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randomfoggytiger · 1 year

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15 questions 15 mutuals

*loud gasp* Thank your for including me, @frogsmulder)!!! :DDDD

I am not responsible for any grammar/spelling mistakes because I'm shooting from the hip and leaving the body wherever it drops.

15 questions 15 mutuals

1. Are you named after anyone?

My first name is a feminine version of my dad's name (and one my paternal grandmother wanted to use for a girl), and my middle name Susanne is a derivative of my maternal grandmother's name (I misspelt it as Suzanne for a year? in middle school because... I forgot how it was spelt, I suppose.)

2. When was the last time you cried?

Almost teared up at Craig Ferguson's eulogy for his dad tonight (catching up on his content on YouTube.) But I did tear up at his eulogy for his mom this morning (also on Youtube.)

3. Do you have kids?

No... but one day I will.

4. Do you use sarcasm a lot?

No, surprisingly-- mine is more bemused mockery (very like Mr. Bennett in Pride and Prejudice... but not the 2005 one. Not that Mr. Bennett. Never that Mr. Bennett.)

5. What sports do you play/have played?

...None. I felt that Olympic champion part of my soul wither and die away; so thanks for providing me that experience. (That was mild and playful sarcasm-- guess I do use it sometimes~.)

6. What's the first thing you notice about other people?

Probably how much space they take up-- not in a bad way, just in a way to gauge them as a possible threat? (I dunno-- don't think that 5 foot nothing woman who could have been blown away with an east wind was much of a threat; but maybe my brain thinks so.)

7. What's your eye color?

Brown. Reddish brown. (Bond accent included.)

8. Scary movies or happy endings?

..................HAPPY ENDINGS. But not cheesy ones-- give me Pride and Prejudice over Hallmark any day.

9. Any special talents?

I have an awe-inspiring ability to effortlessly make delicious food; BUT the magic happens when I make desserts that taste pretty good without wheat (even without flour in a pinch), without any granulated sugar (even without ANY sugar but fruit), AND without eggs (use 2-4 Tbsp seltzer water.) ...It was a dark, but necessary time in my life (someone else's health was affected, etc.) Can't make soup, though.

10. Where were you born?

California, US. I was there for... two months? before my fam hit the road. Two years later we left the mainland.

11. What are your hobbies?

Making amazing X-Files fic compilations, meta analyses, and my newest passion: absolutely spectacular AMVs (that I call Musicals.)

12. Do you have any pets?

Not currently-- I had a fish in second grade; then two outdoor rabbits through late elementary to early high school.

13. How tall are you?

5'5" (I'm your height, @frogsmulder! ;)))))

14. Favorite subject in school?

Literature-- loved learning about the technicalities behind writing and composing poetry; and I loved reading most of the required material. Math was great, but I missed a lot of errors. My interests failed once we left algebra and approached geometry/calculus.

15. Dream job?

Writer. I know deep down that I don't have that ...artistry? to create fiction-- which is fine (I do better with poetry-- though it's very untrained and pretty rough around the edges-- and, I think, critical writing.) I did write a "legal" document to my landlord when I was in middle school asking him to buy me a shih tzu puppy and he was impressed that I, a small child, wrote it as professionally as I did (I can't remember a word it said. XDDDD)

Time to tag everyone-- I'm going to tag everyone who's active on Tumblr right now, so this'll be cool to look back at years later as an piece of archived history: @baronessblixen, @suitablyaggrieved, @dd-is-my-guiltypleasure, @demon-fetal-harvest, @mondfuchs, @thebeautifulfantastic, @the-spooky-alien, @dreamingofscully, @annablume, @scullyeffect, @medicaldoctordana, @thatfragilecapricorn30, @starwalker42, @90stvqueen, @mulderscully, @onlyonechoice77, @ghostbustermelanieking, @pianogirlxf, @gabby-msr, @sonictacocat, @kiivitaja, @msmissymd, @tossingmyglossymane, @borogirl, @perpetually-weirdening, @unremarkable-house, @thescullyphile, @hamster-on-fire, @two-microscopes, @agentbluefox, @herdingcats12, @leonardbetts, @mulderwearingglasses, @catsandcoffeeandchemistry, @tiredpeterparker, @mollybecameanengineer, @adrianne68, @enigmaticdrblockhead, @albanyparkavenue, @thetigerisout, @samucabd, @invidiosa, @enigmaticxbee

(I added a few more than necessary; but I want to know people's answers.)

Respond only if you want~

#tagged #Tumblr #15 questions 15 mutuals #frogsmulder #2023 #txf #mine

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nerdypotatoe5 · 5 months

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The Hunger Games, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes SPOILERS (BOOKS AND MOVIES)

ok so I'm sure that by now everyone has seen the posts about how brilliantly Suzanne Collins wove her prequel into the story.

So this will also be such a post. Not a particularly detailed one but hey xD

Anyway - AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH

I adore how before Lucy Gray disappears, she tells Snow - I'm going to look for katniss. And then 64 years later, Katniss Everdeen wins the 74th Hunger Games with the meadow song, with a Mockingjay token and by cleverly playing the system (even if it wasn't her intention).

Of course, this reminds Snow of how he played the system in Lucy Gray's favour, he remembers that song from 12 and the Mockingjays that sang after Lucy Gray disappeared.

The parallels are brilliant! And every time that I think about them, I'm once again reminded just how much and why Coriolanus Snow despised Katniss. Not only was she a symbol of rebellion, but she also carried symbols from a past that he wanted to erase. And sure, no one else alive that can hurt him in the capital remembers, but what if someone digs just a little deeper, notices and checks something that appears to be just a little off?

And with so many coincidences surrounding Katniss, is it really a wonder that he assumed that a ghost of his former lover was coming to haunt him from the grave?

There are definitely more parallels out there but I'm currently too tired to think of them xD.

God, I love the world of the Hunger Games. It's so brilliantly written with wonderfully written characters that make me want to continue peeling back their layers just to see what makes them tick. Suzanne Collins truly wrote a masterpiece.

Also I did really enjoy the new movie. I ended up watching it in a language that isn't my native language and was pleased to have understood the majority of what was said xD. The fact that I had read the book previously definitely helped! XD

The sound track was to die for though! Everyone's singing was beautiful. Rachel Zegler's voice really haunted some scenes and gave me chills on more than one occasion. Hearing Can't Catch Me Now during the end credits was great. I've seen some people say that it really explained what happened to Lucy Gray after she disappeared and yeah, I can see where they are coming from. I just really liked how the lyrics tie the end of the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes with what happens in the Hunger Games. Olivia Rodrigo did a brilliant job with the lyrics.

Ok so this rambling has turned into a review. 😅

Anyway, my only complaint is that we did not see a lot of the Covey in the movie and that the connection between Katniss' dad and the Covey wasn't hinted at.

Having said that, the fact that Katniss' dad taught her those songs and how to hunt wasn't something that was mentioned in the Hunger Games movies (from what I remember of them) so it makes sense that that was left out.

Overall, the movie was amazing. Would recommend - 9/10.

The books are of course a very steady 9.5/10 for me xD.

At some point I'll probably need to make a post about the actors that played Sejanus and Dr. Gaul. They were fantastic! Having said that, the whole cast was really well cast and everyone played their role really well. I was very satisfied with the casting and with everyone's performance.

#the hunger games #suzanne collins #ballad of songbirds and snakes #Kind of a review #kind of a rant #Kind of a meta #I'm not fully sure how metas work #If someone can explain #Please do

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sherwoodknights · 5 months

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SP 1999 EPISODE 1 LIVEBLOG

Opening titles slap pretty hard

Starting with a flashback, nice

IS THAT MARGUERITE AND ARMAND'S PARENTS? DID THEY SOMEHOW MANAGE TO MAKE ST CYR EVEN WORSE THAN BEFORE? WHAT THE FUCKKKK

"Learn from this!" Sir this is going to bite you so hard in the ass its unreal, and you deserve it

Why are they putting down newspaper lmao

Oh that's why okay

Is he a league member that theyve captured? Are the French actually semi-competent in this adaptation?

YOU DO NOT IMPLY THAT CHAUVELIN HAS BEEN RIPPING OFF TOENAILS AND THEN CUT TO THE NEXT SCENE WHATS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE

HERE COME THE LEAGUE LETS GOOOO

*does a gay little run that pisses you off*

Emilia fox will you marry me

OH MY GOD IT WAS ARMAND DOING THE GAY LITTLE RUN, BBC ARE FUELING MY GAY LITTLE ARMAND THOUGHTS

Excuse me bbc it has been almost 10 minutes and I have seen no Marguerite at all, you are depriving me of my wife

FUCKING HELL THATS FULL ON TORTURE THIS IS DARK

Richard E Grant you smooth mfer

They weren't joking that man really has no toenails left jesus

Forget my earlier comment, the French are still incompetent I guess

Oooooo chavvy wants to go to englandddd

Does this mean we get Marguerite soon? Please say we do

NOOOOOO DONT ARREST ARMAND LEAVE MY SON ALONE

DAMN ARMANDS GOT BITCHES

At least they're letting him get dressed before they arrest him

Awwwww he saved her, that's my boy

GET YOUR HANDS OFF THAT LITERAL CHILD YOU GROWN ASS SOLDIER FFS

Mr No Toenails is so gonna die

"Don't trust her" STOP BEING SO FUCKING OMINOUS BEFORE YOU DIE

MARGUERITE!!!!!!!!! Ough she's so gorgeous I want to dieeeeee

Oh fuck he totally took the guys words as "Don't trust Marguerite" goddammit

OH YEAH PERCY HOW DARE YOUR WIFE WHO YOU MARRIED WANT TO DANCE WITH YOU WHAT A TERRIBLE INSULT

Suzanne and Andrew <333333333

Percy Blakeney making sex jokes is something I never knew I needed

Marguerite St Just I would die for you

The only version of the pimpernel poem that rivals the musical in campiness

Chauvelin has no rizz, no matter how hard he may try

NOT PERCY SPILLING WINE ON CHAUVVYS CRAVAT

Percy basically just said "the cravat is the powerhouse of the cell"

Man's just wrote a dissertation on cravats

Ooooooooo the Prince is sassy

WHO JUST SLAPPED MY WIFE WHO DO I HAVE TO KILL

ANGELE ST CYR? OH FUCK THE GIRLS ARE GONNA BE FIGHTINGGGGG

Not this guy challenging percy to a duel while his voice sounds halfway to cracking through the whole speech

I could watch Richard E Grant's Percy all day oh my god

The guy they're about to guillotine looks like a sad puppy

Sleebpy Marguerite

They are literally so close to actual communication and talking through their issues that it HURTS, STOP BEING IDIOTS AND GET OVER YOURSELVES SO YOU CAN STOP BEING MISERABLEEEEEEEE

Ah here comes the Armand blackmail

Oooooo they're letting the marriage issues out at parties

HERE COME THE CHAMBERTIN JOKES

They're being so mean to him and its amazing

HOLY SHIT THEY HAVE HER TELL PERCY ABOUT ARMAND AS PERCY AND NOT THE PIMPERNEL! GO BBC YOU DO THAT FUNKY FAITHFUL ADAPTATION STUFF WE LOVE TO SEE IT

ST JUST BACKSTORY HAND IT OVER I CRAVE ITTTTTTT

PERCY YOU FUCKING LOSER HELP YOUR WIFE UGH YOURE SO MEAN TO HER

(I know he's going to do something but still I wish he could just tell her)

You go babygirl rip that letter from your husband up

Chauvvy with the hair down and morning hair <3

Get Chambertin's ass, Margot

MARGUERITE NO DONT TELL HIM THE HIDING PLACEEEE

Is she figuring it out? Did the injury give Percy away to her omg

SHES GOING TO THE STUDY BOYS SHES GONNA FIGURE HIM OUT

SECRET PIMPERNEL COMPARTMENT LETS GOOO

And that's where the episode ends!

So far I'm loving the show, following the book pretty comprehensively, and has managed to get plenty of the plot into a single episode, can't wait to see more

#sky liveblogs #sky watches sp1999 #the scarlet pimpernel #richard e. grant #elizabeth mcgovern #martin shaw #the scarlet pimpernel 1999

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everlarkrealornot · 1 year

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Have you read the hunger games prequel, the ballad of songbirds and snakes?

What's your opinion about it?

What's the most shocking revelation from the novel related to the original trilogy?

What's your favorite character from it?

Do you plan to see the tbosas movie in theaters?

Thank you

@curiousnonny

I have read The ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. BUT! I read it very quickly and back when it first came out and I have not reread it / refreshed my mind on it...so I went back and grabbed a review that I wrote when I had finished the book:

This goes without saying, but Suzanne Collins is an amazing story teller. The way she crafted this book is brilliant! The way this is written has you starting to care for this character and wanting to root for him at times despite the fact that you already know he is a terrible person. I can’t tell you how many times I would be like, “Oh, well I hope…” but then like four paragraphs later I would be reminded just how terrible he is. One of the biggest slaps to the face for me was when Lucy Gray had just won the games and after its announced Snow goes off to celebrate, completely unconcerned for the girl that he “loves”.

I loved the attention that Collins draws to food and the distinction we see between the Capital and the districts. My favorite example of this was during the actual games when he comments about having eaten the same kind of sandwich for breakfast that they were serving for lunch while there were tributes who were literally starving to death in the arena!

THE PARALLELS between Tbosos and THG was great and it allows us to see just how much he hated Katniss as she was a walking trigger for him: her name, her songs, the mockingjay pin, ect.

And the last thing I will comment on for now is Snow’s complete and total selfishness. He never loved Lucy Gray and he was terrible to Sejanus.

Favorite character? I honestly don't remember....

And yes, I am definitely planning on going to see it in theaters...I feel like I need to reread it prior to seeing it though!

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posthungergamessyndrome · 3 years

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so here’s my long overdue review of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes that no one asked for. I finally read the book, well listened to the audiobook, coz i dunno how to read a book anymore.

This book was everything I expected it to be and also not. Definitely the first two parts was easily predictable, we all kinda assumed that was the general arc that story would take. So while I found the first two parts enjoyable, learning more about the history of the games and learn more of Capitol, i wasn’t really hooked until the third part.

But let me say this first tho, Ms. Suzanne Collins, you never disappoint. Also I have questions and I hate that she wasn’t able to go on a book tour (I haven’t read her Q&A tho).

I still have the same qualms as i did about the prequel as i did before I read it. While I get the early records of the games were shoddy, and the 10th Hunger Games was erased but for one copy hidden in some vault, that doesn’t matter, what matter is Snow knows.

So If Snow had that relationship with the Games and Lucy, the first victor of d12, a lot of the decisions he made in the trilogy made no sense.

I get it, he wanted to forget, it’s decades until Katniss came along. While there might be parallels, Lucy and Katniss are very different characters. But all I can think off is the reason he didn’t kill Katniss sooner, was it really because she would end up a martyr or rallying cry for the district, which happened anyways, or he was practically disassociating the moment Katniss was reaped?

Were Katniss and Peeta unintentionally triggers to so many of his hidden traumas that’s why he made so many misteps? Katniss singing the meadow song to Rue, triggered. Peeta mentioning the Valley song, triggered. Mockingjay, triggered. The Hanging Tree, triggered.

Was he so busy crying in the shower that he wasn’t able to stop Seneca Crane from making bad calls during the 74th Games? Two winners from the same district, would Snow really okay’d that himself?

And also, I’ve always thought that anything he did towards Peeta was coz he wanted to hurt Katniss. But no, he wanted to hurt that boy. Peeta reminds him of his young self, at least the young person everyone saw him as, charming, smart, and loyal. And in a way, had Peeta been born in the Capitol and was among Snow’s contemporaries, Snow would have seen him as his ultimate rival.

Coz Snow was smart and knows how to manipulate people, but Peeta does it a lot better and a lot more successfully. With Snow, it’s right in front of his face and he still misses it. Often he is so close to getting it. How could he not have thought of the star-crossed lovers angle? How?? When one Peeta Mellark thought of it?

Which idk if there’s fanfics of that yet, but I need to read them asap, Katniss and Peeta and teen Snow, make it happen.

(But I was looking at my notes and I wrote probably the reason Snow didn’t think of the star crossed lovers angle because it was about his survival not about Lucy’s. Lucy was at best, seen as his possession. Even at the moments he was honestly in love with her, he still saw her as someone belonging to him only. )

Snow had two relationships going on: with Sejanus and with Lucy. I did find his relationship with Sejanus more interesting, because I think it’s that relationship that shaped him more that his relationship with Lucy.

I did like and even at some points enjoyed their Slytherin-Hufflepuff BFFship going on, coz despite how Snow let us know what he really thinks versus what he actually says, he was drawn to protect Sejanus, even though he’s reluctant about it or insist that he was made to do it or it’s also to benefit himself.

And I’m not saying there’s queerbaiting in this book, but certain pairings in this book makes more sense to ship than Johanna and Katniss.

With Lucy, i know many were wary or didn’t want Snow to have a relationship with her. For me i was open to it, at least intrigued to see where it will go or how will it be handled.

Honestly while it is still better written than most YA romances, I found it very insta-love. Again, my sense of timeline in this novel might be different coz I was listening to the audiobook instead of reading it, but they fell in love pretty quick.

While listening to the audiobook, i thought, if their relationship is at this point it must have been weeks since the reaping and the games haven’t started yet, and then Snow says it’s just been five days. They were making out I think by day 3 or something.

Maybe because I knew they relationship was doomed from the start and we know how Snow ends up, I was amused by certain moments in their relationship, coz all I can think about it is, oh honey no.

but also, I am mad that Ms. Collins is capable of writing amazing fluff moments in the midst of a dystopian world, and she wastes them on Snow and Lucy? Where was all that for Katniss and Peeta? i was given crumbs in the trilogy, Snow and Lucy made out so many times, at one point I even thought they were going to sleep together, like how dare you Ms. Collins.

For the many years we debated the meaning behind The Hanging Tree, Ms Collins, said no hun, this is what the songs means, let me tell you it’s origin story. And omg Suzanne, that was fucked up. Thanks.

One of the things I was worried about for this prequel is that while it is set in the future, the messages in it will seem outdated because a lot has changed since the trilogy came out.

But she wrote this book well before it was announced in 2019, before it was released in 2020, but she still made it very relevant for today and I think the messaging of this prequel would be more resonant in the future, like the trilogy is.

She touched upon how we really value children, and that immediately reminded me of school mass shootings and how we haven’t done anything about it. She lives in Sandy Hook when the shooting happened so this makes sense she makes a statement about it. And now we are sending kids to school in a middle of a pandemic for political reasons not because we are concerned about their education.

And there’s also mentions of a pandemic in a middle of a war, let’s say it was a whole mental experience alternating between listening to the audiobook and watching the news on January 6.

I also loved the lines: “why do people think the only thing they need for a revolution is anger?” and “we pour money into industries not people.”

While it’s almost unbelievable that the modern hunger games was merely a student group project by a bunch of privileged rich kids and one person who thinks slavery is okay ended up writing the whole thing anyways, that’s basically how this country and our system of governance was founded.

Dr. Gaul is also every Security and Development professor I had in grad school who teaches that war never ends and it’s not about winning it’s about control to a class of future leaders at the state department, white house, and pentagon. i mean, it’s the cornerstone of US foreign policy since end of WW2.

While also listening to this book, I am dead sure that Suzanne could write a different version of Catching Fire where Katniss and Peeta were mentors and they uncover the hidden 10 hunger games tape, and it still will be a be hella of a story.

It also makes sense that the two characters that could possibly tell us or Katniss the connection of Snow to Lucy were the ones who can’t talk: Mags and Tigris.

obviously lucy ended up in 13, possibly related to Alma Coin coz where else will she get that personal hatred against Snow?

Snow could have at least picked Clemensia or Lys, but Livia? i guess make sense since her offspring ended up being Plutarch’s assistant.

I feel like if i read the prequel before the trilogy, it would be a different reading experience. But at the same time, Snow, while he had his moments, is an unlikeable character even as an anti-hero, and his moral stand point is something i dont agree with, coz you know, he’s basically a republican. it’s like reading a book about a young Mitch McConnell, doesn’t matter if the system hurt him sometimes, as long as it hurts others more and keeps him in control, and i gag. I don’t think i would finish reading the prequel if i started with it instead of the trilogy.

but it does solidifies my theory that Snow’s evil is not because he is out of touch with the rest of panem, he knows suffering that’s why he knows how to exploit it. He is not oblivious to the problems, but he arrived at different conclusions or convictions, because again he supports the system that controls his enemies, even if the system is cruel to him too. Again, a Republican. Don’t be one, don’t date one.

I do wonder tho if he made good with champagne tuesdays when he became president.

I don’t see how this prequel works as a movie adaptation tho, even if turned into three parts. It makes more sense for it to be a series, so if lionsgate hasn’t declared bankruptcy before they can adapt this into screen, maybe with the state of movies right now due to the pandemic, they will be more convinced to make this into a series for Netflix or to launch their own streaming service.

#the ballad of songbirds and snakes #coriolanus snow #the hunger games

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dustedmagazine · 3 years

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Listed: Hayden Thorpe

Photo by Jack Johnstone

If you don’t recognize Hayden Thorpe’s name, you’ll no doubt recognize his voice from justly celebrated British band Wild Beasts, who released five albums before disbanding in 2017. Thorpe has just released his second solo album, Moondust For My Diamond, on Domino, which follows last year’s Aerial Songs EP and his 2019 solo debut, Diviner. In his review of the recent release, Tim Clarke wrote that it “brings synths and drum machines to the fore, luxuriating in its luscious synth-pop palette.” When called upon to contribute to Listed, Thorpe offered us a list of his ten favourite non-fiction books, which suggests that his main pastime during the pandemic, other than making music and hiking in his home region of the Lake District, is reading at home.

10. Carlo Rovelli — The Order of Time

This book fundamentally changed the way I see the world; it makes poetry from science. The grand narratives of metaphysics break your heart with their elegance. It melts down the individualism and inner quest that we tend to live by, just by putting you in a state of wonder.

9. Michael Pollan — How to Change Your Mind

Such an open hearted and detailed look at psychedelics and their possibilities for individuals and societies. It certainly gave me the confidence and grounding to explore more. I guess it’s a container to hold what is a liquid thing; when we talk about psychedelics we’re talking about the substance of soul and how it and our bodies attach to reality.

8. Robin Wall Kimmerer — Braiding Sweetgrass

Kimmerer is a biologist and citizen of the Potawatomi Nation, who brings together scientific knowledge and Indigenous wisdom. She talks about the grammar of animacy in the Potawatomi language, how words are used to bring a deeper life and appreciation to the natural world. For instance, a “bay” in Potawatomi is a verb, “wiikwegamaa,” a doing thing. The word for mushroom is “puhpowee,” which translates as the force that pushes mushrooms up from the earth overnight.

7. Nan Shepherd — The Living Mountain

This is a love letter to the Cairngorm mountain range in Scotland that Shepherd spent much of her life exploring. It’s a sensory guide to the experience of being in the landscape that verges on eroticism. It could also be a book on eastern mysticism, such is the surrender of herself to the “total mountain,” as she calls it.

6. Merlin Sheldrake —Entangled Life

I love how Sheldrake translates his devotion to mycelium in such a way that you begin to think like a mushroom, almost like those ants whose brains become host to a master fungus. There’s a hidden world behind the world we perceive; this book describes what is there that we cannot see.

5. Oliver Sacks — Musicophilia

I guess this book is about the science of the song and how music is the manifestation of our highest being. Stitching vibrations into stories requires the brains we have; there are some beautiful stories here about the special place music has in our experience of ourselves and being alive.

4. Robert Macfarlane — Landmarks

Macfarlane is an amazing writer of writers; he describes the power of another’s work on him, then metabolises it for you to use. It’s a generous and rare gift. This book brought many lesser known and under-celebrated writers to my attention. I guess nature writing lends itself to priorities outside of person-centered interests, like self-promotion, so some evangelism helps.

3. Suzanne Simard — Finding the Mother Tree

Simard broke through with her theory of the “wood wide web,” a process in which trees communicate with one another through networks of underground mycelium. This book continues to explore tree sentience and tells us how trees look after their own offspring, not by accident but by deliberate action. This is consciousness, just not as we experience it. We tyrannize nature by underestimating its powers and overestimating our own. Her work helps sensitize us to what we can’t feel.

2. George Monbiot — Feral: Rewilding the Land, the Sea and Human Life

This book has become a byword for the radical rewilding of the planet. It melts down our sense of beauty and recasts the world as a degraded place in need of autonomy from human action. It transformed my way of seeing the Lake District where I live from being a manicured land to being a place beaten into submission by sheep.

1. Mark Pagel — Wired For Culture

This is such a loving book. I guess love is that dark matter that stitches our lives together, and this book describes how that delicate flame has been passed on throughout our history as a species. We didn’t make stories, stories made us, and our capacity to tell them affected our evolution. It’s important to consider how we came about getting here and how we figure out what’s next.

#dusted magazine #listed #hayden thorpe #carlo rovelli #michael pollan #robin wall kimmerer #nan shepherd #merlin sheldrake #oliver sacks #robert macfarlane #suzanne simard #george monbiot #mark pagel

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icypantherwrites · 3 years

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For the ask game, not sure if you already answered but: 4, 6, 10?

4. name three authors that were influential to your work and tell why

Franklin Dixon (Edward Stratemeyer) with The Hardy Boys’ series: This was pretty much my introduction and addiction to whump. Joe was my favorite and I lived to see him kidnapped, hit over the head, or put into hostage situations. I actually used to live talk out scenarios (before I got into writing or even knew what fanfiction was) with my sister and we’d plot out scenarios for him to get whumped (again, not know the term but I was a dark little thing even at that age).

Suzanne Collins: She was the one who told me that you can write dark, horrible, things and there is an audience for them. She didn't shy away from trauma or graphic violence and taboo subjects; she embraced them. She didn't bypass emotions for the sake of plot, she wound together a beautiful mix of both family/friendship and romance and she wrote characters that I could identify with. (although first person present tense was a mistake ;p)

Garth Nix, specifically his novel Shade’s Children. It was such a dark, creative world and I cannot tell you how many times I’ve read it or how dog-eared my copy is. His writing style too, jumping to the different characters, writing with the “text” and the “robots” and keeping the reader in the dark until the very end just spoke to me. I don’t tend to do that much but I do certainly love the cliffhanger idea and keeping big ideas under wraps until reveal time with a trail of breadcrumbs only noticeable after the fact.

6. how did writing change you?

I've touched on this before so don't want to go too crazy, but writing was a passion of mine from a young age, a way to explore characters and worlds and things outside my existence. I always dreamed of being a famous author although I was realistic and went to college to pursue a degree in writing along with communications and journalism so I had options. Back in college my advisor, who was an award winning author and the advisor to our newspaper, sort of broke my heart when my senior year in his creative writing class he informed me I'd be better off sticking to journalism and "PR fluff" and I would never make it as a creative writer. (He also gave me a C, which I argued and got raised to a B but it sort of broke something inside of me). I gave up writing for years, focused on my career in journalism that I never really loved and figured that was the end. So writing, in that sense, changed my entire life's dream into just that: a dream. Enter Voltron in my life in 2017 and this super strange, unusual urge to write something for it and I listened to it, writing the first chapter to As Color Fades Away and, well, the rest is history. I would still love to one day be a published author and some days writing is painful and hard, but I'm glad to have found it again and remembered how much I really do enjoy it.

10. how do you do your researches?

Google is my friend ♥ Seriously. There are so so so many amazing resources you can find online, but I do, when I find one I like, always research again to cross-reference to make sure it’s accurate. I tend to start with more generic ideas “different degrees of burns” so I can then learn about the different kinds and differences (first, second third and I learned there’s actually a fourth!) and then based on what I need from that I can go into more particulars. I.e., “what is debriding?” “what are the ways to debride?” “what is the recovery time for debriding?” “how to treat a burn wound on field?” “complications from inhaling smoke” “complications from burn wounds, infection” etc.

I admit my brain is a bit sponge-like and once I read it (unless it’s a super complicated spelled technical term) I remember it. And from there you then put it all together to include in your story. You don’t want to include all of it, obviously, as you’ll put your reader to sleep but it’s very important that *you* know it as you write so you can make accurate scenes and consequences.

And just as an aside, Wikipedia is an incredible resource; use it. Follow the reference links at the bottom too for each entry for further information.

Join in the ask game here!

#writing #writing advice #fanfiction #writing game

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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George A. Romero’s Twilight of the Dead: 13 Directors Who Could Helm the Zombie Sequel

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Legendary filmmaker George A. Romero may have left this plane of existence in 2017, but his legacy — the post-apocalyptic zombie movie genre that he created — lives on. According to the THR, Romero was working before his death on Twilight of the Dead, a film that would have been his final statement on the subject and the last installment in the series that included the groundbreaking Night of the Living Dead (1968), Dawn of the Dead (1979), Day of the Dead (1985), and others.

Now Romero’s widow Suzanne, who has been developing the script that her late husband started with three other writers, is ready to meet with directors for the project. Details on the plot remain secret, except for this tantalizing line: “The story is set in a decimated world. Life has all but disappeared. But there still may be hope for humanity.” Romero reportedly wanted to explore what came next after the end of 2005’s Land of the Dead, which saw the arrival of an intelligent zombie leader.

Romero’s zombie universe has been expanding recently — at least on the page. His son, George C. Romero, is currently writing comics for Heavy Metal magazine that tie into his father’s mythology, while The Living Dead, an epic novel started by the elder Romero but never finished, was completed by author Daniel Kraus and published last year. It’s only fitting that his final cinematic iteration see the light of day as well — even if he can’t direct it. The question is, who can?

We thought about who’s hot in horror now, who has the skills and talent, and who could have the vision, and came up with a list of directors we think could do Twilight of the Dead justice. See if you agree with our picks, and if you have some of your own filmmakers you’d like to see bring Romero’s last Dead film to life, let us know in the comments!

Well Go USA

Justin Benson/Aaron Moorhead

The pair behind the recent, excellent Synchronic — as well as other efforts like Spring and The Endless — have shown an increasingly ambitious vision over the course of their four feature films. They’re currently working on their biggest project to date: directing six episodes of Marvel’s Moon Knight series. We suspect that Twilight of the Dead would hit a genre sweet spot for this pair.

Universal Pictures

Nia DaCosta

Like Benson and Moorhead, DaCosta showed an incredible grasp of atmosphere and tone with her independent debut, Little Woods, which in turn led to her landing the upcoming Candyman sequel. Candyman isn’t even out yet, and DaCosta has her next job lined up: directing the Captain Marvel sequel, which is officially titled The Marvels. We’d love to see DaCosta combine the moody intimacy of Little Woods with Romero’s dystopian vision.

Neon

Michel Franco

He’d probably never do it, but after seeing Michel Franco’s devastating new film, New Order, we’d be very interested in what he would do with Romero’s material. New Order was a dark vision of a collapsing society (set a few years in the future in Franco’s native Mexico), hinting that what comes afterwards is only worse. The intense brutality of his film might shock even Romero diehards, but Franco has not shown much interest in genre films — at least not yet.

StudioCanal

Rose Glass

Glass made her directorial debut last year with the stunning Saint Maud, which wowed audiences at several festivals before finally being released earlier this year on demand. The deeply disturbing mix of psychological and visceral horror was a mix of the profane, the grisly, and the surreal, topped with an astonishing performance from Morfydd Clark in the title role. We have no doubt Glass would bring the same distinctive style to the conclusion of Romero’s story.

Universal Pictures

David Gordon Green

David Gordon Green directed comedies, dramas and thrillers before revitalizing one of horror’s most iconic brands with his 2018 sequel to the original Halloween. With two more Halloween entries and a follow-up to The Exorcist on his schedule, it only seems obvious that the filmmaker get a chance to bring his gritty, down-to-earth approach to the Romero mythos.

Shudder

Brea Grant

A talented actor, writer, and director whose big break came in the role of Daphne Millbrook on Heroes, Grant recently directed the pitch-black comedy 12 Hour Shift, and both starred in and wrote the darker Lucky. The former in particular showed her flair for juggling both the grisly and the humorous, as well as a sizable cast on a smaller budget — resources she’s probably ready to bring to a larger canvas.

IFC Midnight

Natalie Erika James

James blew us away last year with her first feature, Relic, a dread-inducing yet ultimately moving story about the grief and horror of watching one’s parent slowly deteriorate from dementia. James’ devotion to character and the film’s central metaphor — the house in which the parent lives slowly rotting and twisting in on itself — bode well for James’ ability to handle the more epic scope of Twilight of the Dead.

IFC Films

Jim Mickle

Jim Mickle has made a string of striking independent films like We Are What We Are and Cold in July, but the one that we should talk about is Stake Land, an epic tale of humans struggling to stay alive amid a pandemic of vampirism that was similar in some ways to Romero’s Dead films. He’s currently the creator and showrunner of the upcoming Netflix series Sweet Tooth, another post-apocalyptic allegory, and it’s not too much of a leap to see him helming one final zombie spectacle in Romero’s name.

AMC

Greg Nicotero

Greg Nicotero got his first makeup effects job on Romero’s classic Day of the Dead, so it would only be right in some ways for him to take the torch and direct his mentor’s final work. He’s still one of the top makeup effects wizards in the world, and he’s also directed some 31 episodes of The Walking Dead, so his experience with both zombies and filmmaking is vast — perhaps more than almost anyone else on this list.

YouTube

Jordan Peele

Jordan Peele’s brand of socially conscious horror has already been on display in two excellent movies — Get Out and Us — and jibes strongly with Romero’s own use of the genre as social criticism and commentary. Plus Romero cast Black men as the heroes in the first three Dead films — which was pioneering in horror even as late as 1985 — and arguably helped in some small fashion to pave the way for progressive filmmakers of color like Peele to do the same decades later.

Netflix

Remi Weekes

Making his feature directorial debut with His House, a frightening tale of two South Sudan refugees who discover evil lurking under their decrepit London flat, Remi Weekes showed an amazing flair for filmmaking soaked in dread and atmosphere. Weekes used a ghost story to tell an underlying tale of immigration, assimilation and racism, so we’d be intrigued to see what kind of direction he would take Twilight of the Dead in.

Blumhouse/Universal

Leigh Whannell

After working for years with James Wan on the Insidious films and others, Leigh Whannell directed the knockout The Invisible Man last year, imbuing the time-honored tale with a twist on the original narrative that made the story both fresh and genuinely frightening. Whannell knows not just how to tell a cracking good story, but how to extend and transcend the horror genre to break new thematic ground. His Twilight of the Dead would no doubt put a new spin on Romero’s themes and narrative.

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Netflix

Ben Wheatley

Come on: who wouldn’t want to see the director of Kill List, Free Fire and the new In The Earth tackle the deeply pessimistic world of George A. Romero? Ben Wheatley has shown a willingness to tackle all genres in all sizes (his next film is The Meg 2), but he’s especially adept at horror — and at visceral violence that makes one squirm. He can also handle action, epic sequences and character moments, and knows how to tell a story…and the final story of the living dead is one we’d like to see him tell.

The post George A. Romero’s Twilight of the Dead: 13 Directors Who Could Helm the Zombie Sequel appeared first on Den of Geek.

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carriagelamp · 3 years

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November 2020: A Months of Familiarity

This November ended up being a month of me either rereading old favourites, exploring new books by favourite authors, or a mix of both.

…Be prepared for so much Terry Prachett, I found his audiobooks on Libby last month and since that I’ve been unstoppable.

The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents

The first of my Terry Practhett books to mention! I chose to include this one on my list because it’s a beautiful stand alone novel, perfect to read if you’ve never touched on of Pratchett’s works before, and is often overlooked.

The book is about Maurice, an “amazing” cat by his own admission, who has teamed up with a stupid boy and his very own plague of rats. The moneymaking scheme is simple: set the rats loose on a town and after causing a panic let the boy stroll in and offer to play his pipe and lead them away… for a fee. This is working well, until Maurice, the boy, and the rats arrive in the town Bad Blintz. Here the rats are beginning to question the morality of their work, the boy gets entangled with a young, mischievous local girl, and they’re all shocked to find out that the town already has a real rat infestation… or so the rat catchers claim. Things quickly turn sinister and deadly as the group is forced to confront not only the cruelty of humanity, but something even more sinister living in the small, dark, hidden place of the town.

This is a YA book, unlike some of Pratchett’s other novels, so it’s a quick, fun read, while still having all of his dry wit and heavy, complicated thoughts about society, morality, belief, and what it means to be a person. It’s a genuine delight to see Maurice and the rats, recently made sentient by wizards’ rubbish, struggle to come to terms with who they were and who they are now.

Black Pearl Ponies: Red Star & Wildflower

Y’all it ain’t a secret at this point that I enjoy a stupid horse girl book, right? I picked up the first two books of the Black Pearl Ponies books from the library on a whim and they were basically what they promised. Girl lives with family on ranch, father helps train horses, girl goes on pony adventures with ponies. A particular focus is given to horse welfare and care. Very mediocre but a nice thoughtless covid read if you, like me, get a craving for animals books written for seven year olds from time to time. Plus this comes with the added humour of it being written, as far as I can tell, by a British author who thinks all Americans are stetson wearing cowboys which I find unreasonably funny.

Crenshaw

I love Katherine Applegate’s work; I read the Endling series earlier this year and they are overwhelmingly good. Crenshaw was also an enjoyable read, though not my favourite by her. It read a little bit like a book I read last fall, No Fixed Address, which was also a very good read though not my usual genre. Crenshaw is about a boy, Jackson, whose family, though close-knit and loving, is experiencing financial difficulties and struggle with food scarcity, homelessness, and all the instability and stress that results from this. During this tumultuous time, Jackson is surprised by the reappearance of a tall, bipedal, snarky cat — Crenshaw, his old imaginary friend. This is a charming book that blends genuine, real world hardships with whimsy and magical realism.

The Enemy Above: A Novel of WWII

Since it was Rememberance Day this month, I decided to pick up a holocaust novel. This book is about 12-year-old Anton, a young Jewish boy who finds himself fleeing from his Polish farm in the middle of the night with his old grandma when a German raiding party that attacks their village in an effort to make the countryside “judenfrei”. The book is, perhaps, not the most well-fleshed out, but it’s fast-paced and exciting for a child/YA audience that’s being introduced to holocaust literature, without trying to downplay the absolutely horror and brutality of the Nazis. It manages to strike a satisfying balance between fear, tragedy, and hope.

“Everything he had heard was true. He was just a twelve-year-old boy and yet they hunted him. He had broken no laws, done nothing wrong. He was simply born Jewish. How could anyone want to kill him for it?”

Gregor the Overlander

Somehow I never knew that Suzanne Collins wrote anything other than The Hunger Games? I stumbled across this series at a used bookstore and was first taken by the cover and then shocked when I realized I recognized the author’s name. Well The Hunger Games was such a good read, how could I not pick up a book with people riding on a giant fucking bat?

Such a good choice. I’m almost done book two and bought book three today after work. It is exactly the sort of low fantasy that I live for, when a fantasy world lives so close to the real world that you can practically touch it. I also love the fact that while all the wild fantastical elements are happening, you still have the main character taking care of his toddler sister the whole time. It’s at times charming, hilarious, and nerve-wracking!

It’s about Gregor, a normal kid who’s doing his best to help his mom take care of his two younger siblings ever since his father disappeared years ago. Gregor expected months of boredom when he agrees to stay home over the summer instead of going to camp like his sister in order to watch his baby sister, Boots, and their grandma while his mom is at work. He never could have expected that a simple trip to the apartment’s laundry room would lead to both him and Boots tumbling miles beneath the earth into the pitch black Underland, a place filled with giant rats and bugs and people with translucent skin who fly through the massive caverns on huge bats. He also could have never expected that he would get wrapped up in a deadly prophecy that would force him to travel into distant, dark lands into the waiting claws of an overwhelming enemy.

Kings, Queens, and In-Between

A Canadian queer novel that I’ve seen trumpeted everywhere. Libraries, classrooms, bookstore, this book got so much hype (and has such a pleasing cover) that I had to get my hands on it. Now, I’ve got to admit that it’s not really my genre; I don’t love realistic fiction. But that being said, it’s a fun, heart-warming, queer romp through that explores gender, sexuality, love, family, friendship… there’s a lot of lovable, quirky, complicated characters that get thrown together in unexpected ways at a local summer carnival. While there’s tension and misunderstandings and mistakes, this is overall a very optimistic and loving novel, and would be a great read if you want a queer novel that reads like cotton candy.

Love, The Tiger

This book is the graphic novel equivalent of a nature documentary. There’s no text, but you follow a day in the life of a tiger as it moves through the jungle on the quest for food. The art is honestly beyond outstanding, and though it’s a really quick read it is so very worth it. I’ve also read Love, The Lion in this series (also good, though a bit more confusing imho) as well as one of the books from his other series Little Tails which is still very nature and education based, though for a slightly younger audience.

Making Money

More Pratchett! Making Money was the first Discworld book I ever read, and it’s one of my most reread ones — it’s an ultimate comfort read! This is technically the sequel to Going Postal (another book I reread this month), in which conman Moist Von Lipwig is saved from a rightful death at the noose in exchange for agreeing to work for the city. Going Postal sees Moist narrowly dodging death in many varied forms as he tries to get the Anhk-Morpork postal service back on its feet and get the drifts of dead, whispering letters moving again. In Making Money things at the post office have become… too easy. Moist is bored, restless, until he finds himself thrust into a new job: head of the Royal Mint. There he has been given not only charge of the biggest bank in Anhk-Morpork, but also a dog with a price on its head, a lethal family with all the money in the world out for his blood, and the fear that his secret past life may be on the verge of being exposed to everyone, all while he’s desperately trying to make money…

The Moist series is honestly an example of Pratchett at his absolute best imo, and the amount of humour, wit, adventure, and scathing commentary he can build around a bank is outstanding. Cannot recommend enough.

The One And Only Ivan

Another book I’ve been hearing everyone talk about, as well as another Katherine Applegate book. It’s been on my radar for a while, but with the sequel and a movie coming out, it had everything at a fever pitch and I finally picked it up. Fantastic read, I definitely enjoyed it more than Crenshaw. This book was based off the true story of Ivan, a gorilla taken from his home in the jungle and sold to the owner of a mall, where he spent years of his life growing from child to adult silverback in a small, concrete enclosure. In this fictionalized version, everything changes for Ivan and his friends, when a new baby elephant is bought to help revitalize the mall attractions and Ivan makes a promise he doesn’t know how to keep: to protect this baby, and keep her from living the life Ivan and his friends were forced to. This book made me very emotional. Applegate’s picture book that goes along with it is also a great companion read.

Ranma ½

I realized that our library had the 2-in-1 editions of Ranma ½ and honestly that was it for me. This has been a favourite series of mine since I was in middle school and realized that the creator of Inuyasha had written other things. It is unapologetically ridiculous and larger-than-life and you have to love the shameless joy it has at being ludicrous. It does start to feel a little repetitive the further into the series you go, but at the moment, with covid, I find I have a huge tolerance for rereading slightly repetitive things so long as they make me happy. And boy howdy does the vaguely queer undertones, endless pining, and relentless slapstick of Ranma ½ make me happy. This is classic manga y’all and if you’ve never read it you should!

The basic premise, for anyone that doesn’t is that of an bonkers martial arts comedy. It follows Ranma and his father who, while training in China, fell into cursed springs. Each spring has the tragic legend of a person or animal who drowned in it, and if someone falls in they inevitably turn into that creature any time they’re doused in cold water. Ranma had the misfortune of falling into “The Spring of Drowned Girl” and, indeed, turns into a girl anytime he’s hit with cold water. Things continue to spiral out of control when Ranma meets his arranged fiancée, Akane, who is as exasperated by this situation as Ranma. Both would rather be fighting people than worrying about things like romance. And don’t worry, there is lots and lots and lots and lots of some of the goofiest martial arts fights that you can imagine for a bunch of high schoolers.

Through the Woods

A beautiful and creepy Canadian graphic novel. I honestly really don’t even know how to describe it in a way that does it justice. It’s a collection of short horror stories, with beautiful, flowing art style that draws you in and sends chills down your spine. I’ll let the art doing the talk, and honestly beg you to go find a way to read this graphic novel:

The Witch’s Vacuum Cleaner: And Other Stories

The last Terry Pratchett book on my list (though shout out to the others I’ve listened to this month: Wee Free Men, Hat Full of Sky, Men At Arms, and Snuff) and one that I actually physically, rather than listening to the audiobook. I included this one because unlike the others, this was a Pratchett book I had never read before. It collects a number of Pratchett’s short stories that had been written for children over a number of years. These weren’t necessarily my favourite examples of Pratchett’s writing (I prefer his longer work that can really dive into social issues) but it was such a quick, easy, fun read that you can’t really help but be charmed by it. I liked the stories that took place in “the wild wild west (of Wales)” in particular.

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ruthlessnessisyourdesire-archive · 4 years

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Anonymous said:

What are some blogs that you consider part of your rp family?

> Aww anon this is a really cool question. Well I have a particular group of people that are pretty much my always follow. I know people do those follower forever but I haven’t done any before. I get overwhelmed as it is with the amount of people who follow me but some blogs that I will never not be following are:

@coffee-and-guns @theyearningtofly Uh hello. Have you seen the babes Lotus and Asuka? Feli has some dolls right here and I stan them to death. They don’t get the interaction or attention they deserve and I will fight until they do. Lotus is 60′s pre-tumblr babe. I’m talking OTP from the onset. He literally will destroy the city of Detroit for her. He will go to hell and back for her. It’s amazing how much this ship has taken over my life but our crazy amount of verses and aus is very telling. We have a ton of plot. Lotixty reigns supreme. And Asuka is my Connor’s waifu as well as Callum’s wife. Best babe. @diivinerose Daniela is not just one beautiful muse. She is so diverse in her three verses that she is pretty much a multi. Curly is my chaos doll but also a shy bean with such great ideas. Our aus are another wild treasure trove. Each verse has something favorite in it. Each rendition I love and DD60 considers Main D his true love. Mad D is the other half of the toxicity known as Corla with my boy Corvus. The ship of Main D and Connor was a surprise in the beginning. I didn’t expect it but I’m glad it happened. Cause I just love her clinical coolness against this supposed cool machine who has more emotion than he should now as a deviant. Best Babe. @stayhuman-genevieve @leaderawakened @pathdiverted Gen is amazing. Markus is tops. 52 is a babe. OK but also Amanda, Louis, Anarchy the list goes on. All of these muses are amazing and it’s just such a privilege to write with such a wonderfully developed original in Genevieve. She is 60′s weak spot. The ruthless one gave up Cyberlife for Gen. That takes some doing. But they have a ton of shit they went through including a terrorist takeover by that aforementioned Anarchy. We have such great plot ideas and I can’t get enough of them. Main Connor and Markus for my gal too. Main Markus all around. I love him damn it. Genevieve is also my Connor’s waifu. DD60 on the other hand.... just don’t let him alone with Corrupted Gen. OTP status right here. Best Babe.

@dcwnxism @soulxism @lethalxarsenal @wintcrcoded @resentfuldrcgon OK but here the list goes on as well. All of these muses canon and original are just amazing. Iron is the queen of angst. Hands down the best at making me cry. One of these days I’m gonna get her back for all the pain. lol Not only is Nines (now known as Cassius) my canon RK900 but my 60′s exclusive 900 bro. That took some doing let me say. Aiden is 60′s soulmate. Sixden is a ship I never expected but it snuck up on me. I love him. I love Lexi so much. She needs more attention. The one Gavin my Connor will put up with.... as an enemy of course. Oh and WuXian? Caleb loves him already. They will shine bright. Best Babe.

@creatorofclay

Did somebody ask for the only Kamski of my life? Well look no further than Kam/Ash/Clay right here not only making me appreciate Elijah but turning me to liking him as a character. I didn’t think much of him when I played the game. But let me tell you waifu right here writes him with such humanity (even when he’s being an ass) that gives such a new perspective. 60 is still on that creator nonsense but it’s in the demon au where he gets to shine with his affection or rather verbal brawls effectively with Elijah. My exclusive Kamski. Don’t @ me. Best Babe.

@rk800isalive @imabittercoffee

Waifu spotted! My platonic soulmate right here. Eme is someone who gave me a wonderful springboard for Sixty to get his hate on with Connor. That hate took a turn I never expected early on. These two wound up getting over their altercation at the tower. They wound up becoming siblings. The only Connor that 60 considers a brother in his main verse. Let me say the work up for this was some good old work. We wrote so many things with them and still do. I adore their human au. Let’s not forget Sierra. I love this bitch. She’s such a contrast to Caleb but man I’m digging it. Also she is the unofficial goth wife of Corvus but you’ll never hear it from him. Or...will you? thinksmirk Best Babe.

@et-liliium @musesdivine

My baby Cherry has wonderful original dolls and I still miss them. BUT I’m super excited to see Lily on her own blog and my babe slowly getting back into the fandom. Sixty is looking to corrupt that sweet flower but it’s Connor that is absolutely in awe of her. He is in love. Let’s not forget Lily being the good to Corvus’ bad. We got some good shit planned for them. She’s the android Suzanne pretty much ;) Seriously check out these wonderful female muses. They are amazing and deserve all the love in the world. Best Babe.

@robobiitch

Let me throw some love on Moe right here. Yall wanna see full on enemies with Sixty? Look no further but man we have some good ass plot with assassin au with a little dose of angst. Lust already hates/loves his brother-in-law in the other demon verse. The shenanigans are bound for some good shit. A wonderful Connor and that’s the bottom line cause ruthless sixty said so. Literally such a fun and cool person. I love plotting and just hanging. Best Babe.

@anderson-residence

Have you seen these muses? I love every single one and Alley always has something in my inbox that either makes me laugh or worry. lol Sending YK to Corvus is probably not the best idea but I love it. I love chatting about aus, plots and everything in between. Each muse is one I enjoy seeing and I really want to interact more with all of them. Sixty just wants to push Hank’s buttons and probably wants to kill Connor but.... lol Best Babe.

@rxseguided @repliicantceo

A literal bab right here. Jesse, Eli and Elliot are all originals that bring so much more to the plate. If you haven’t seen Jesse in action what are you doing? The evil bitch’s daughter herself? Well then sign me up. Cupcake is a doll and her muses are chef kiss. Got it? Good. Lust loves his angel mom but DD is also in love. ;) Elliot is legit one of Corvus’ official cronies. That’s an honor in the worst way possible. Gotta love that human sk verse with Corvesse. Best Babe.

@triptocained @syntheticisolation

Let me tell you all a story about a fed drenched in heavy rain..... No this isn’t a pun. I swear but Norman is literally a highlight and I’m looking forward to that enemies shit with Sixty. Bringing Jayden into the DBH universe is the best damn thing to happen. Danny brings him to life perfectly. I haven’t seen anybody else do this much justice. Norman is yours alone and deserves all the attention. Also let’s not forget Richard. Look I love this knife happy bastard. 60 still wants to show off Monica but he can wait as long as it takes. Always a pleasure to see on my dash. I’m in love. Best Babe.

@fearlessandchaotic

Original babes need more love and Hana his no different. Ely has such development and constant shenanigans I love to see on my dash. It’s always wonderful to see but also Sixty is over the moon for Hana. He hates to admit it but the best thing was coming back to his fiery fox. These two have such chemistry with their ruthless selves they’d sit around and poke fun at people instead of working on a case. Seriously go give the female muses their due love damn it. Best Babe.

@vexeddetective

Vex is a precious babe that I adore the hell out of. Sixvin is here fam. Sixty likes to push Gavin’s buttons. We all know how that shit goes down. I will legit protec this babe. Not Gavin tho. He can fight his own battles and most likely end up wrestling with Sixty. That might end up messy good. Also Lucifer.... whenever he pops up my gal Jade is just: well he’s tall and scary. She probably secretly has a soft spot for him. We’ll have to find out. Please go follow for these two muses. You know you want to bishes. Best Babe.

@swat-cptn-allen @det-gavin-reed

My canon Allen right here. There is no one else who puts this much love into this muse. Webby is a literal precious bean. Sixty loves and hates Joseph. DD is definitely sof for him. Let that sof boy show his dom ;) I love the way Allen is given more development and his own unique persona from the little we see in game. I never imagined liking this character that much but Webby certainly has made me a fan of him. Please go give my canon Allen some love! Best Babe.

@ambitiouslyruthless @fragmented-personage

Goov is a babe. I have followed them for a while now and Vius was always a unique bab to see on my dash. Sixty still wants to pounce on him. Results may vary into ruthless territory BUT let him love on this original muse. He deserves more attention and love. Let him be that bastard to Gavin. Such a unique portrayal of Gavin that is totally one of my faves to see. I’m excited for the werewolf/vamp thread. Also can’t wait to see what happens with them in their main verses. Best Babe.

@thirum-stained

Always a delight on my dash and one of the earliest people to give my blog here a chance. Luna is a doll who has so many amazing muses and not just in the DBH fandom. Vanessa is Sixty’s waifu. She snuck up on him by surprise. He never imagined to fall in love but he sure did here. I adore all of the muses you tackle. I want to interact more with all of them. They’re forever follows on my dash for a reason. Best Babe.

@theveryfirst

This is my one and only Chloe. My literal canon babe. No one else compares and Heather is an all around sweetheart with amazing ideas. The plotting is always something I look forward to as well as just being able to chat. One of the earliest to follow me and still going strong on that forever follow list. Sixty adores Chloe. He feels for her more than he’d ever realize. Until he does. Corvus is still waiting to gets his hands on this angelic android. Best Babe.

> There are so many of you who follow that are so talented. It’s near impossible to give love to you all but there are some new babes who just followed that I’m looking forward to writing with. <3

#ask database #identifying: inferior #//process:anon//#[random // replies]#[code: long post]#{{anon you have no idea how long it took me to write this}}#[code: positivity post]

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creamytinydays · 5 years

Text

One Night - Part Two

This is part two to my drabble “One Night,” which I wrote approximately forever ago.

@butrfac14, you are amazing. Thank you for betaing on short notice! Thanks to @dandeliononfire for the prompt, and to @lovely-tothe-bone for asking for more :)

[The Hunger Games belongs to Suzanne Collins. Photo by Matthijs Smit on Unsplash].

The scent of freshly ground coffee lures Katniss downstairs the next morning. She stumbles by the campers chatting in the kitchen and heads straight for the coffee maker. A summer breeze floats in through the open glass doors, along with the sounds of laughter.

She can’t help but scan the faces of the campers for the man from last night. The fact that she’s not even sure of the color of his hair isn’t lost on her.

Katniss pours herself a large cup of coffee and is stirring in sugar when she spots a man leaning against a wall in the living room. He looks to be about the right height, and she doesn’t realize that she’s staring until he turns to look, shaking his dark hair out of his eyes as he smiles.

“You missed morning meditation again, Katniss!” chirps a voice behind her.

Katniss groans internally. One of the few people she has met is Delly, who looks like the kind of person that hops out of bed at six in the morning and likes it that way. Katniss slowly takes a sip of coffee. She doesn’t tell Delly that you can’t miss something you would never attend in a million years.

“You should join us sometime!” Delly smiles brightly, seemingly undeterred by Katniss’ silence. “Or, how about the singer-songwriter class today? I’m leading it.” Delly glances at her clipboard. “Maybe you’re already signed up?”

“We were supposed to sign up?”

Delly frowns, flipping through the papers. “Looks like most of the classes for today are filled. Didn’t you hear the morning announcements?”

She didn’t know they were supposed to sign up in advance, and now she’ll probably be stuck with some class she isn’t even interested in.

“I wasn’t up,” she mumbles. Despite herself, she peers at the clipboard.

Delly gives her a kind smile. “It’s okay, there’s still a few spots in my class. C’mon, it’s about to start.”

Katniss avoids glancing at the dark-haired man in the living room and follows Delly outside to the wide wooden deck filled with campers. Delly gathers her group and marches them to a meadow in the woods. When they arrive, everyone settles into a circle on the grass.

“I see some new faces, so let’s start with introductions.” Delly smiles as she looks around the circle. “Let’s play Rose and Thorn. Tell me your highlight, or ‘rose’ so far at camp, and then a ‘thorn’, or something that didn’t go so well.” She sits back and nods at the girl next to her.

The introductions take some time, as Delly’s class seems to be popular among the campers. Katniss catches the names of a few of them, such as a shy woman named Annie whose bangs keep falling in her face, and a man named Finnick who launches into a story about skinny dipping in the camp lake.

“Okay!” says Delly, smiling at Finnick, although her pen is tapping furiously against her clipboard. “How about our next camper? Peeta?” She nods at a blond man sitting next to Finnick. Katniss notices the guitar slung behind his back, and the way the sunlight catches his blue eyes as he smiles at the group.

“Sure,” he says. “I guess my ‘thorn’ was getting lost on the way to camp.” A sympathetic groan rises from the campers. “But my ‘rose’ was playing guitar last night.”

Finnick elbows him, grinning. “That’s where you were last night! Who were you with? Marvel?”

“Actually…” Peeta trails off. “This other camper, you don’t know her. But she has this incredible voice.” He addresses the whole circle, and Katniss freezes. His gaze sweeps around the group, and for a moment she’s sure he’s going to recognize her, but he barely glances at her.

Finnick narrows his sea-green eyes. “And who is this mystery camper?”

Katniss feels too hot as the sun beats down on the back of her neck. Peeta opens his mouth to respond and Katniss wishes she could vanish like the morning mist.

“Let’s move on, guys,” Delly breaks in. “Thanks for sharing, Peeta.”

Katniss exhales, and the anxiety is replaced with anger. Last night was private, she thinks furiously. Who is he to share that with the entire group?

She realizes she’s glaring at Peeta, and she forces her attention back to Delly, determined not to let him get in the way of the morning session.

But as Delly leads the group in a few sing-alongs, Katniss keeps noticing things, like the way Peeta bites his pencil or how his gaze never lands on her for more than a second.

When Delly hands out a stack of papers, Katniss notices hers is marked with a number in red at the top.

“Alright everyone, we’re going to break up into writing teams to collaborate on an original song!” Delly actually claps her hands together, her ponytail bouncing. “If you come up with something good, maybe you could even use it for the talent show on Sunday.”

Katniss can’t remember anything about a talent show, but apparently she’s the only one because two girls next to her start whispering intently.

“Find the person with the same number as your paper, and they’ll be your song partner. Happy writing!”

Katniss peers at her number as everyone gathers their notebooks and pens. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Peeta walk towards her, and she ducks her head but his feet stop right in front of her.

“Hey.” He peers at her paper. “I think we’re partners.” She tries to stifle a sigh, and is met with his confused expression.

“Hi.” She gets to her feet. He smiles politely, and they head to the outskirts of the meadow. When Peeta stops a few feet past the tree line, Katniss keeps going. If she’s going to be stuck with him, she can at least waste some of their time by walking.

“C’mon,” she says gruffly. “A bit further.” She doesn’t hear him following her, and she turns around to see him looking back at the meadow.

“I mean, this way we’re nearby when the class regroups,” he says.

She kicks at a root sticking in the path.

“I don’t want anyone to steal our ideas,” she mumbles.

“I’d rather that than get eaten by a bear,” he responds, throwing her off guard. She raises an eyebrow.

“There aren’t any bears in these woods.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I looked it up before I arrived.” Her sister made her promise not to wander off on hikes in order to avoid the other campers. She’d made the concession of checking for predators first. “And if there was, I’d climb a tree.”

He doesn’t seem to know what to say to that. She turns around and marches into the forest, and after a moment she hears his footsteps behind her.

They hike downhill, the summer sun filtering through the trees and dappling the leaves on the forest floor. Katniss spots deer tracks, and wonders if the lake mentioned in the camp brochure is somewhere nearby. After ten minutes she knows they’ve walked much farther than they should, but Peeta doesn’t comment. Birds flit from branch to branch, and Katniss lets the silence soak in before sitting down on a log a little way from the trail.

Peeta settles on a rock across from her, absentmindedly strumming his guitar. She scans the instructions from Delly, but she can’t concentrate.

“So when you’re not researching bears, what do you do for fun, Katniss?”

She jerks her head up. “Besides singing?” She shrugs. “I do archery at the community college.”

“You shoot? Why didn’t you bring your bow with us?” His hands dance soundlessly over the guitar frets. “Here I was worrying about protecting you from the bears, but all the while you could be the one protecting us!” He shakes his head.

“There’s no bears out here, seriously -” she starts, but a smile steals onto her face at his mock exasperation. She stares down at her paper.

“An hour to write a song doesn’t seem like much,” Katniss grumbles.

“Finnick says he’s just going to use one he already wrote,” Peeta says. He looks up hopefully at her. “Do you have any originals?”

“No.” She folds the paper in her hands.

He clears his throat, strumming a chord. “Katniss isn’t afraid of bears; she’ll climb a tree to get away…” he sings. He looks at her expectantly. “Now think of something that rhymes.”

“This is ridiculous,” she mutters. He’s just looking at her, so she sighs and tries to think of something.

“If I lose Peeta in these woods, it’ll really ruin his day,” she sings.

The smile slips off his face.

“What?” She scowls. “Your line wasn’t great either.”

“You’re the girl,” he says, a blush blooming at the collar of his t-shirt. “You sang with me last night!”

She picks up a twig, twirling it in her fingers.

“Yeah.”

“Why didn’t you say anything before?” His blush is creeping up his neck to his jaw.

“When was I supposed to say something? When you were announcing it to the entire world?” She glares at him. “What was I supposed to say? Oh hi, I’m the girl with the incredible voice?”

“I don’t think I said ‘incredible,” he counters.

She raises an eyebrow. “I was there, remember?”

“Is that why you’ve been mad at me this whole time?” He leans forward. “Because of my ‘rose’ story?”

She crosses her arms. She doesn’t know why she feels so possessive over that space of time where it was only melody and stars and the cool of the night.

“Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t think; I didn’t even know if I was going to see you again. I just…” He looks up at the trees above them, and a breeze rustles through the branches.

“What?” She says despite herself, when the silence stretches thin. He takes a deep breath and looks right at her, and she wants to look away but she doesn’t.

“I just told the truth. That’s how I feel. Playing guitar while you sang was the best part of camp so far.” He smiles wryly. “Sorry.”

He does look sorry. She pulls a loose thread from her shirt.

“Ok,” she manages. “It’s fine.”

“Maybe we should start over.” He leans back against a redwood tree, the color of the bark contrasting with the blue of his shirt. “How do you like camp so far?”

“It’s great,” she says, proud that she doesn’t sound as unenthusiastic as she feels.

“Really?” he says. “I was a little apprehensive at first. Still am, I guess.”

She can’t figure that out. He’s gorgeous and plays guitar like a god. Why would he be apprehensive?

“You don’t seem like it,” she says.

He shrugs and looks down.

“It’s just – this whole talent show idea, with everyone having to perform. Doesn’t it seem like a bit much?” He pushes a hand through his hair.

“It’s music camp.” She shrugs. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Easy for you to say. You’ll go up on stage and have everyone crying with your incredible vocals.”

“What about you? You’re amazing at guitar.” She’s pretty sure she has the onstage presence of a banana slug, while he looks like the lead singer of a boy band.

He laughs dryly. “Thanks, I guess. But do you want to know a secret?” He shoves his guitar behind him so it peeks over his shoulder, and he leans forward, carefully placing his forearms on his knees before looking up at her. “I’ve never played for anyone before.”

“What?” She crosses her arms. “You’re joking.”

“Nope.”

“What about your music teacher?”

“What music teacher? I learned how to play from YouTube.” She stares at him.

“And your roommates?” she asks.

“I live by myself. Seriously,” he says, “the only person that’s heard me play is right here.”

His full attention is on her, his eyes a bright blue in the filtered forest light. She’s been singing since she was a child, and has sung in so many music assemblies and concerts over the years that she can’t remember a time when no one had heard her before.

She thinks it’s brave, showing up to camp, to play guitar with a group of strangers. But she can’t seem to say it, not when the morning light is caught in his hair like strands of gold. She curls her fingers into the moss on the log next to her.

“Don’t worry about the talent show,” she says gruffly. “You’ll be fine.”

Peeta’s already looked down, his attention on the instructions.

“Should we get started, then?” he asks.

As the morning melts away, Peeta plays guitar softly, coaxing her into writing another verse. Katniss watches the light change as the sun ascends, and at noon she leads Peeta back to the meadow.

#fanfiction #THG #Peeta Mellark #Katniss #everlark #camp au #Summer #music #musician!Peeta #Musician!Katniss #guitar #maybe bears #maybe no bears #you decide

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book-in-a-puddle · 4 years

Text

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Review

THE BALLAD OF SONGBIRDS AND SNAKES

By Suzanne Collins

Description

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.

The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined - every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute… and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

Rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Review

How nice it is to be in the world of Panem again. The world building that Collins does is amazing and for this book it is great to see what the Games were like in the early years and see how much has changed before Katniss entered the arena. Even seeing what the Capitol looked like after the Dark Days was interesting. I easily devoured this book. There were so many small parts of the book that brought joy to my nerdy little heart (SPOILER like how Lucy Gray was the songwriter for the Hanging Tree and how we actually got to see the scene that inspired that song, one of the biggest songs of the rebellion!! Or how the moment Snow first saw and heard the mockingjays he wanted them gone). And of course, Miss Lucy Gray Baird. She is so bright and fierce and I had no problem loving her character and admiring her spirit. When I first picked up this book, I promised myself not to get attached to Snow before his downfall and even though I tried, Collins worked her magic with making me like Snow (even just a bit), though there are parts of the novel that we can see that Snow is very clearly a Capitol resident and can be cruel at moments (SPOILER like with Sejanus and the jabberjays). Though the end did seem a bit rushed, but in just the right way. I have so many questions, but the ending was loose enough to answer some questions (SPOILER such as, how Snow was able to begin to rise back up in society after his downfall and peacekeeping) but still leave many things open to interpretation (unless we get another!). Through and through, this book gave me so many things to thing about when I reread the original trilogy, and gave me perspective about why Snow despises Katniss so much(SPOILER I think that part of the reason is that she reminds Snow of Lucy Gray and even uses the songs that she wrote against him). Overall, if you enjoyed the original trilogy I would give this book a shot, even if you are skeptical about Snow, it gives you so many details that are relevant in Katniss’ story.

#the ballad of songbirds and snakes #the hunger games #president snow #book #review #bookrating #lucy gray baird #coriolanus snow #reading #library #books #bookstagram #bookblr #currently reading #rating #goodbook #goodread

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acehotel · 5 years

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A Conversation Between Suzanne Ciani & Julianna Barwick

Suzanne Ciani is a sonic pioneer — a world builder in the realm of synth, music composition and Quadraphonic sound, the early bones of what we now call “surround sound.” Spanning over five decades, her mastery of music and electronic instruments has produced 15 albums from her self-run music label Seventh Wave and an illustrious touring and professional career. Here she chats with Ace friend and experimental music auteur Julianna Barwick about their shared creative impulses, “communicating with a physical object,” and finding ways to honor performance.

A handful of Suzanne Ciani’s LIVE Quadraphonic — a rare live recording that was performed by Suzanne in San Francisco in 2016, her first solo Buchla performance in over 40 years — is available at Ace Hotels and online.

youtube

Julianna Barwick: How are you today?

Suzanne Ciani: Everything's great, how are you?

JB: I'm good. I'm in Portland, Maine right now. And it's a gray, rainy day. Very beautiful. I'm really happy to speak with you. We met briefly at Moogfest 2016.

SC: Okay. Was that in Durham?

JB: Yes, it was in Durham, and you were performing with the Quad system.

SC: Yes, that's what I continue to do. That's my modus operandi.

JB: That was a really wonderful performance. I enjoyed that a lot, and that's the reason for the season, and this interview for the Ace Blog, because the Ace is selling the Quad record.

SC: Isn't that amazing? I think KamranV is so creative that he has found a unique marketing approach with it. I appreciate that all this is happening.

JB: KamranV’s the producer of the record and this project? How did he get in touch with you?

SC: He apparently worked with Moog in the past, producing Moogfest. He’s an amazing person. He's young. He's smart. He's capable. And he took this project on, on his own. He really created it. I didn't have any bandwidth to even think about releasing anything, I've been so busy touring. Yes, he took it on. He picked that comeback concert, the very first solo Buchla concert that I did in about forty years. He did that. It was Moog that actually initiated the concert. They asked me if I would play in San Francisco in March. I live so close to San Francisco, I couldn't say no, so I put my Buchla in the back seat of my car and went into San Francisco for that concert. It was a real milestone for me. There were some very wonderful people in the audience. I had studied years and years ago with Max Mathews, who is the father of computer music. I studied with him at Stanford. He has passed away, but several of his family members came to see me backstage after the concert. I was so touched that they had come.

JB: And you studied with him in the 70s at Stanford?

SC: Yes. I went to UC Berkeley from 68 to 70, but that was a traditional master’s degree in Music Composition. I would go to the Artificial Intelligence Lab at Stanford. First, I took a summer course with Max, and John Chowning, who is famous for popularizing the FM approach to synthesis. It was a very fertile moment, historically.

JB: Absolutely. The program at Berkeley exposed you to working with synthesizers?

SC: No. The program at Berkeley, which is University of California Berkeley, not to be confused with Berklee College of Music in Boston, was a traditional Music Composition degree. You know, scoring, orchestras, you know, historically, in the classical tradition. My electronic thing happened outside of my graduate degree. It happened at Stanford, and it happened meeting Don Buchla.

JB: Through the Artificial Intelligence program at Stanford?

SC: No. Buchla actually lived in Berkeley. His next door neighbor was the sculptor, Harold Paris. My boyfriend at the time was a teaching assistant for Harold Paris. I met Harold, and Harold introduced me to Buchla.

JB: That's amazing. Was Buchla teaching at the time, or did you become friends with him and apprentice under him for a while?

SC: Buchla would never teach. He was a very eccentric and maverick inventor — a genius. I call him “the Leonardo da Vinci of electronic instruments.” He was really the first one to make an analog modular music instrument. He did that in 1963. I met him about five, six years later, and after graduate school, I went to work for him.

JB: That's so wonderful. You were able to work with the Buchla 200. Was that the first one that you worked with, with him?

SC: The first one I worked with was the 100. The very first 100 was at a place called the San Francisco Tape Music Center. That was housed — it was not part of, but it was housed at Mills College.

JB: Did it appeal to your constitution completely, as a music maker?

SC: I always thought of myself primarily as a composer. But when I got involved with the Buchla, I did not use any keyboard. Traditional keyboard. It was a whole new world. I don't know how to explain the attraction that I had, but it was overpowering and complete, and I really stopped all my piano playing for about ten years while I played just the Buchla.

I started the Buchla as a compositional instrument, and it allowed me to, as a composer, to completely control the music. Traditionally, a composer is dependent on outside musicians. You know, you have to find the orchestra, you have to get... It's very tricky. But, with the Buchla you could do it all, and it was in Quadraphonic. Always played in Quad, from the very beginning. What's not to love? It's amazing.

JB: It's an absolute joy creating with it, I'm sure. That's how I felt when I discovered looping, vocal looping. I didn't need any outside players of any kind, and it was very intuitive and instant, and I didn't have to compose ahead of time. It just seemed to flow out, and that was a real joyful experience. I've been doing it ever since!

SC: I love that looping. I've never tried it myself, but I think it's wonderful. It's so musical.

JB: It's a wonderful way to make music on your own. I was curious about when you entered Wellesley — what kind of music were you making? What kind of instruments were you playing when you started going to school?

SC: I started playing the piano when I was about six. That was my main instrument. At Wellesley, I was a music major. Very small department. There were only four, five of us. My goal always was to write. I can't explain it, but I always saw myself as a composer. I think the big problem with being a female composer is that we don't have any role models. There certainly have been a lot of women composers, but we just don't know about them.

JB: I know. It's amazing. I discover new ones all the time. I'm like, "Why don't I know about this woman?"

SC: Right. What's going on here? What's going on? I played at Royal Albert Hall this year as part of a program about women pioneers, and they premiered a symphony by Daphne Oram that she wrote in 1943. I cried! It was so beautiful! It just never saw the light of day.

JB: Incredible. You've definitely been an inspiration to me, for sure. Being a solo music maker, especially when it's in an unclassifiable genre, I feel like I get lumped into classical or new age. Just kind of depends on whoever's sitting at the desk that classifies it, you know? It's definitely an interesting group of women making interesting sounds by themselves. I'm curious — you hadn't played the Buchla live in forty years, right? Before two and a half years ago. Were you touring a whole lot during that time?

SC: I was touring. I had released fifteen albums. Everything from pure electronic studio albums to solo piano. Piano and orchestra. Piano with jazz group. A lot of studio albums that were accomplished with electronics. My progression was – the first album, Seven Waves, was 100% electronic, but it was not the Buchla. The Buchla, I did that for ten years, but it never caught on.

JB: Right. With the public?

SC: Yeah. There was no place. It was hard to play in Quad. The theaters didn't want to set up the four speakers, et cetera. As time went on and my Buchla broke and half of it got stolen, I just moved on to different forms of electronics. Then gradually started to add acoustic instruments, because that was my history. That peaked in 1994 when I did “Dream Suite,” which was orchestra and piano. Then I started an independent record label in 1994.

JB: What's the name of that?

SC: Seventh Wave. It's named after my first album, Seven Waves.

JB: Is it still in operation?

SC: Yes, it is. It hasn't released any of my electronic music. I mean, my new Buchla music. I haven't had time to do that. But I think next year, I'm going to focus on a sub-label called “Atmospheric” that I started years ago, but I never used it. I'm going to keep “Seventh Wave” as my romantic music imprint, and then start “Atmospheric” as the electronic —

JB: The Buchla and synthesizer and beyond label.

SC: Yeah. Live. Really all live.

JB: All live things. Are you releasing other artists’ works, or primarily for your own recordings?

SC: When I first started my label, I was forced to have other artists because this distribution channel didn't allow a one-artist label. I did have a lot of artists on my original “Seventh Wave” label but then all the rules changed, and I was able to be solo indie. But the rules changed again, because the indie distribution network fell apart. Then digital came in. Digital is working fine. I don't know how it's gonna work with the next stage, because the kids want LPs. We're back to shipping and storage.

JB: Absolutely. Wait times for production, and all of that. That's so inspiring to me, as an artist. I wasn't aware that you owned and operated the labels that release your work. That's extremely cool. Have you toured a lot since you started releasing music, and do you enjoy it?

SC: In the old days, I used to tour a lot. I had a group called The Wave, and we went to Asia and Europe and around the States. I used to play a lot in Spain. I used to do a tour almost every year in Spain. Now, with my new incarnation it's way fun. I had no idea how pervasive this interest in analog, electronic music was. I've been invited to, mostly festivals and that's new for me, because I used to play solo. My concert. And somebody would open for me, but it was not a festival.

Now, it's festivals and it's a lot of fun, and there are lots of people. Every once in a while, I'm a headliner and it's just me. The more traditional structure of the concert. I love it because it's very international. I've traveled more now than I ever thought possible. Before, I was invited to play in Australia. I never wanted to go to Australia, it was too far away. I go to Australia, and from Australia, I go to Sweden. It's summer in Australia, and winter in Sweden. In one day. It's really amazing. Change seasons, on one tour.

JB: I believe I have experienced that a time or two. When you said that you traveled with a group in the early days, did that mean that people were on stage with you or just management, and things like that?

SC: No, people were on stage with me. I had a group called The Wave, and we did a live recording for television. There is a DVD some place of our performance at the Herbst Theatre in San Francisco, and it was on public television for a while. I've been around a long time.

JB: You've done so many amazing things. I wish I could talk to you all day, but not possible. I have so many questions. I wondered if you could talk a little bit about your earliest memories of music and earliest memories of music and technology interaction?

SC: My earliest memories are not that early, for technology. I was in college when the idea of music technology was starting to grow, visibly. One night, my class at Wellesley went to MIT because that was our brother school. They just started that brother/sister relationship in my junior year or senior year at college. We were exchanging classes and things. It was at MIT that I saw a professor try to make a sound with his computer. In those days, the computers were huge. They filled whole rooms.

It's really fun to witness the evolution of technology. I like to make a distinction between the concepts and the actual manifestation of them because the way we express things is always changing because the physical technology is changing. But, the concepts go way back. The idea that you could make music with a machine is kind of old.

SC: We're getting better at it. Let's just say that right now, we're in a mature stage of these instruments. The same way I've come back after forty years, I think we're reconnecting with the deep origins of these possibilities. When Buchla designed an instrument, he had a vision that was inspired by this new possibility.

JB: Absolutely.

SC: Yeah. And we lost touch with that vision over the years.

JB: I agree. Do you think that the renewed interest in modular systems is a reaction to laptop music, and laptop music making?

SC: That's an amazing miracle to me. I am so grateful and so happy that people started to look backwards, because I've hated all that digital stuff.

JB: Right. I think a lot of people do.

SC: Isn't that great?

JB: Yeah. It's more intuitive for me, personally to have something in front of me that's a physical object that I can interact with, and almost communicate with.

SC: Yeah. The distinction is, "Can you perform it?" If you have to go in and go to a menu, and look for something, you're out of real time. When you design modules, if you keep that in mind, that things need to be accessible, you can in fact honor performance.

A lot of instruments don't. When I go to the NAMM Show, or whatever, and I look at what’s happening now, and it's starting to get better, because you need visual feedback. You need to know what's going on inside the machine, or you can't perform it. There are two different worlds. One is, you're in the studio and you're recording. The other one is, you're out. It's portable. You can carry it, and you can interact with it in the moment. And that’s the world that I came from with Buchla.

JB: Exactly. And you don't have to worry about some computer color wheel coming up and hindering your creation or your performance.

SC: Right. How old are you? I'm just curious.

JB: I'm 39. I've been performing music for about ten years, I would say. Getting close to it. I went to school for darkroom photography and was always tinkering at home, always singing and stuff, and then put out my first CD after I made vocal loops on a guitar pedal.

SC: Wow. You'll have to send me some of your stuff. A URL, or something, where I can listen.

JB: I'd love to.

SC: Yeah. I'd love to hear it.

JB: I'll send it your way, for sure.

SC: I'm also involved in photography.

JB: Really?

SC: Yeah. I collected it for years in the 80s. I did take a course in darkroom just once, and it helped me. The stuff that I collect is mostly from the 30s. Those prints were so amazing.

JB: Absolutely. So, the course helped you do what with the work that you were collecting?

SC: I got to appreciate the art form of the print. People don't understand that a print is a unique expression. They think of photography as this stamped thing. They don't realize that each print is an original.

JB: Absolutely. There's so many variables that go into one print, for sure.

SC: Where do you live, Julianna?

JB: I live in Los Angeles now.

SC: Okay. Cool. Do you like it?

JB: I like it a lot. I lived in New York for sixteen years, and then moved to LA almost two years ago. I'm really enjoying it. I feel like New York is still my home, but I'm really liking my experience in LA a lot. It's nice and sunny. And you live in California as well, right?

SC: Yeah. I lived in New York for nineteen years.

JB: Was that in the 80s?

SC: I lived there from 74 to 92.

JB: Amazing.

SC: I know what it feels like to leave New York, but California — everyone seems to be moving to LA, in your age group.

JB: It's true. It's really true. Was it a heartbreaking experience to leave New York?

SC: I missed it so much, but I say I'm a prisoner of beauty here because it's so amazing. I sleep with the sound of the ocean. The air is clean. There's no noise.

JB: That's heaven. That's a goal for me. That's where I wanna be in ten years or so, hopefully. That is something I'd really want to be able to do is walk onto my back deck and see and hear the ocean. That's an ultimate dream, for sure. Okay. We’ve got a couple of minutes. I have ten million questions for you. I wish I could ask them all. Maybe one day. I was wondering one last process question. Have you found that your techniques have changed with the newer models you're using?

SC: That brings up this idea that in 1976 or 75, I wrote a paper about how to play the Buchla. It was techniques for performance, and I actually use those same techniques today. The 200e has a digital component, which is a memory that I use with a lot of discretion, so I don't memorize everything.

SC: I memorize a few things. It is different. The approach is different because in the early days, there was no memory at all, but also, some of the modules were more powerful.

I have some clones of these earlier modules, because I couldn't live without them. I think it's good to look at the early stuff. I think some of the ideas represented there, like by the multiple arbitrary function generator, otherwise known as the MARF... I think those are some of the highest level designs in a performable analog instrument.

It's a collaborative process with the artist: the tool is designed by the engineer with feedback from the artist. What can I say? The artist is dependent on the tool. We need to direct the design of the tool in a meaningful way.

JB: Absolutely. That's really cool. I understand growing attached to an instrument. I've used a Boss RC-50 Vocal Looper for ten years, and it started not functioning as well as it did, and I had to search high and low to find a new one because it was discontinued. It was the only thing that lent itself best to creation for me, and performance. So I understand that commitment you can have to something that you perform with and create with, for sure.

SC: That's interesting. So, the new ones didn't do what the old one did.

JB: They're just different. The new one had a giant foot pedal, volume pedal and weird effects, and it just wasn't the same. I could use the RC-50 with my eyes closed, kind of thing, so it was like part of me. You know?

SC: Yeah. That's interesting. It doesn't always get better. They always say technology is marching forward. Something's marching forward, but it's not the design.

JB: Right. I'd much prefer the older design, for sure. It definitely works better for what I try to do. I'm gonna let you go. Are you performing at The Ace in October? I guess it is October! Happy October!

SC: Happy October. I'm on my way to England, actually. I have a tour in England, then I come back and I go to South America. I think I wanted to play that, but it didn't work out.

JB: Alright. Have a wonderful time in England, and South America. That sounds heavenly. Thank you for talking to me for a little bit. I really appreciate it.

SC: Thanks, Julianna. That was really nice to speak with you.

JB: Alright. Have a good day. Have fun with your friends.

SC: Don't forget to send me your music, so I can hear it.

JB: I definitely will. I hope we cross paths again.

#yes #interview #julianna barwick #suzanne ciani #electronic #music #quadraphonic #sound #live music #electronic music #sound design #seventh wave

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grahamstoney · 3 years

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Musique Concrète and Other Experimental And Electronic Music

New Post has been published on https://grahamstoney.com/music/musique-concrete-and-other-experimental-and-electronic-music

Musique Concrète and Other Experimental And Electronic Music

In the subject Creative Music Technology at university last semester, I was asked to listen to a collection of experimental and electronic music to stimulate my creative imagination, and to write what I liked and didn't like about it. Here's my rather cynical take on the genre.

Musique Concrète

Pierre Schaeffer and Pierre Henry – Symphonie pour un Homme Seul

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This piece reminded me of Strauss’s Symphonia Domestica; only less musical. I’m a Homme Seul (single man) and my life doesn’t sound anything like this. In his book La musique concrète, Schaeffer described the work as “an opera for blind people…”. Haven’t they suffered enough?

Edgard Varèse – Poème Électronique

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The audio equivalent of Luis Bunuel & Salvador Dali’s Un Chien Andalou.

Does to my ears what the asbestos coating on the walls of the Philips Pavilion at the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair for which it was commissioned, would do to my lungs.

György Ligeti – Artikulation

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George Lucas must owe Ligeti millions in royalties for R2D2’s sound effects. Initially I thought I was joking when I first wrote that, but I’ve since discovered that he was actually trying to create a sort of phonetic speech in electronic music, which pretty much fits R2D2’s dialogue. Plus, the title is German for “articulation”. That should have been a giveaway.

I thought this piece might make more sense to me if I played it backwards, so I dropped it into Logic Pro X and reversed it. I couldn’t tell the difference. Perhaps I would have enjoyed it more if I listened to it in the original quadraphonic. I’ll just end noting that Ligeti abandoned electronic music after composing this piece.

Iannis Xenakis – Concret PH

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2 minutes and 44 seconds of breaking glass to my ears. I think I’d rather listen to Kraftwerk.

Karlheinz Stockhausen – Kontakte

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It’s long. It’s too long. I think this is how Jacob Collier learned to play piano in his mother’s womb; but look at him now. The title is German for “Contacts”, which I think Stockhausen interpreted as “Just hit the things.” Maybe it sounds better in the original quadraphonic.

Stockhausen was evidently a pioneer of the extended dance remix, as the work exists in several versions: “Nr. 12”, “Nr. 12½” and “Nr. 12⅔”

Bernard Parmegiani - Accidents / harmoniques

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Parmegiani had studied mime before turning his hand to electro-acoustic composition, and in this piece it really shows. From the album De Natura Sonorum (the nature of sound). I felt like there were Martians in my head listening to this. Surely he’s just playing a joke on us.

Pauline Oliveiros – Bye Bye Butterfly

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Bids farewell to the institutionalized oppression of the female sex while also providing inspiration for the sound of the Theramin. Gave my new monitor speakers a good workout; I hope the neighbours enjoyed it too.

Tape Loops

Steve Reich – It’s Gonna Rain

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I’ve got this pervasive feeling that it’s going to rain. I’m not sure why. I liked the way the meteorological message panned left and right. More like It’s Gonna Have An Acid Trip.

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Halleluiah Part II is over. I’m not sure how I lasted the full 18 minutes.

Terry Riley – Mescalin Mix

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Parts of this sounded to me like an industrial version of native Australian bush sounds. I felt like I was on a camping trip in the 23rd century.

Brian Eno – 1/1

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From his album Music For Airports/Ambient 1, which apparently coined the term Ambient Music. Brian Eno has a lot to answer for. However, this track put me in a relaxing state, ready to fall asleep on the plane; so I liked it.

Sampling

Luc Ferrari – Ronda, Spain, June 2001

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After being jolted awake by the sound of a loud sliding door opening to greet the day, I was drawn into this by the sweet sound of a French woman’s voice. I imagined she was Ferrari’s lover, speaking to him in bed after awakening on a warm Spanish summer Sunday morning. I wanted to know what she was saying, but my French isn’t good enough. In my mind’s eye, they head to a busy market together to buy some croissants for breakfast, where we hear a man’s voice repeating “numero quatro”, which I assumed is Spanish for “number 4”. As the voices fade, the sound becomes more musical and we return to the soft sound of Ronda speaking to her beloved back in their villa together. I quite liked it.

My interpretation, however, is not what the composer had in mind. According to him, the point of Les Anecdotiques (The Anecdotals) is to dispense with the story altogether. My busy market was, in fact, the sound of Spanish tourists in a museum. While he describes the woman’s words as “Spontaneous and intimate”, in this context they are simply words in a foreign language with no narrative purpose. Just another one of Pierre Schaeffer and Michel Chion’s sound objects, if you will. My narrative interpretation of what was intended as an explicitly anecdotal work is testament to the human brain’s tendency to make meaning out of nothing. It turns out Rhonda is a village in Spain, not a woman.

Still, I enjoyed my little fantasy, thank you Luc.

John Oswald – Manifold

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Wow, this was short. I didn’t even have time to eat breakfast while listening to it. It was only about as long as the Spotify ads, but certainly more fun. I recognised a couple of songs, like U2’s With or Without You and Sinead O’Connor’s Nothing Compares To You. Artists who use samples liberally often sample obscure works, sometimes affording them attention they would otherwise have missed; but in this work Oswald went mainstream. It sounded to me like the soundtrack to a sample-abusing hip-hop artist from the 1990’s being beaten up in a boxing ring by all the artists who reckoned he’d ripped off their work.

Tod Dockstader - Water Music: Part III

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I quite liked this piece. The cuteness of the sounds and the stereo effects bouncing between the left and right channels really drew me in. I’ve recently got myself some decent monitor speakers for my home studio and this piece really worked on them. Pretty amazing for something released in 1963.

Dockstader started out in the 1940’s, prior to the invention of magnetic tape, editing his steel wire recordings with a lit cigarette. That makes me realise how much I take the piece-of-crap Logic Pro X File Editor for granted. Listening to this, I found myself wanting to know what was going to happen next, like I was watching a soap opera on TV; only with no actual story.

Synthesis

Karlheinz Stockhausen – Studie I

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I found this quite disorienting to listen to. I guess it was revolutionary in 1953 but I reckon now you could whip it up in Ableton in about 5 minutes using the Random MIDI Effect and some automation.

Eliane Radigue – Jetsun Mila (Pt.1) / Birth and Youth (Excerpt)

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I liked how the pulsing ambient drone sound in this grew over time; it drew me in and had me wondering what was going to happen next. Unfortunately the answer was: not much. Gradually a rhythmic element with some high pulsing tones which grew over time came in. It was a bit like listening to a very slow EDM dance track from underwater in a diesel-powered submarine going at full throttle for 12 minutes.

Laurie Spiegel – Appalachian Grove: I

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I liked the pulsing stereo effects in this piece and the way the tonal characteristics of the sound varied while the pitch changed. It’s much more melodic than the other tracks we’ve listened to and that made it more enjoyable to my ears. It got a bit harsh in the middle though. This piece puts the musique in musique concrète.

Morton Subotnick – Silver Apples of the Moon – Part A

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Perhaps the sound designer for Star Wars had this in mind when creating the sound effects for R2D2. I kind of lost the flow of the conversation without the witty English-accented retorts from C3PO though. Morton Sobotnick is described as The Mad Scientist in one interview, and I think if I listen to this too often I’ll end up fitting one of the DSM-5 diagnostic categories I’m learning about over in PSYC1002.

Suzanne Ciani – Concert at Phil Niblock’s Loft

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This piece had some funky sounds that I liked. The start reminded me a bit of Kraftwerk but without the rhythm and melody; although it did get more melodic later. I’d probably give it a Distinction for its use of technology given it was made in 1975, but only a Credit for musicality.

Barry Schraeder – Lost Atlantis: Introduction

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At first, I thought this sounded a lot like a modern ad for KFC; then I realised I was hearing a Spotify ad.

I liked the ambient sounds in this piece and the way it surged in and out with its “mysterious tone colors”. It slowly builds to a crescendo until we get the drop that EDM lovers crave, and then built more quickly to the ultimate drop at the end. I kept wondering what was going to happen next; I’d still rather listen to Fleetwood Mac, Supertramp or Queen though.

Contemporary Examples

Amon Tobin – Foley Room

DJ & producer. Retain percussive quality through sounds. Horsefish & Esther’s. Create beauty and delicate textures from sounds. Pitched percussive material. Fast loops. New textures. Funky beats. Check out the Foley Room Documentary.

Aphex Twin - 1ST 44

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Acid house DJ in rave scene. Intelligent Dance Music. More complex sampling, polyrhythms, rhythmic patterns. From Collapsed album. Polyrhythms sounded funky. Lots of variation.

Holly Herndon – Chorus

Intersection of humanity and technology. Recorded web browsing. Stereo ping-pong effects. Here’s a talk she gave about her creative process.

Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith – Riparian

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This was my favourite out of these three, largely because it sounds the most musical to my ears. I liked the pulsing beat in this track. I can hear a bass line for instance, melodies played on the synth and lyrics, although I can’t tell what they are saying. I also like the way the soundscape swirls around when listened to with headphones. It feels ambient, immersive and musical all at the same time. I get the sense that she’s using the electronics at her disposal in service of the music rather than the other way around. There’s even a great video about how she uses modular synthesis.

Graham Stoney - Foster le Concrète

"How hard can it be?", I asked myself. And since I had an assignment to do, I wrote my own musique concrète track based on the drum rhythm from one of my favourite songs, Coming of Age by Foster The People. I even made a breakdown video showing how I did it; because that's what the assignment required.

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Conclusion

I didn’t take too easily to some of the more experimental musique concrète pieces we studied at the beginning of this semester. The weekly listening tasks felt harsh to my untrained ears and I would think mean things like:

“Didn’t the Geneva Convention ban cruel and unusual punishment?”

Perhaps these tracks will never be my preferred go-to pieces for chilling out on a Friday night, but when I look back at some of my cynicism-laced early comments in these discussion threads, I cringe. I just didn’t appreciate the historical significance of these pieces and how they might have influenced later electronic music that I do enjoy, like Kraftwerk say.

Then in Angharad Davis’s Music Colloquium Series talk on George Antheil’s Ballet Mécanique, when she played a snippet of the work I heard sounds reminiscent of musique concrète. Sure enough, they were roughly contemporaneous, and Antheil had been living in Paris at the time musique concrète was just getting started. You never know when something you study in one arena will pop up elsewhere.

Another thing I’ve learned in this subject is about taking creative risks and learning to follow my gut instincts without worrying whether a concept will work, or other people will like it. This has been an opportunity for me to explore that. My Formative Skills Assignment piece Foster le Concrète was in part a reaction to my frustration at the lack of discernible rhythm in some of the early pieces we studied. However, I really didn’t know whether the concept was going to work, and that was a little anxiety-inducing; especially given that I was doing it for an assignment which would be graded. I was quite touched to hear other students say they liked the end result, and I feel more confident about following my gut instincts in future and seeing what I end up.

Finally, I’ve been really inspired by the creativity of the other students in this subject. It’s been a weird experience studying online this year without ever meeting them in person, but I’ve really enjoyed hearing the creative works everyone came up with. They’re all so distinctive and amazingly different, it’s incredible; yet they were all products of the same brief. I can’t wait to hear everyone's works on the radio, TV, movies, video games, Spotify, or whatever audio technology is around when we all graduate: live streaming direct to our neurons perhaps?

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lizabethstucker · 3 years

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Some of the Best from Tor.com 2019 Edition

This was a free collection on Amazon at the time that I stumbled across it while browsing science fiction selections. While I’ve always liked both Tor and Baen publications, I was amazed by how very much I enjoyed almost every short story and novella in this collection. Such high quality, and some authors that have been added to my TBR list. 4.5 out of 5.

CURRENTLY FREE ON AMAZON AS OF THE DATE OF THIS POSTING!

“Deriving Life” by Elizabeth Bear

Marq Tames is contemplating suicide or becoming a Host, unable to cope with being alone again after their spouse dies. Tenants bring many benefits, including being pain-free, living a bit longer, making better decisions for themselves. Unfortunately the Tenants ultimately consume their Hosts. Unlike most potential Hosts, Marq is healthy. Wow. A really detailed look at grief, cancer, loneliness, and the choices we might make for happiness. Intense. Could be triggering for some who are themselves dealing with grief. 4.5 out of 5.

“For He Can Creep” by Siobhan Carroll

The Great Jeoffry the Cat helps keep the demons away from the humans in the madhouse. His favorite is the Poet who is trying to finish the most important Poem for God. If only his creditors would leave him alone, stop pushing for the satiric content he once wrote. Then Satan himself comes to speak with Jeoffry. Satan deems the Poem to be out of favor style-wise, and not very good. He wishes to have the Poet write him a poem, one that will drive religion out of the minds of the masses. To do that, he needs to speak with the Poet without Jeoffry’s interference. It is, as they say, a devil’s bargain. Jeoffry may, for the first time since kittenhood, lose. He must consider and consult. The fact that this is based on a real poem written by Christopher Smart, who was incarcerated in St. Luke’s Hospital for Lunatics, circa 1763, adds an extra layer of interest and curiosity to the story. Needless to say, I spent the evening researching the poet online. 3.5 out of 5.

“Beyond the El” by John Chu

Connor struggles to recreate his late mother's dumplings, never quite reaching that bit of perfection. He really doesn't need the stress of his cold abusive sister back in his life. Although maybe he does. Very low key. The relationship between Nick and Connor was more interesting to me. As to the use of magic to prepare foods, was it really necessary? 3 out of 5.

“Zeitgeber” by Greg Egan

Sam is searching for why his daughter Emma's sleep patterns are suddenly and radically off phase. It isn't long until this issue with sleep cycles begin spreading throughout the world. At first it was just puzzling and annoying. Now there are more and more accidents and deaths. Life moves on, people adjusting as best it can, with cures both fake and possible appearing.

Truly fantastic tale. Scary as well, especially considering how we are waiting for a cure for COVID-19 with trepidation and distrust of the very organizations, such as the CDC and FDA, that are supposed to protect us. Add on top the discussion of just how much conformity society demands of us. 4 out of 5.

“One/Zero” by Kathleen Ann Gorrnan

The war made its way to Vida Zilan's home in Kurdistan, ending with her parents, aunt, and grandmother dead. Now Vida is on the run with her three year old brother, traveling with other terrified and displaced children. Mai Davidson has retired in Washington D.C. after years of helping with various issues through the agency she had given her life to, until her husband died and she began to look for something different. Her life is becoming increasingly regulated as the AIs begin taking control of medicine and senior care and transportation, among other things. Or are the SIs, the rumored super intelligent computers now moving out into the world? Be careful what you wish for has always been what is said in regards to those who can grant wishes. Perhaps with the right teachers, the right guides, the SIs can help fix the world for the children, with the assistance of the children. If only, if only. Magnificent look at how Hal might not be the villain of the piece. After all, he just wanted to save both himself and his astronaut charges. 4.5 out of 5.

“Skinner Box” by Carole Johnstone

A trip to Jupiter and back, scientists caught up in their personal cycle of pain and hatred, an engineer who brings some comfort and support. And a Skinner box filled with nanites. There are layers upon layers upon layers in this intense story of experimentation and conditioning, the cost of freedom and, ultimately, love. In essence, there are three reveals. The first was expected almost from the start. The second was almost suspected after we met Boris. But it was the third that, for me, saved the story from the coldness. 3.5 out of 5.

“The Song” by Erinn L. Kemper

The world is moving from beef to whale meat, expensive as it is, taking abandoned oil rigs and converting them to whale meat processing centers. As the ecowarriors grow increasingly violent, killing those involved in killing the whales, the people on SeaRanch 18 are stranded without relief personnel. One of the last new scientists to arrive is Suzanne who is staying the changes in communication patterns among the whales. She tells Dan, a deep sea diver and welder, of attacks by the whales, how humpbacks and blues were congregating for the first time ever seen and apparently communicating. Whales and dolphins are so very intelligent, yet humans think they can do whatever they want to them. I don’t understand. Needless to say, I was primed for this story. I thought I was prepared, even hopeful. But the ending was beyond tragic. 4 out of 5.

“Articulated Restraint” by Mary Robinette Kowal

(Lady Astronaut 1.5) After an accident leads to a lunar rocket slammed into a space station and the airlock jammed, the moon’s astronauts must figure out how to rescue them before their air runs out. First, they’ll need a plan of action and see if the plan can work on their mockup rocket. They need a way to get them more oxygen and a way to get a life raft to the vehicle. Complicating procedures is Ruby’s nasty ankle sprain, especially after she needs the foot restraint which requires her to twist her feet to get into position. Something snaps, but she perseveres, unwilling to let her injury prevent the rescue of her friends. In some ways this reminds me of old time science fiction, a neat adventure with threads of backstories I want to know more about, such as the Meteor and what’s going on back on Earth. Luckily I discovered that this is part of a series, so there is a possibility of learning more. Although I have a few other of Kowal’s works in my TBR pile (freebies back in the day), I hadn’t as yet read any of her works. Definitely want to read more based on what I found here. 4.5 out of 5.

“Painless” by Rich Larson

Mars is a child when he is first found by the men who have been searching for someone like him, a genetic mutation who cannot feel pain. There’s an organism put inside his body, that can make him stronger and able to repair himself, even grow body parts back. He is trained to be a soldier, a mercenary, a killer. He yearns for freedom and someone to be his friend and family. The story jumps a bit from present to past and back again. It took me a while to get into the author’s rhythm, but once I did it was well worth it. I can see so many countries and organizations who would kill to have someone like Mars under their control. Good read. 3.5 out of 5.

“Seonag and the Seawolves” by M. Evan MacGriogair

Seonag was considered strange almost from the moment she was born, but she still loved her homeland. So much so that she hides when her parents make plans to sail to Canada, unable to afford the croft rent. Once they leave her behind, Seonag goes to the town bard for help and advice. She is told about the wolves that were driven out of Ireland. He tells her to swim west until she can hear the wolves. The advice is cruel, certain suicide. Knowing all that, Seonag still decides to do so. An old style story, a myth, a fable, a fairy tale. A story about those who only want to belong, yet are different enough to be pushed to the sidelines. Mystical and magical. 4 out of 5.

“Any Way the Wind Blows” by Seanan McGuire

The Cartography Corps explore and map the parallel universes in order to determine if any ever go missing at a future date. In this Manhattan, they find an intact Flatiron building, but no killer pigeons in this universe, so win-win. Then a group of locals ask to meet the Captain. This should be a television series! I’d watch each and every episode and cackle at the crew’s adventures. The only thing I was disappointed by was the length. It was too short. 4.5 out of 5.

“Blue Morphos in the Garden” by Lis Mitchell

Vivian does love Dash and Lily, their daughter, but she continues to refuse to marry him, unable to deal with what his family goes through upon death. If she officially marries into the family, she will become a Karner in all ways. When it appears that Viv may be dying, she will need to make a decision sooner than she had hoped. Stay, but remain a terminal. Marry and, once she dies, become something else. Leave, with or without Dash and Lily. There's a beauty to having one's death transform into something useful or beautiful or both. Frankly, I don't understand Vivian's concerns about that. 4 out of 5.

“His Footsteps, Through Darkness and Light” by Mimi Mondal

Love comes in many forms, some never spoken out loud. Binu had found a home and a job with the Majestic Oriental Circus. He became a trapeze master, soon heading his own team. He also continued playing Alladin in Shehzad Marid’s illusionist act. He was happy and content. Until he helped the wrong person. There is so much hinted at and more left unsaid. But it will always be known that Binu was a good man and a loyal friend. Bittersweet, yet in that time and place, perhaps the happiest ending(?) one could hope for. 4 out of 5.

“Old Media” by Annalee Newitz

John was as free as he had ever been under his latest Master, a lady scientist who provided him franchise papers that granted him full rights within the city before she went into hiding. Med, a fan of John's journal on Memeland, becomes his friend and roommate. She is also a robot and professor, as well as the lady scientist's research partner in the project that caused the woman to flee. John and Med try to navigate the idiosyncrasies of living among humans, both clueless and bigoted. 3.5 out of 5.

“More Real Than Him” by Silvia Park

Morgan Ito is working on her own robot, one that resembles her favorite actor who is currently doing his two years of military service. This is the first story in the collection that I struggled with. Frankly, it read like bad fanfiction, and I'm a fanfiction reader and writer. I didn't like any characters except Stephen, but he was barely in the story. I finally gave up, not caring what would happen to pretty much anyone. DNF

“The Hundredth House Had No Walls” by Laurie Penny

The King of the country of Myth and Shadow is incredibly bored after five hundred years on the throne. He does what any ruler does in his situation, he decides to travel incognito to the imaginary land of New York City. There he runs into the Princess of Everywhere and Nowhere.

I had a hard time at first dealing with random phrases, words, and letters made bold. This was a strange story. Once I got past the random bolds, I quite liked it. Feminist overtones with a message about freedom and allowing each individual to write their own story. 3.5 out of 5.

“The Touches” by Brenda Peynado

Life is separated into clean and dirty. Clean was living virtually, locked into a tiny cubicle from birth, cared for by an assigned robot, and hooked up to an all-encompassing system for hours at a time. Dirty is the real world, filled with plagues and viruses and what the narrator calls filth. Things get more complicated as robots glitch, an accident puts the narrator into quarantine, and a phone number leads to something scary. There's a layer of disconnection due to a lack of physical contact that cannot be fulfilled by robot hugs and virtual touches. Add to that the narrator's extreme fear of the dirty world. She actually has counted the number of real physical touches in her life. Very intense, more so during our current Pandemic and the separation of friends and family. Also extremely weird. I don't know what to say about this one, but I suspect it will linger in my memory for quite a while. 3.5 out of 5.

“Knowledgeable Creatures” by Christopher Rowe

Investigative dog Connolly Marsh is hired by human Professor Thomasina Swallow after she kills a coworker who was threatening blackmail. Things become increasingly screwy. The body is missing, the learned mouse who is also Sparrow's adopted father believes historical research into the history of knowledgeable creatures and humans shouldn't be forbidden, and Marsh can't make himself leave the case alone. Huh. Another strange story with a lot of dangling threads left behind and even more questions. Yet this isn't a set-up for a longer story or even a series. It is complete within itself, with a somewhat sad ending for one character. Intriguing, almost a noir type of story. Fantasy with just a touch of science fiction. 3 out of 5.

“Blood is Another Word for Hunger” by Rivers Solomon

Anger boiled in the heart of fifteen year old slave, Sully. When she heard that her master had been killed during a battle, she drugged all five of his family members, slicing their throats. Her actions cause a rift in the etherworld, drawing Ziza to her. Sully is a product of her life, the cruelty of her upbringing. She may also hark back to a creature from the country of her ancestors. Sully shouldn’t be a sympathetic character, but she is. I wanted her to find, if not happiness, at least a form of peach. And maybe she will with her revenants, especially Ziza. Be aware that this isn’t an easy read by any means, but I found it surprisingly satisfying. 4.5 out of 5.

“The Last Voyage of Shidbladnir” by Karin Tidbeck

Saga learns the ship she serves on is a living creature who is outgrowing her shell of a high-rise building. Saga and Novik, the engineer, are determined to save Skidbladnir from being sold for meat. She needs a new shell, so they'll find her a new shell. This gripped me the moment I realized Skidbladnir was alive. I'm a sucker for stories like this. So enchanting. I wish it had been longer or had a sequel, but that is just me being greedy and not wanting to leave Saga, Novik, and Skidbladnir behind. Lovely from start to finish. 4.5 out of 5.

“Circus Girl, the Hunter, and Mirror Boy” by JY Yang

Lynette first saw Mirror Boy the night she was almost killed after fighting off a rapist when she was barely 16 years old. After she survived, Lynette found a friend to unload her pain, her disappointments, and her dreams to the boy who appeared in place of her own reflection. Once she left the circus she had grown up in and worked for, Lynette had never seen him again. Until now. The boy is worried that a serial killer is after her. A perfect story for the month of October, with a wraith, a witch, and a supernatural hunter who made assumptions that led to so many innocent deaths. An ending that, while I guess it might be coming, was also so satisfying. 4 out of 5

“Water: A History by K. J. Kabza

The surveyors badly judged how compatible the colony of Isla would be for the humans who left Earth on a one-way trip there. The colonists adjusted, but being outside too long led to cancer deaths during the early years. Marie, in her 50s, is now the last person who has direct memories of Earth. She has been extraordinarily lucky in that her frequent trips outside hadn’t led to an early death. A younger colonist, born on Isla, longs to go outside as well. She wants to smell the planet’s dirt and feel the breeze on her face. Lian finds a friend and support in Marie. But no one can expect the good times will last forever. Deeply emotional and tragic, yet somewhat hopeful as well. Yet the story needed more depth, more content. Good, but not as good as many of the others in this collection, in my opinion. 3 out of 5.

“As the Last I May Know” by S. L. Huang

Nyma was just ten years old when she was selected to be the Carrier. In order to impress the consequences of using seres on another country, the Order choses to hide the codes in the body of a child. To obtain access, the President must personally kill the child Carrier and rip her heart open. AS the enemy forces draw ever deeper into the country, Nyma waits. Oh, this one was gut-wrenching. Seriously gut-wrenching. And yet, the logic behind the Order's idea was extremely logical. Force the President to basically live with the child he must kill to get access to the seres that will kill millions, make it real. And Otto Han is disgusted by the Order, but it is what it is. Again, the idea makes sense, but that doesn't mean that it isn't horrifying. Not to mention torturous for the child who must live with the idea that they can be killed at almost anytime in order to kill millions of other people. 4.5 out of 5.

“The Time Invariance of Snow” by E. Lily Yu

When the Devil's mirror splinters, it enters the hearts and minds of mankind, spreading hate and violence despair and depression. G and K are in love, but G is wary of the violence of men. When K makes a comment on how he would kill her, she protests his cruelty. He leaves. Despite knowing how the story will end, G goes on a quest to save him from the Snow Queen.

A subversion of fairy tales and a treatise on both them and the treatment of women. I have to admit that I was annoyed by the use of footnotes in this fictional short story. I barely tolerate them in non-fiction books. That said, as I struggled on, once G and K came onto the scene it became an easier read. I think I would've enjoyed this more if it had been expanded. My least favorite in the collection, but still worth reading. 3 out of 5.

#book review #Some of the Best from Tor.com 2019 Edition #science fiction #fantasy #collection

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