formed within nations BECAUSE of imperialism. And as a result, they always write overly simplistic resistance moments lead by vague ideologies and people that don't know what they're talking about. Theres a lot more to resistance than the resistance itself, there has to be a strong backbone of intellectual tradition to back it up.

I went off on a bit of a tangent there, but I still think it's important when discussing how white creators fail at portraying imperialism and colonialism. They fail by not being able to see it from the point of view of the colonized. I know I didn't fully answer the question, but I hope this makes sense and helps you understand the framework through which I judge a piece of media that interacts with the themes of Colonialsm and Imperialism. I just want to add here at the end, that this is just how I see it, and not an Objectively Correct Method Of Identification or anything. I know a lot of people that consider things differently, because we all have different frameworks which we use to view the issue. Its not a matter of being right or wrong, but a matter of how we all interact with the world differently. Now, please pray for me that I don't get murdered for this.

#atla #my thoughts #asks

[mydemonsdrivealimo]

Please, hit me up with a hot-take HC for Bryce, please! ❤️ Sending so much love your way, dearest!

aw ty lin <3

for bryce, i really wanna talk about how he is in relationships. after reading so many bryce x mc fics before even joining the fandom, i am so not interested in "lovey dovey sentimental bryce who would die for mc the second theyre together." of course these are hcs, and to each their own, but in my hc he is anything but that

bryce has never been shown to be an overly affectionate person, or someone who would throw all of his own ambitions and time away for another person. he is canonically self-absorbed, and talks himself up a lot. yes, throughout canon he developed and became a little more reserved, but his personality was never reduced to just "loving and adoring mc"

again, this is my problem with heavily re-written ethan because they are still a character with their own things, not just an add-on to mc

bryce is a really, really interesting character, and thats why people romance him. but, for some damn reason, all of his personality (besides an innuendo here and an obonoxious comment there) tends to be thrown out the damn window. he is supposed one of the best and most promising surgeons in the entire country; do you think that comes without fundamental ambitions and dedication? no fucking way!!! one of his main relationship stutters was feeling like he was being held down and losing his freedom because he had to be thinking/worrying about his partners all the time, and then people do exactly that in fics and hcs

i genuinely believe that bryce would break it off if suddenly his only hobby and personality trait was talking about mc and being in love with them

yes, to a certain point he does that willingly, but if it starts interfering with his career and hobbies then he needs to call it for his own wellbeing. it is so annoying when couples can only talk about each other, and bryce lahela has never and will never be that person. romance and sex and relationships are such an integrated part of society, especially for young people (20s and early 30s), to the point that its the only way people perceive them as successful. it influences media horribly, and you see so many fictional couples that have each other an nothing else remarkable about them, but thats what sells so its seen as okay

bryce's character was never set out to be that, and if you loved and respected that so much, then he should at least be a whole character and not the second half of mc

#ty ty this was the one i really wanted to share #asks answers #bryce lahela

[apoptoses]

DA here and I just wanna say A FEW THINGS 💭

First of all I hope you're feeling better now! Read about you having a horrid week and my hear broke for you. Sending nothing but hugs, horses, kind words and the sweetest summer breeze your way🫂

Onto smuttier thoughts, I read the final chapter of Come Get Your Knife and I'm IN AWE of you as usual. Perfect ending to a perfect story. The pool scene was incredible and it reminded me of those pictures of people taking their very old dogs with arthritis for a swim and just holding them in the water while they have the most peaceful, trusting, loving expressions in their faces. That was Armand with his boy right there 🥹

Armand finally doing for Daniel what Marius couldn't do for him was nothing short of a healing experience. Also some of the best smut out there 🥵 The mirror, Armand coating his fingers with his blood and and putting them in Daniel's mouth 🥵🥵🥵, "faking" a real human orgasm and smearing Daniel's come on his own cock jfc. She NEVER misses.

My favorite bit: “Did you know there’s a rare songbird, and when people eat it they cover their faces with a cloth so as to hide the shame of their pleasure from God?” Armand murmured into Daniel’s back, voice just loud enough to be heard over the little wet gasps he dragged from Daniel every time he rolled his hips. “I should cover your face, Daniel. I should hide you from God so that he doesn’t see the pleasure you take in being fucked by a dead man.” INSANITY!!!! Also was this a Succession/Tomgreg reference (yk that scene at the restaurant) or am I just That person now? 😭 perfection either way.

Finally, I read your last ask abt that anon seeing Armand/Daniel hate all over town and lmao SO IT WASN'T JUST ME. I mean I'm not doing myself any favors here because I do check their tags constantly. I'm sadly like a rabid hound when it comes to them, sniffing around in search of good food and yeah most of the time the takes are rancid but other times I find one ☝️ good take and some amazing fanart and I tell myself it's all worth it dsfhsjfk. The way some ppl treat their extremely personal headcanons and projections as undeniable canon facts is nuts. Ship and let ship is my motto but damn some of the things I've seen... and I wouldn't blame the show per se, but the massive influx of fans that a mainstream tv show gave to an already existing fandom has been a contributing factor to what we're seeing imo, where very few people actually bother to read the source material (which is okay really, no one actually has to read the books and the show is almost nothing like the books anyway) and then start treating out of context quotes and scenes or headcanons or summaries of events they heard from a friend of a friend of a friend or plain incorrect takes as canon. it's like a bad (horrifyingly bad) game of telephone around here 🥴 wtvr tho it's literally fiction, and not that much of a big deal (someone tell them that tho lmaoo).

xoxo ❤️ ❤️ ❤️ 

Dungeon anon, I wondered where you were ♥ Thank you for the kind words, things (seem to be) getting better.

lmao armand as an arthritic dog floating in the pool. It's accurate though, his old body needed a rest and I needed them to do something cute before the filth began. I feel like he would enjoy swimming, not for any particular reason. It's just a chill activity for him that he can do like any mortal.

listen i just needed them to fuck while daniel was still mortal and i was hellbent on making armand find a way to 'come' in daniel 😂 and tbh it's nastier for him to put daniel's own mess back inside him, daniel probably liked that better than he would anything armand's body could produce were he able to do the deed. it reminds him this is an artificial experience, it's not natural at all (and thus hotter)

and hell YEAH that is a wambsgans reference lmao i knew about orotolans long before succession but tom reminded me of them, and i just really wanted to write armand threatening to cover daniel's face from god (also it feels like something marius may have said to amadeo, and that armand would put his own twist on and later repeat), i couldn't pass up the opportunity.

see i have no courage to check the tags, i only trust what people i know reblog or the content of people who follow me 😂 i don't even wanna know what's out there.

but yeah, people do some WEIRD projecting, there's some weird head canons people insist are book canon fact (like guys daniel never did hard drugs on page in the books, not even once, the blood was his drug of choice lol but some people will go TO THE MAT and fight you about this like book!daniel was baby leo in basketball diaries, prostituting and railing heroin)

and the taking quotes out of context thing is way out of control. it's so easy for someone to screenshot some text on their ibooks app and then write whatever meta they want and then people who haven't read that book take it as gospel and just...it's very frustrating lol even the stuff from the vampire companion gets treated as gospel as that's a book written by FAN, it is FAN META with a few quotes from anne sprinkled in. ramsland calls armand a black hole who doesn't love anything and people take that as fact and just...no lol anne didn't write those words, those are ramsland's interpretation of the first five VC books circa 1991!

i'm lucky that everyone who likes the show who happens to follow me and read my fic has been outrageously nice, so i have no clue what happens in the more tumultuous waters of amc fandom lol but i really hope people give the books themselves a chance, even if only to read their blorbo's chapters because they're good and it's worth knowing the context in which things happened in them!

ANYWAYS DA, the fic you inspired me to write with armand learning dirty talk will be posted tomorrow, i hope you're hyped ♥

xoxo

#apoptoses answers #dungeon anon

[blinditcms]

GRAHAM LAWRENCE on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid! many say that the 43 YEAR OLD looks like MATTHEW GOODE, but i don’t really see it. while  the AUTHOR/BUSINESS OWNER is known for being LOYAL my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be INSECURE i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song LOUDER THAN WORDS from TICK TICK... BOOM

BASIC INFORMATION:

name: graham edward lawrence. nicknames: gram. pronouns: he/him. gender: cis man. age: forty-three. date of birth: january 16th, ‘80. place of birth: henley-on-thames, oxfordshire, uk. astrological sign: capricorn. orientation: bicurious.

APPEARANCE:

height: six foot two. build: tall and slender, strong rower-type physique. hair colour: dark brown. eye colour: green. wardrobe style: according to his son, he has a kind of cosy cottagecore or professorcore chique going on. he doesn’t really know what that means. tattoos: none. piercings: none.

HEALTH:

physical ailments: type 1 diabetes, chronic migraines. mental ailments: struggles from imposter syndrome. alcohol use: socially. drug use: nothing except for prescription medicine. addictions: has a bad smoking habit, but only when stressed.

PERSONALITY:

positive traits: loyal, patient, collected. negative traits: insecure, easily overwhelmed, forgiving. mbti: INFJ-A

ACTIVITIES & SKILLS:

skills: writing, cooking. weaknesses: any kind of ball sports, logic puzzles. languages spoken: english, french, spanish.

CAREER DETAILS:

2001: finishes his bachelor’s degree at oxford university and starts his graduate programme in literature, linguistics and languages at princeton university. also meets dominique kennedy and immediately hit it off. suddenly became a part of the “kicking it with the kennedy’s” cast simply by dating dominique and is thrust into the celebrity life. 2002:  continued studying and working at princeton as well as starring on the popular tv programme, and soon marries his sweetheart dominique. 2003: the divorce is all over the papers and the tv and he is hounded by the press. he becomes somewhat of an ‘elligible bachelor’, but tries to step away from the spotlight to work on his writing. 2005: publishes his first science-fiction novel. there is quite a bit of hate about his actual quality of writing, but most critics are shut up when he is nominated for the hugo awards and wins. he continues writing the series. 2008: the third book of his bestselling science-fiction series is published and later in the year, their son reid is born. they agree on shared custody and since then, his writing slows down. 2010: reid is staying with graham a lot more now, and his bookwriting comes to a bit of a halt. he manages to wrap up the science fiction series and sell it’s film rights before taking a step back. 2011: graham starts his own business of copywriting and editing for other authors, while working on some small projects, but not publishing anything himself. 2019-now: now reid is 11, he allows himself to go back to his own writing and try to publish again. he is quickly picked up by a new agent and publishes five books in quick succession, of which two standalones and one prequel to his original series, and two entries to a new epic fantasy series, which is receives incredibly well and is currently in a bidding war for film.

WANTED CONNECTIONS:

sister: graham came from a wealthy upper-class family in the uk and has one younger sister (approx. 3 years younger). (best) friends:  graham splits his time between his home in england during the school holiday periods/when reid is with his mother and his home in los angeles, so he would have friends from either side of the pond. ex-lovers: graham has dated somewhat - not an awful lot, and never anything too serious. he’s always made sure to keep it out of the press as well.

#* ☆ graham lawrence. | muse.

[wellthatwasaletdown]

Harry's biggest problems are- being ungrateful, dishonesty and cravings for continuous attention.

Like back in 2015? Even after his "iamnotliketheotherboys" attitude for years in 1d days, it was perfectly possible to show minimum honesty. And not backstabbing his bandmates.

He could just say he didn’t want to carry on with the pressure of being in a band anymore. He could say he wanted to do solo songs in future. 1d could come back in distant future. But for a while it was over.  He would lose some fans yes. But in the long run he would be able to move on with a closed chapter.

But Noooo. He didn’t want to lose a single fan. So he stayed like a doll in the background, let other boys make fool of themselves and take the hits while acting all innocent in the situation. He let people hold onto hopes that their favorite band was still together while he knew the truth best. First reason I started to suspect him.

Then when pursuing solo career, he got success fed in a silverspoon. He could find happiness with what he got. He has a good voice. He made some good songs. Even though i believe his contribution in the best lyrics and best compositions are non existent. But no he needed legend status within 2 years. He needed to bracket himself with every music legend ever and he needed to present himself as a knows it all. His songs had to be about everything wrong going in the world. He needed to make himself ambassador of every social issue ever.

I thought that was it. What more could he want. He would probably carry on like this, get tired and take a break. But again- NOOO. He needed to satisfy his ego and overconfidence that he is jack of all trades. He auditioned for SOLO at the same time around Dunkirk I guess. The movie was disappointing. But that's not the point. I get awed in his audacity that he thought he was fit enough for one of the most iconic fictional characters ever. Even Charlie Cox didn���t make it for that role.

Somehow his luck favored that Christopher Nolan cast him in his mega star cast movie where every character had like 5 minutes screen time. Nolan knew to what extend he needed his acting and somehow he could collect that from H. With so little experience he kept going for lead Hollywood roles as if he showed some extraordinary talent and box office success in his first movie where he was the only reason of success.

Turns out he has this weird short time first time charm over women. Even Chloe Zhao fell for that. "I have been keeping an eye on his acting since Dunkirk" - No, Miss/Mrs. Zhao. You got stuck with some 15 years old fan girly feelings. Your excuse to let him do a cameo was a Nolan movie where everything seems automatically larger than life. There was no groundbreaking acting that warrants keeping an eye on him for years.  Then OW literally broke her engagement and forgot about professional common sense to get him in her movie.

I have been coming and going from this blog for 3 years. Every time when i think- yeah i am at peace with harry is a jerk but who cares anymore? It's youth's fame days. He will learn someday. He can do the f he wants. I don't need to be bothered about his existence.

Then he comes back showing more greed for fame and money and more pretentiousness than before. I can't believe how can a person has this much main character syndrome.

He could focus on building a nice duplex home within his skill and limit ( metaphor for career). But no. He needed to build a Castle. Even though the Castle has been built in the air with no Foundation and hollow inside.

#anonymous #submission

[maddie-grove]

Little Book Review: Wahala

Author: Nikki May.

Publication Date: 2022.

Genre: Realistic fiction.

Premise: All well-heeled Anglo-Nigerian women living in London, Ronke, Simi, and Boo have been best friends since university. They each have their problems--Ronke is looking for love in all the wrong places, Simi is anxious about her career and the prospect of motherhood, and Boo feels restless with her husband and child--but they're doing pretty well until Simi's childhood friend Isobel arrives on the scene. Glamorous, charismatic, and the only child of a staggeringly wealthy man, Isobel sows chaos wherever she goes. Can these three friends survive her reign of glitzy terror?

Thoughts: There is a very specific kind of story that I love, which I'll call "Three Women, One Chaotic Bitch Friend." I only know three examples--this book, Margaret Atwood's The Robber Bride, and the 1949 movie A Letter to Three Wives--but it's so special to me. In short, it's a story where there are three women who are friends. Each woman is successful in some areas of her life, but struggling in others, like most people. Then comes an exciting, beautiful woman who seems to have what each of the other three lack, or is otherwise able to exploit their deepest insecurities. I love this plot partly for the same reasons I love stuff like Stephen King's It; an entity dedicated to fucking with each character's personal baggage is a very striking way to reveal character. Also, it is very annoying as a woman to be taunted with images of perfection that aren't actually real or achievable, but are treated as such. Wahala is a compelling example of this kind of story, at turns frothy, funny, and lurid. May's writing is at its strongest when illustrating how the seemingly minor resentments of the heroines' lives add fuel to Isobel's campaign of destruction; the big reveals about Isobel's involvement in all their histories are less involving, although still entertaining.

Hot Goodreads Take: "Who wants to read nearly 400 pages of women being awful to each other, culminating in a horrible ending where a psychopathic narcissist wins and there is no justice or karma?" Me!!!!

#little book review #wahala #nikki may #that's also not *exactly* how it ends

[billconrad]

Most Authors Are Goodhearted People

    As a teenager, I read on a coffee mug, “Workers got to do what they got to do, and authors write about it from the sidelines.” This flippant remark cracked me up, but I was a brat who had no appreciation of how difficult it is to write a book. At the time, my father was a talented author of ceramics textbooks.

    I have since matured, and, like my father, I became an author. This journey provided a newfound perspective on writing, marketing, and English. Along the way, I met many fellow authors who were all goodhearted people who wished to make the world a better place. Why are they goodhearted people? While developing a plot, the author must create an ideal (writeable) world; hope is the most significant ingredient.

    Why? We want our characters to make it through the plot and hope readers enjoy their words. Yet, books may contain horror, conflict, criminals, death, torture, imprisonment, and all kinds of unpleasant topics. Plus, they may have trashy stories, have bad morals, and treat their characters poorly.     An early example of a distasteful book is Frankenstein’s Monster by Mary Shelley. In its day, this book was horrific, gory, controversial, and unethical. Today, we see disturbing plots like The Exorcist, Friday the 13th, The Shining, and Silence of the Lambs.

    Why did such nasty stories succeed? Even deplorable characters can overcome adversity, survive, thrive, mature, and change. But what about genuinely awful authors? Or the authors who intentionally create contemptible works? There will always be exceptions to the rule. What about books written for revenge, shock value, manipulation, or terror? Evil people use whatever tools they can find to spread their hate.

    When someone sets out to be an author, they have an overall goal to contribute (publish). The authors I met want to add goodness instead of spreading evil. Their contribution may not be successful, but there is an honest attempt to be positive.

    I saw a personal improvement once I became an author. This means that I think more about the people surrounding me, what they should do to better their lives, and what I should do to improve my life. This positive change was gradual, but I can trace it back to writing. In addition, I read many positive posts on the Facebook group Writers Helping Writers. The authors positively contributed to the comments, worked hard to perfect their words, and tried to make the world a better place.

    I concede that the same goodhearted argument could apply to oil workers, teachers, drafting technicians, clowns, and stockbrokers. They all want positive change, but authors still have a special place in our society. They work late into the night, writing textbooks, fiction, comic books, scripts, plays, and poems that shape future generations. This positive dedication makes them unique and positive members of society.

    You’re the best -Bill

    December 09, 2023

    Hey book lovers, I published four. Please check them out:

    Interviewing Immortality. A dramatic first-person psychological thriller that weaves a tale of intrigue, suspense, and self-confrontation.

    Pushed to the Edge of Survival. A drama, romance, and science fiction story about two unlikely people surviving a shipwreck and living with the consequences.

    Cable Ties. A slow-burn political thriller that reflects the realities of modern intelligence, law enforcement, department cooperation, and international politics.

    Saving Immortality. Continuing in the first-person psychological thriller genre, James Kimble searches for his former captor to answer his life’s questions.

    These books are available in soft-cover on Amazon and eBook format everywhere.

#writing #author #life

[rannderick]

You do the best you can "Mother"

Heroes come in many forms, from fictional characters in books and movies to historical figures who have shaped the world. But to me, my hero is not a fictional character or a famous personality; my hero is my mother. She is the embodiment of strength, kindness, and selflessness, and her unwavering love and support have shaped me into the person I am today. My earliest memories are filled with the warmth and comfort of my mother's presence. She was always there, with a smile on her face and open arms, ready to embrace me. As a child, I looked up to her with admiration and awe. Little did I know that this woman, who was my rock and my safe haven, would become my ultimate hero.

One of the qualities that make my mother my hero is her boundless kindness. She has a heart that knows no bounds, always ready to lend a helping hand to those in need. Whether it's a neighbor going through a tough time or a friend in need of support, my mother is the first to offer assistance. She has taught me that true heroism lies in acts of kindness and compassion, and I strive to follow in her footsteps. My mother's strength is another trait that I deeply admire. Life has thrown its fair share of challenges at her, but she has always faced them head-on with determination and grace. I remember a particularly tough period when our family was going through financial difficulties. Instead of giving in to despair, my mother worked tirelessly to provide for us. She juggled multiple jobs, sacrificed her own comforts, and never once complained. Her resilience during that time left a lasting impression on me, teaching me the importance of perseverance and hard work.One of the most significant lessons my mother has taught me is the value of family. She has always put our family's well-being above all else. Her love for us knows no bounds, and she has made countless sacrifices to ensure our happiness and success. Her selflessness and devotion to our family are a testament to the power of love and the importance of nurturing strong bonds.In moments of self-doubt and uncertainty, my mother's unwavering belief in me has been a source of strength. She has always encouraged me to chase my dreams, no matter how big or ambitious they may be. Her belief in my potential has given me the confidence to pursue my passions and strive for excellence.

My mother is not just my hero she is my guiding light, my mentor, and my greatest source of love and inspiration. Her kindness, strength, and selflessness have shaped me into a better person, and I am forever grateful for her presence in my life. She has shown me that true heroism lies in the everyday acts of love and kindness, and I aspire to follow in her footsteps. My mother is not a superhero in a cape, but she is a hero in the truest sense of the word, and I am proud to call her my own.

#mom

[spctlights]

(—) ★ spotted!! GRAHAM LAWRENCE on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid! many say that the 43 year old looks like MATTHEW GOODE, but i don’t really see it. while  the AUTHOR/BUSINESS OWNER is known for being LOYAL my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be INSECURE i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song LOUDER THAN WORDS from TICK TICK... BOOM !!

BASIC INFORMATION:

name: graham edward lawrence.

nicknames: gaz.

pronouns: he/him.

gender: cisgender male.

age: forty-three.

date of birth: january 16th, ‘80.

place of birth: henley-on-thames, oxfordshire, uk.

astrological sign: capricorn.

orientation: bicurious.

APPEARANCE:

height: six foot two.

build: tall and slender, strong rower-type physique.

hair colour: dark brown.

eye colour: green.

wardrobe style: according to his son, he has a kind of cosy cottagecore or professorcore chique going on. he doesn’t really know what that means.

tattoos: none.

piercings: none.

HEALTH:

physical ailments: type 1 diabetes, chronic migraines.

mental ailments: struggles from imposter syndrome.

alcohol use: socially.

drug use: nothing except for prescription medicine.

addictions: has a bad smoking habit, but only when stressed.

PERSONALITY:

positive traits: loyal, patient, collected.

negative traits: insecure, easily overwhelmed, forgiving.

ACTIVITIES & SKILLS:

skills: writing, cooking.

weaknesses: any kind of ball sports, logic puzzles.

languages spoken: english, french, spanish.

CAREER DETAILS:

2001: finishes his bachelor’s degree at oxford university and starts his graduate programme in literature, linguistics and languages at princeton university. also meets dominique kennedy and immediately hit it off. suddenly became a part of the “kicking it with the kennedy’s” cast simply by dating dominique and is thrust into the celebrity life.

2002:  continued studying and working at princeton as well as starring on the popular tv programme, and soon marries his sweetheart dominique.

2003: the divorce is all over the papers and the tv and he is hounded by the press. he becomes somewhat of an ‘elligible bachelor’, but tries to step away from the spotlight to work on his writing.

2005: publishes his first science-fiction novel. there is quite a bit of hate about his actual quality of writing, but most critics are shut up when he is nominated for the hugo awards and wins. he continues writing the series.

2008: the third book of his bestselling science-fiction series is published and later in the year, their son reid is born. they agree on shared custody and since then, his writing slows down.

2010: reid is staying with graham a lot more now, and his bookwriting comes to a bit of a halt. he manages to wrap up the science fiction series and sell it’s film rights before taking a step back.

2011: graham starts his own business of copywriting and editing for other authors, while working on some small projects, but not publishing anything himself.

2019-now: now reid is 11, he allows himself to go back to his own writing and try to publish again. he is quickly picked up by a new agent and publishes five books in quick succession, of which two standalones and one prequel to his original series, and two entries to a new epic fantasy series, which is receives incredibly well and is currently in a bidding war for film.

WANTED CONNECTIONS:

sister: graham came from a wealthy upper-class family in the uk and has one younger sister (approx. 3 years younger).

(best) friends:  graham splits his time between his home in england during the school holiday periods/when reid is with his mother and his home in los angeles, so he would have friends from either side of the pond.

ex-lovers: graham has dated somewhat - not an awful lot, and never anything too serious. he’s always made sure to keep it out of the press as well.

#⸻ ✧ GRAHAM LAWRENCE : ISMS ⧽ #hillzhqsintro

[fuckyeahhistorycrushes]

Henryk Sienkiewicz (1846–1916) - Polish novelist, journalist, short story writer, the most popular Polish writer of historical fiction. He is best known for his "Trilogy" ("With Fire and Sword", "The Deluge", and "Pan Michael") - a series of historical novels about the 17th century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (a period rich with hussar motifs), and "Quo Vadis?", set in Nero’s Rome.

In 1884, with a Byronic suddenness, he became recognized in the eyes of his country and later in the eyes of the whole world as the greatest Polish writer, and there was a period between 1895 and 1910 when he won a world wide popularity unprecedented in the history of literature. Some commentators even suggested a cult of the author. In Italy, in France, in America, in Russia and in England, this success was so intense that it was referred to as the "epidemia Sienkiewicziana". In the United States "Quo Vadis?" was the most popular book of 1898 and William Faulkner was one of Sienkiewicz's fans. The names of the heroes of "Quo Vadis?" were given to race horses in Paris; pantomines, ballets, plays, and movies were based on his novels. Belgium smoked Quo Vadis? cigars, there are still restaurants in the United States called Quo Vadis?; and some Russian anti-Polish books were published in France under the title of "Quo Vadis, Polonia?". French and Italian publishing companies made enormous sums from the works of Sienkiewicz which outsold those of all other authors. In 1905 Sienkiewicz received the Nobel prize for literature.

Stanisław Tarnowski tells us that "at the time when the Trilogy was appearing (in the Illustrated Weekly) no conversation failed to begin and end with it; people spoke and thought of the heroes of the novel as of living persons; children in their letters, after giving details about the health of themselves and their brothers and sisters, told what Skrzetuski had done or what Zagloba (heroes of the Trilogy) had said; young girls wrote or planned to write to the author asking him for Heaven's sake not to kill Skrzetuski; mothers and grandmothers prayed tearfully that the sons of their sons might have souls like that of Skrzetuski. A well-known gentleman in Kraków, Henryk Wodzicki, was saying a prayer for the soul of Podbipieta (a hero of "With Fire and Sword") and only in the middle of it realized that he had in mind a fictional death and a fictional soul.

Only a very great genius can unearth the dusty chronicles of past centuries, and make its men and women live and breathe, and speak to us. The warriors fight, love, hate; they embrace each other; they laugh; they weep in each other's arms; give each other sage counsels, with a truly Homeric simplicity. They are deep-versed in stratagems of love and war, these knights of the seventeenth century! They have their Nestor, their Agamemnon, their great Achilles sulking in his tent. Oddly enough, at times they grow very familiar to us, and in spite of their Polish titles and faces, and a certain tenderness of nature that is almost feminine, they seem to have good, stout, Saxon stuff in them. Especially where the illustrious knights recount their heroic deeds there is a Falstaffian strut in their performance, and there runs riot a Falstaffian imagination truly sublime. A vast, moving panorama is spread before us; across it pass mighty armies; hetman and banneret go by; and Polish women with white souls, and fair, flowerlike faces. The scene is full of stir, life, action. It is constantly changing, so that at times we are almost bewildered, attempting to follow the quick succession of events. We are transported in a moment from the din and uproar of a beleaguered town to the awful solitude of the vast steppes,--yet it is always the Polish Commonwealth that the novelist paints for us, and beneath every other music rises the wild Slavic music, rude, rhythmical, and sad.

Phelps says justly in his essay on Sienkiewicz: "Sienkiewicz is indeed a mighty man-someone has ironically called him a literary blacksmith. There is nothing decadent in his nature. Compared with many English, German, and French writers who seem at times to express an anemic and played-out civilization, he has the very exuberance of power and an endless wealth of material. It is as if the world were fresh and new. And he has not only delighted us with the pageantry of chivalry and with the depiction of our complex civilization, he has for us also the stimulating influence of a great moral force".

#history #history crushes #submission #henryk sienkiewicz #polish #poland #polish lithuanian commonwealth #chivalry #sienkiewicz #quo vadis #with fire and sword #the deluge #17th century #polish literature #hussars #winged hussars #jan skrzetuski #literature #history of literature

[vidalinav]

Burning Questions I Still Have:

You know SJM really hasn’t given us too much substance in these book talks so I’m just going to put down these questions as my own way of expanding the topic of the book beyond Eris, Azriel, and the copious amount of sex they’re going to have (Nesta and Cassian) though all of that is very exciting. 

1. How much does Mor factor into this story? Are we going to see her at all or would she be more focused in on an Azriel story if we get one? 

2. Does Elain have any say in sending Nesta away? Will she have some involvement in Nesta’s healing? Will we see her in Illyria, visiting her sister perhaps, or will it be short instances? 

3. Does Nesta make new friends? Assumedly she does, but right now it’s looking very established character centric, but you know with these lack of spoilers. (rolls eyes)

4. Will the witch concept brought up in ACOWAR come up in ACOSF? Is Nesta technically a witch? Because her power extends beyond her natural reserve “technically.” Will we see other witches? Witches vs Illyrians... Maybe?

5. What is the main conflict in Illyria? And how will it be resolved? So far we know it has something to do with rebellion, but how do you fix that realistically? 

6. How will the women in Illyria gain some autonomy, because lets be honest, everyone learning to fight is and is not going to fix everything? 

7. Where is Bryaxis? 

8. Eris has a deal with Rhysand to help him kill his father. How would that work? Does it involve Nesta, does this then involve her more in the Inner Circle’s antics in which she’ll gain a job in some way? Whether she wants to or not. 

9. How does Nesta suffer? We know emotionally, yes. Power, yes. But how does that come about when there’s so much potential conflict in this book. 

10. What is the main conflict of this story? There seems to be many, that I’m sure will be extended to the other books that come out, but to what to extent does this book extend to the others. Will we see all of the same characters in the books after this one? 

11. Eris’s mom and Helion; Helion and Lucien. Enough said. 

12. Nesta dealing with her father’s death. 

13. Cassian’s mom, who is supposedly dead. (Jury is still out on that one; no dead body, no dead)

14. What’s that shadowy evil substance that Mor discovers by her estate?

15. Will Mor get a story? Especially since if she does then she’d be the first LGBTQ character from the SJM universe to have their own book... I think. Don’t quote me on that. But she’s got a lot to deal with too and I think she deserves a book. She’s a very interesting character. She reminds me of a mixture between Aelin and Bryce and the more secretive aspects of Nesta. 

16. Will Elain ever get a mate or significant other? Honestly, I’m on the fence with this. Mostly because one, Elain is purely side-character to me. She’s interesting, but not enough right now to warrant a whole book. I also just think that right now she’s kind of useless, and I don’t mean that to be mean, I just mean that she doesn’t have a purpose yet and most of her personality right now is purely fodder. It’s her main personality I say. Maybe not the honest to god deep one, but she’s got at least the surface level personality with hints of iceberg feelings. 

Interestingly enough it makes more sense I think to have the next book centered on Lucien and Azriel if they’re going to settle that conflict. Even though I hate love triangles in any sense, but none of them love each other right now anyways... And I think that it would be hard to figure out these three relationships when they’re already linked together in ACOWAR and ACOFAS. 

17. Will we ever know why Amren and Nesta got into a fight? Will their relationship be fixed? Also where she at in this whole conflict of interest that is this book and Nesta being sent away? Will we see her often? 

18. Will Rhysand have a good amount of time in this book? What is his involvement with Nesta--his sister-in-law lol? Will their relationship reach some level of understanding? Will they hate each other for ever? Will they have some semblance of mutual respect and a common denominator that is the love for Feyre and their protectiveness for their family? 

19. What are Cassian’s conflicts? To be quite honest, I feel this book is very Nesta centric, and I do hope that Cassian is not just thrown in there for romance and that’s it. BUT we know the Illyrian conflict, the Mor/Azriel conflict, the issue with being born a bastard, not belonging with his people. The Nesta conflict, the war probably. But like besides Nesta, all of these conflicts have existed for as long as he’s lived. So is that really a conflict or an issue to be dealt with... A lot of this will be resolved through the “Powers of Love” lol and whatever else they can do in Illyria, but then what else? Internally, I don’t feel he has too much to deal with because well... a lot of his problems center around other people. 

20. What will Feyre being doing? Let me be honest, I don’t like the thought of Feyre being pregnant. I understand her body her choice, but this girl literally went from let’s spend time with each other to let’s have a baby, because maybe it won’t happen in a few hundred years. But let’s be honest, if I was her I would not be thinking that it would happen in a few hundred years. Things happen in the most inconvenient times, and right now with all this, it’s very inconvenient. I also think I really don’t like it because right now she is really playing into that role of a wife and not as everything we know her as. I mean she’s allowed to relax, to be loved and what not, but I don’t know. Lame, I think, that she became high lady in name, but probably not in any sort of empowerment way, and I think that’s sad because she could do an awful lot of good, and should do it, because right now her court has soooooo many issues, even issues that Rhys kind of just puts in the back burner and hopes for the best. She is the equal to Rhys, but so far she’s not seeming so equal and she also seems to have lost some purpose. So I’m also wondering if this want of a child and planning for it is Feyre’s way of being useful again... because she spent so much of her life taking care of other people. Which again..... ehhhhhh. 

21. What the f*** are Nesta’s powers? What do they do? I hope it does not end in some vague inclination like Mor’s truth power whatever. But like, she should be all powerful, death god status. I want to see Nesta as the goddess she is. 

22. Koschei??? The stealer of the hero’s wife or whatever as he’s referenced in Russian lore... I think? Is he going to be more involved in Vassa, or Elain even (because Elain right now has always been the damsel) or Nesta, because of the queens and “their powerful ally.” Wouldn’t he be the best teacher for Nesta’s power really, when he’s a powerful sorcerer in the book/death god that has worshippers and what not and collects women.   

>>> My theory is that if Elain and Lucien are the next pov’s then maybe Nesta will be kidnapped by Koschei at the end, and Elain gets to really show what she’ll do for her family, and what she’s made of. But it also keeps the story going without cutting it off completely, and we keep the bigger conflict which is that there’s a whole world of problems and rulers and that Nesta’s story can’t really end at this book, because again she’s suppose to be all-powerful, cauldron incarnate, the wind has heard of her, spreading the news around, and that she does need to learn her powers and I doubt anyone can really teach her, but she for sure probably can’t teach her self. 

23. Will the love triangle situation not be between Elain, Lucien, and Azriel, but Vassa, Elain, and Lucien, or maybe a love square like A Midsummer Night’s Dream? That would be kinda cool. I just don’t really know if Azriel will be a love interest for Elain, even if he has that fondness for her. Azriel has a lot of problems, but he’s also like... I don’t know. Off topic. 

24. The Queens--what the hell? What about that one who turned old and is now immortal? They were chilling in Vassa’s kingdom. Where are they so Nesta can beat their asses? Also, these human kingdoms--what? What are they doing now that their queens are just in hiding and that allied with Hybern to be fae? Do they know? 

25. Magical humans--fae blood sometimes trickle into human lines from that one fae whoever she is. Doubt she’s the only one. Probably will have magical humans, realistically. 

26. Vassa--all of Vassa. Maybe Vassa and Mor.... You never know. I doubt they’ll get that curse reversed and she’ll be completely human, so maybe she’ll a be a shifter of a sort. If I can remember she’s like the only successful experiment. So maybe she got some fae blood and she can live for a long time and can be with Mor. I certainly hope Mor does not give up her immortality for her love interest, which I’m assuming you can do like in TOG. 

27. The fae kingdoms, that conflict needs be somewhat resolved. Doubtful. There’s three main ones I think. No one’s been signing treaties. How? That is all. 

28. Azriel powers, shadows, how did that happen? Does it elude to something bigger. 

29. Cassian’s background. Who the hell is he? Will we know papa? Mama? Past? He’s the most powerful Illyrian commander, he can’t be normal. The laws of fiction dictate otherwise. 

30. Last names? Middle names? Titles. Give me everything Sara. 

31. Eris. After daddy is dead, what next? Is his conflict so small and easily taken care of. He is very interesting to me. 

32. Did they actually take care of the cauldron? Miriam and Draken, will we see them again and their ideal world? 

33. Will Nesta travel? Because she should. She deserves to, it was her plan in ACOTAR, but then she stayed, and now she’s a shell. Please have Nesta see the world. With Cassian or without. Don’t care. Maybe both. 

34. How is a treaty going to be established, when humans hate fae, fae enslave humans, and the fact that there is so much more than fae that exist as we know????? Hmmm???

35. Oh Tamlin! Where he at? What he been doing? How will he help this conflict? Assuming he’s probably going to factor more in Lucien’s story, I’m almost positive he’s the next POV. It wouldn’t make sense otherwise to my fanfic writer/ obsessive reader brain.  

36. The objective of different worlds. I know SJM probably won’t get into it too much and it would probably be very complicated, but other worlds. Are people still coming in? Do some want to leave? Is it easy to travel between them--provided you know how? *whispers* can Nesta do this?

37..... I don’t know. I will add more if I can think of any, because I probably can. Honestly this was like therapy and made me feel so much better than any of SJM’s lives about the future of this series.

38. ADD YOUR OWN; unless I wrote almost everything. But doubtful!

#nessian #nesta archeron #cassian #Azriel #Mor #feyre #rhysand #feysand #elain #lucien vanserra #acofas #acotar #acowar #acomaf #acosf #SJM #feyre archeron #vassa #eris vanserra #helion

[thekidsarentalright]

Hey wanna share your thoughts on I've Got A Dark Alley from futct?

ooo boy okay, yes i would love to share my thoughts on i've got a dark alley. i have many thoughts on this song, as it destroys me emotionally and i relate to it a concerning amount! (TW: suicide is discussed in this, stay safe <3 as always, i don't love looking at songs from the perspective as the artist because that feels kinda invasive idk so i look at them from a story/fictional perspective, but this is an exception bc dark alley is SO personal to pete and also me lmaooo... analysis under the read more <3)

So... I’ve got a dark alley is almost undeniably about Pete's suicide attempt, or at least his general mood/emotional state around the time of it. It opens with “Joke me something awful just like kisses on the necks of "best friends" / We're the kids who feel like dead ends / And I want to be known for my hits, not just my misses / I took a shot and didn't even come close”, which is like A Lot to sift through but in general this verse is making a simile between being told something (a joke, if you wanna take it literally) awful and emotionally difficult to hear/feel and kisses shared ‘jokingly’ between ‘best friends’... clearly, pete here does not just view this person as a friend, but something leads me to believe the other does... a first devastating thing for him listed in this song.  ‘We’re the kids who feel like dead ends’, Pete is identifying himself as part of this group, part of a group of ‘kids’ who feel like they’ve hit a wall, they have no where left to go, and no potential in themselves to make it better. One could argue fob makes music for kids who feel like this (they do) and Pete is signaling that he understand how that feels, because he IS a kid who feels like a dead end. “And I want to be known for my hits, not just my misses / I took a shot and didn't even come close / At trust and love and hope / And the poets are just kids who didn't make it / And never had it all” are all the same thought stream all going towards that he doesn’t want to be known for his shortcomings, for things people view he’s done bad or wrong, he doesn’t wanna be known as a kid who feels like a dead end... i believe the next line is saying he took a ‘shot’ at trying to become known for more than that (one could say his suicide attempt was this shot, it very well could be, or just... any attempt Pete made at making himself more likable back then) but didn’t come close to, he didn’t come close to gaining trust, love, or hope in a metaphorical sense but also in the sense that in his shot, trust love and hope were what he was putting at risk with the hope he’d come out the other side better- happier- but it didn’t work. The next lyrics go on to him sort of identifying himself as ‘a kid who didn’t make it, and never had it all’, because i feel its safe to say Pete is a poet and is aware of this, and identified himself as a ‘kid’ in the past so- Pete is saying he took this shot a trust, love, and hope but fell short, and was once again being a hopeless poet who didn’t make it and never had any of that in the first place. The chorus continues to stream of consciousness type writing the first verse and pre-chorus had, with the repetition of ‘and’ showing that these are all thoughts coming at him in rapid succession, burying him in them, I believe. The lyrics echo this too- the ‘record’ (life) won’t stop skipping, won’t stop moving and going forward and lies won’t slipping from him (makes me think of people lying about being okay when they’re not) And while everything is falling apart for him, his reputation is on the line too. So, he can’t be visibly going through this, he can’t be depressed, he can’t be suicidal, he can’t be bipolar and have all those things known because it’s all so stigmatized- and his career is just starting off. It would ruin his reputation. So, Pete fakes it, forces smiles even though he feels dead inside because he can’t stop comparing himself to everybody else around him as his life falls apart. “Please put the doctor on the phone, 'cause I'm not making any sense / Blame everyone but me for this mess / And my back has been breaking from this heavy heart / We never seemed so far” is the second verse, discussing (perhaps obviously) that Pete feels he has truly gone off the deep end, he needs a doctor/therapist (this line reminds me of that one lyric from disloyal order) to come help him because he’s gone (genius annotations say this is directly about his suicide attempt, and i suppose it very much could be, but the meaning is the same either way). However, he’s putting responsibility for going off the deep end on everybody else, as he seems to feel wronged by the world, society, etc. for letting him become so isolated, so depressed, for the stigma around mental illness.  ‘And my back has been breaking from this heavy heart’ is saying that Pete’s heart feels so heavy from all of the above, again, the isolation, the stigma, the pressure on seeming happy when he isn’t, the way life is going by so fast even when he’s frozen... it’s destroying him, breaking his back, even. It’s no way to live, needless to say.

“I'm hopelessly hopeful / You're just hopeless enough / But we never had it, at all” is a call back to the last pre-chorus with the ‘never had it all’ part in common. I feel this is the only part of this song possibly about romance, possibly saying that he hopes (hopelessly, at least he’s self-aware) whomever he’s talking to is as hopeless as he feels so they can be miserable together, but he recognizes that they never would work together (perhaps because the counterpart isn’t as hopeless as he is? or because he took a shot at love and didn’t come close to it?). After this, the chorus repeats and reinforces what I stated before about it- life is coming at him so fast against his consent, he keeps lying about things, but his reputation is on the line so he has to lie and life has to keep going because he can’t not be okay- he has to be okay. 

Overall, this song is like seriously depressing. Their most emotionally vulnerable, depressing fob song to date, I’d argue. Pete himself has said they’ll never play it live because it’s so personal, which is understandable- he reveals it all, he reveals how he feels so hopeless and lost, how society and fame is putting pressure on him to seem okay when he isn’t, possibly how ending it all would make it all just go away and give him what he seems to truly want- to be known for the good things he’s done, for the ‘hits’ he’s written, he wants love and trust and hope from someone special, sure, but more importantly from the world. I’m happy it seems he’s got all of that now.

#feel free to rb (its encouraged actually)! #2005 pete i wanna hug you so so bad i love u #like writing this was a Lot because this song is just a lot. it means a lot to me n i relate to literally all of this #so thank u for asking me to do this one! despite being a lot it was fun to do! incredible song #asks #anon #lyrics.txt

[theravennest]

Let’s Talk: The Blooms at Ruyi Pavilion

I finished all 40 eps about two weeks ago, actually. I enjoyed it for the most part, the 1st half especially, but there were several things near the end that took me out. 

But first some of the good bits...

The cast chemistry was immaculate. Our four main lead actors were a lot of fun together. Not just Zhang Zhehan and Ju Jing Yi, but also Wang You Shuo and Xu Jiaqi (Loved them!). The four of them have such obvious ease with each other after their previous work together in Legend of Yun Xi and it made scenes with any combination of the main four really pop. 

I was especially drawn to the sisters’ relationship and the Prince-Vassal bond going on between Prince Su and Little Marquis. (Y’all know I’m a sucker for both sibling stories and stories about fictional royals and their loyal vassals.)

Most of the ancillary characters were interesting, actually. As y’all know from my last post about this one, I was crack shipping like crazy all the side characters. 😂 This cast made it easy for me.

Except for Prince An. (Sorry to hit the bad so early.) Good god, I hated that man. His character was poorly drawn in pretty much every way, which is unfortunate cuz he’s the main antagonist. Any story with a main antagonist that just doesn’t work is always gonna be weaker.

Also, no offense to people who like that actor but he was the only cast member who did absolutely nothing for me in terms of performance. So much of the story was focused on his weaksauce motivation and dry acting like, my god, put me out of my misery I do not care.

Anyway, the set design and costuming was top notch and I even enjoyed the broader story ideas the show was trying to put forth. The sitcom vibe of the first 20 eps or so was SOOO good. Our four mains’ comedic timings were pitch perfect. 

Unfortunately, the writing took a sharp nosedive in the back 3rd or so and it had a rough ending. (The lightning strike on the tower scene, the fight in the underground temple, the return of Prince An’s mom...all of that was trash. let’s be real.)

I mostly blame this on three things: the missteps with the Prince An character, the lack of development of Rong’s prophetic dreams even though that was the main premise of the show, and the jump-the-shark moment that was the wedding night and its subsequently underwritten fallout. 

Now to clarify, I don’t mean to say the wedding night event shouldn’t have happened at all but rather the execution of it within the story was poor and it negatively impacted 90% of the other character motivations/progressions and the overall pacing. 

You know, it felt like that thing you do as a writer where you wake up and have a specific scene in your mind. It’s evocative, impactful, fun, or otherwise intense. But you just have that scene and it’s something that would have to happen in the middle of your story. So you work your way backwards to try to get to that scene and you do your best to get the characters to make decisions to get there but when you sit down to write nothing works out. It’s clunky or OOC for the scene to still happen so you end up having to either scrap the evocative scene or keep the clunky lead up and hope no one notices. That’s what that wedding scene and everything that happened after felt like. They wrote themselves into a corner and just struggled to recover until the bitter end. 

The main pairing suffered the most because of the poor writing choices. No matter how much chemistry ZZH and JJY have together, even they could not completely salvage Rong’s yo-yoing behavior with Prince Su. They started off so wholesome and then dove into such toxicity and miscommunication for no reason. 

Don’t get me wrong. I can very easily enjoy angst. But Fu Rong consistently broke this man down. After ep 25-26, it stopped being good angst and became so awful to watch all the emotional manipulation and turmoil. There’s something broken in the writing if 9 out of 10 times Prince Su cried or fell into depression it was because of something Rong did or said to him after jumping to a conclusion with only part of the puzzle pieces gathered. 

I could forgive some stuff because Prince An was manipulating things but some stuff was just all Rong not giving Prince Su the benefit of the doubt or plain old not doing her due diligence in investigating. She is supposed to have inherited the most prolific and successful spy organization in the show and she still got 90% of her conclusions wrong. It was like she was determined to always think the worst of Prince Su no matter what despite how often he went above and beyond to help her. Despite the fact that he literally had a reputation as a general for being a harsh taskmaster but fair and just. 

I think what broke me was when she did the bare minimum investigation into her own father’s death and just fully blamed Prince Su without confronting him honestly or even considering his personality or their relationship up until that point. She really believed a single street seller’s entire testimony over the man she lived with and supposedly loved for months. Girl...

And this is after she’d previously mistakenly accused him of killing her mentor with very few facts to the point where she stabbed him on their wedding night.

There came a point where I actually wanted Prince Su to finally, truly divorce Rong and settle down with someone who could love him right. Maybe give him time to heal from the repeated heartbreaks, betrayals, and the literal stab wound in his chest but he was so fucking in love with Rong, he just couldn’t escape.

(If there were behind the scenes production reasons for the clunky-ness of the back half, I would not be surprised at all but ultimately they don’t matter cuz the story we got was the story we got.)

Imagine if we had gotten a Rong who used her prophetic dreams to navigate the cut throat world of royal politics. Or imagine if we’d gotten Rong as a true apprentice to Ruyi who learned both metalsmithing and spycraft in the first half and took over the pavilion as a competent leader in the second half. As it stands, it just felt like wasted potential.

I’m glad they had the modern day special AU eps tho cuz those were great. Zhang Zhehan and Ju Jing Yi had the opportunity to really showcase their incredible chemistry but in a modern setting and with better writing than the back 3rd of BRYP.

Now let’s talk Zhang Zhehan since he was the reason I started this in the first place. I loved him in this. I truly did. He was stern and serious but also playful and sweet. He was romantic but awkward, badass but vulnerable. He really delivered a nuanced and charming performance. I loved every second.

I think my favorite moment wasn’t some badass fight or even a super romantic moment. No, it was when he got drunk and started crying like a little baby cuz Rong was constantly doubting him no matter what he did. It was simultaneously sad and hilarious. Like gut busting funny. Y’all can watch it here:

I laughed so fucking hard at this. Oh my god, guys! This shit was too much.

Random Thoughts:

The romance between the 2nd leads was A+. Truly an adorable affair. Though I think they should’ve gotten together officially earlier around ep 25 or so and we should’ve seen the rest with them as a couple.

The costuming was so good y’all. For all the main four characters but I was especially drawn to Prince Su’s outfits.

The ghostly pale look with the bright red lips and eyeshadow makeup for Rong did not bother me at all. I actually liked it for her though I think it would’ve worked better if she’d had more explicit prophetic abilities.

I could’ve used more actual war scenes with Prince Su and Little Marquis.

The OST for the show SLAPPED!

That one kid spy in Ruyi Pavilion was voiced by the same actor as Chengling from WOH and I have never double-taked harder. lmao

Even though there were things I didn’t like in this show, I appreciated how gay I could make it in my last post. Truly it was a bisexual’s dream aesthetically.

#the blooms at ruyi pavilion #cdrama #zhang zhehan #ju jingyi #liveblogging #meta #reviews #long post