#please Susanne collins

[ashyblondwaves]

What I wouldn’t give to have The Hunger Games in Peeta’s POV.

#the hunger games #peeta mellark #katniss and peeta #everlark #I was talking about this the other day #and now my need for it has returned #please Susanne collins #readers don��t want snow’s pov #we want peeta’s #we just want peeta #gimmie

[angel-maybe-alive]

I love the irony of an author making a cautionary tale like "don't you think it's fucked up when society do thing" and then society goes anf just proves their point

Like when Nabokov wrote a book about how a criminal used flowery language to romanticize his crime trying to justify the monstrosity he committed then society went like actually a younger girl being loved so much by an older men is both hot and aesthetic pleasing

Or how Susanne Collins wrote about the horrors of making a spectacle of the murder of children and how Hollywood exploits the young only for people online to be begging for her to write more books about the children getting slaughtered

It's so tragic and so telling I just love it

#the hunger games #lolita #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #people will fall face first in the point #and still miss it #oh i love this so much #its the type of irony of cassandra

[mynameisnotbath]

susanne collins is so genius for so many reasons but one i love is how every tribute in lucy greys games has a tribute which is similar in the 74th game

thresh and reaper

rue and wovey

cato and the red head who asked "please don't let me of killed them for nothing"

lucy and peeta

the bot who had to guard the water anc the food guard in 74

#hunger games #she's a genius #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #peeta mellark

[dollarbin]

Dollar Bin #8:

Judy Collins' Fifth Album

Judy Collins had it rough.

Like just about everyone else in history, her songwriting could never compare with that of Joni Mitchell, Sandy Denny or Leonard Cohen; rather she introduced the world to those artists by covering Clouds, Who Knows Where the Time Goes and Susanne. Nearly 60 years later we're more than content to listen to Joni, Sandy and Leonard's own versions and forget all about poor Judy.

And her version of Amazing Grace is nice, sure, but comparing her take to Aretha Franklin's is as silly as comparing my writing to that of my famous brother.

And no matter how many times she posed in the nude with odd, defiant joy Collins could never compete in the looks department with Linda Ronstadt. Who could? All Linda had to do was put on a Porky Pig tank top.

Collins couldn't even win the boyfriend war. Joan Baez claimed Bob Dylan long before his ship came in, so Collins had to shack up with none other than our forever nemesis Stephen Stills, her sweet blue eyes serving as the muse for one of his only good songs before he wandered off to forever suck.

So it's no wonder that the Dollar Bin is chock full of Judy Collins.

(Please note that I bought my copy for a mere 91 cents. And that was in the last year. After noting this, please join me in praise of the God of the Dollar Bin, from whom all blessings flow.)

Anyway, don't be fooled when you see Judy's Fifth Album lodged between Captain & Tennille's corpulent dogs and CS&N's schooner of certain destruction. Snap Fifth Album up; it's awesome.

So let's drop the needle!

Collins' spent her first four albums stuck in the Hootenanny Spin Cycle, producing an album every 6 months full of churning, seasick guitar work and strident, declarative singing. Baez's sound at the time is similar; like stage actors 25 years earlier who couldn't adjust to film's close ups, early 60's folk singers, Dylan excepted, all belt to the back row when in the studio. It's as if they are unsure how exactly this new fangeled thing called "amplification" works.

But with Fifth Album, recorded in 1965, Collins achieves comfort and ease before the microphone, setting the stage for every studio singer who's come since; she sings to us rather than at us, and every moment is wonderful.

Let's start with Thirsty Boots. I always wondered why Dylan covered the song, pretty terribly, for Self Portrait. Now I know. Bob wanted to sound like Judy.

Equally great is her take on Mr. Tambourine Man. There's a lot to say about the track; here it is if you'd like to listen while I ramble.

Dylan's original hit the street in March 65; the Byrds altered the world's axis with their cover a month later. Collins' version didn't come out until the next Fall but it's unclear when she actually recorded the song.

Without any proof, I'd argue that she laid her take down that same Spring. After all, she doesn't sing the song as if it's a Dylan or Byrds cover. Instead, it sounds like she heard Bob sing the song in her apartment one night, demanded the lyrics, then went into the studio and owned it on her own terms the next day.

Sure, Roger McGuinn, who'd served as a mediocre player and arranger for Collins on her previous studio record, invented that iconic 12 electric string sound. Sure, Dylan knew his way around a six string. But Collins straight up shreds on the guitar; no one else is playing for her here. Had she been born 20 or 30 years later and not been shackled by 60's and 70's sexism, it's easy to imagine Judy showing Kim Deal, Kristin Hersh, PJ Harvey and all the boygeniuses who followed how to rock.

There's a lot more to this record. Collins' does her trademark thing yet again, introducing the world to Gordon Lightfoot via her cover of Early Morning Rain. Yes, I know, Ian and Sylvia put out their version a month earlier. But who wants to listen to them when we could listen to Judy?

A year or so later she'd take her talent agent shtick to a whole other level by famously talking Leonard Cohen out of his reticence to even get on stage. Collins knew talent when she heard it, long before others. That's why she relegated Stills to bass in her band in the late 60's and never covered one of his crummy songs.

Let's end with perhaps the most obscure track on the record, The Coming of the Roads. I keep a list in my wallet of previously unknown-to-me artists to seek out whenever I'm deep in the Dollar Bin. Because of Collins' cover of this song, Billy Edd Wheeler is currently underlined on that list.

Dear friends, I hope you are all well. Thank you for reading. I hope your next hunt through the Dollar Bin turns up something half as beautiful as this track.

#judy collins #bob dylan #the byrds #mr tamborine man #stephen stills still sucks #sandy denny #leonard cohen #gordon lightfoot #Youtube #linda ronstadt

[nebris]

Happy Birthday, Jacqueline Susann!

Jacqueline Susann was born Jacqueline Susan(n) in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, on August 20, 1918. (“Her mother, Rose, a fastidious schoolteacher, added a second n to the Sephardic Jewish family name, while her father, Robert, a philandering portrait artist, retained the original spelling,” writes Amy Fine Collins.) Obsessed with the film industry—and more specifically, with celebrity—from a young age, she moved to New York City when she was 17 to become a famous actress.

She never would—though she would manage to land quite a few roles, not to mention a press agent for a husband—but instead would become one of the best-selling authors of all time (with one of the most iconic styles to boot). Around 1954, as Collins writes, Susann adopted a poodle, named her Josephine, and became so obsessed that there was really nothing to do but take a hiatus from acting to write a book about her. She landed an agent (Annie Laurie Williams, who also represented John Steinbeck and Harper Lee, no big deal), and sold the book (Every Night, Josephine!), which was published in November 1963. But by then, she was already working on the book that would cement her legacy: Valley of the Dolls.

“Along comes a huge manuscript,” Susann’s publisher Berney Geis told Collins. “I turned it over to my editorial staff. They marched into my office and begged, ‘Please, don’t publish this book. It’s literary trash.’” So Geis took the book home and showed it to his wife, Darlene. Halfway through it, Geis told Collins, his wife “turned to me and said, ‘I feel like I picked up the phone and I was listening in on a conversation of women talking about how their husbands are in bed. Who would hang up on a conversation like that?’”

“It was a big mess of a book,” Susann’s editor Don Preston told Collins. “A cheap soap opera—not a book anyone with any brain cells could take seriously.”

But of course, when it was published in February of 1966, the big cheap mess absolutely flew off the shelves. In 1974, it was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records as the most popular novel of all time—with 14,800,000 copies sold. It’s sold millions more since then, despite a slew of less-than-glowing reviews.

And why not? “I mean, it had everything,” writes Stephen Rebello. “It was everything. Boozers! Pill-heads! Lesbians! Sex! Heartbreak! More sex! Homosexuals! Catfights! Incurable diseases! Wig snatching! Handsome caddish and spineless wonders! Still more heartbreak! Still more sex! . . . No wonder Valley of the Dolls became a straight-up pop cultural phenom, the most talked-about, record-breaking bestseller of its era. The book was terrible, irresistible, hokey, hot, and, in its way, transgressive.” No wonder we’re still talking about it—and re-reading it—all these years later.

[iambecomeyourvillain]

I decided to make an about me post deal with it:

19.

Name [nickname]: people call me jes i don't have control over it anymore (my mutuals decided it don't blame me even though I thoroughly enjoy it)

pronouns: she/her

birthday? are you nosy like me? here: 13th October.

other Social media:

Instagram - @iambecomeyourvillain

Spotify? idk - here's a link

Fandoms:

Books (i keep forgetting to update actually):

series -

The Grishaverse Trilogy - Leigh Bardugo

All for the game - Nora Sakavic

The Sunshine Court - Nora Sakavic

Six of Crows Duology - Leigh Bardugo

Marauders

The Raven Cycle - Maggie Stiefvater

Percy Jackson & the Olympians - Rick Riordan

Heroes of Olympus - Rock Riordan

The Folk of the Air - Holly Black (READ IT READ IT READ IT)

The Infernal Devices - Cassandra Clare

These Violent Delights (not the sequel) - Chloe Gong

Red Queen (though I haven't finished it yet) - Victoria Aveyard

Carry On - Rainbow Rowell

Villains duology - V. E. Schwab (unfinished)

The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins

Divergent - Veronica Roth

Harry Potter - that bitch of a woman

Royally Series - Emma Chase

Heartstopper - Alice Oseman

Throne of Glass - Sarah J. Maas

Crescent City - Sarah J. Maas

The Zodiac Academy - Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti (unfinished)

The Off-Campus series. (unfinished) - Elle Kennedy

someone find me the motivation to finish reading LOTR pLEASE

(sone of the) Standalones that I've read-

Red, White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston [READ IT READ IT READ IT]

The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller

Circe - Madeline Miller

The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern

The Starless Sea - Erin Morgenstern (if you mention it to me I'll die i love it so much)

The Hating Game - Sally Thorne

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid (ouCh)

Ugly Love - Colleen Hoover (just.why)

Reminders Of Him - Colleen Hoover (the only good book this author ever wrote)

We Were Liars - E. Lockhart (WHY THE PAIN)

The Spanish Love Deception - Elena Armas (i'm sorry to myself for putting me through that)

The Love Hypothesis - Ali Hazelwood (*sigh*)

All the Bright Places- Jennifer Niven (fuckfuckfuck)

Books by Sophia Bennett (Love Song, The Look, You Don't Know Me)

Fangirl - Rainbow Rowell

On the Come up - Angie Thomas (it's sO GOOD READ IT)

The Sun is also a Star - Nicola Yoon

The Fault in our Stars - John Green

Turtle all the way down - John Green (unpopular opinion? this is better than tfios)

Tv series (i don't watch much unless I start binging randomly and finish the whole thing within a day or two)

The Vampire Diaries

The Originals

Brooklyn Nine Nine

Young Royals

Riverdale (unfinished)

Stranger Things

Girl Meets World

Lucifer (unfinished)

Supernatural (also unfinished)

[there's probably more than I'm forgetting]

Side blogs:

@iambecomeindecisive for shitposting (which I do on main anyway)

@sankt-milo which is treated like the GV's Milo blog

@too-close-to-helios [photography blog]

@jesper-hendriks [where I'm @crowtube's jesper as well]

@darling-fucking-god which is basically my dedication to the King and Queen of Elfhame

@minyards-junkie - i did it. aftg side blog. help

there's more that i don't even remember the names of

important crazy shit that's gone down on this blog

my playlists

#i guess that's it???? #what else should this include-? #bio post

[thesmutgoddess]

please give book recs

Honestly I just have basic ig girl taste! I like Eve Babitz and Joyce Carol Oates. I love trashy glitz novels. One of my faves is Queenie by Michael Korda. Jacquline Susann and Jackie Collins are my inspirations. Elaine Dundy is underrated.

[atinyrabbit]

love/hate songs

Since 8tracks is messed up and playmoss is gonna disappear and Spotify doesn't have many songs, I’m posting some of my playlists here. This is a list of songs about love/hate relationships for pairings. Enemies to lovers, tsundere personalities, hero/villain couplings, opposites attract, loving someone you know you shouldn't. This list is several years old so the songs are older and kinda ‘scene.’

Major trigger warnings for the lyrics of these songs. Some songs have violent lyrics. This playlist romanticizes conflict.

Song list under read more:

Love to Hate You - Erasure Nicotine - Panic! at the Disco Don't Let It Go To Your Head - Fefe Dobson Your Love Will Kill Me - Daniel Lavoie Bruises and Bitemarks (Remix) - Good With Grenades October & April - The Rasmus feat. Anette Olzon Violator - Son of Rust Sick Amore - El Creepo Disgusting - Ke$ha Dangerous - Depeche Mode Oleander - Mother Mother Fear & Delight - The Correspondents Love is a Suicide - Natalia Kills Sex as a Weapon - Pat Benatar I'd Love To Kill You - Katie Melua Before I Ever Met You - Banks Rent - Pet Shop Boys Helpless When She Smiles - Backstreet Boys Holy - Zolita Strangelove - Depeche Mode I Won't Say (I'm In Love) - Susan Egan Can't Feel My Face - The Weeknd Only You - Ellie Goulding Devil Devil - Milck Livin' In A World Without You - The Rasmus  

Hate Love - Adelitas Way Suddenly - Peter Heppner Sick and Twisted Affair - My Darkest Days Radioactive Mirrors - Amazinglyjon Dangerous - Cascada Violence (Club Mix) - Grimes & i_o This Is Love - Air Traffic Controller Make Hate To Me - Citizen Soldier Gently Break It - Beck Pete Portrait of a Female - Cruel Youth This Could Be Love - Alkaline Trio Lie, Lie, Lie - Myra You Give Love a Bad Name - Bon Jovi I Only Wanna Be With You - Volbeat Maybe You're Not the Worst Thing Ever - Cast of Galavant I've Got You Under My Skin - Seether Human - Oh Land Le Bien Qui Fait Mal - Mozart, L'Opera Rock Can't Help Falling In Love [Light x Dark Remix] - feat. Brooke Tommee Profitt Fell For You - Green Day Stupid Grin - Dragonette Broken - Lauren Hoffman Take Me to Church - Hozier Super Psycho Love - Simon Curtis Whip - Mr.Kitty   Get You Off - Fefe Dobson Crazy Girl - Ke$ha Vice - POP ETC Cannibal - Silversun Pickups Rest in Peace - Original Cast of Buffy The Vampire Slayer Hem of Your Garment - Cake Tear You Apart - She Wants Revenge Truth Or Dare - Marianas Trench We Sink - CHVRCHES Gingerbread Man - Melanie Martinez You Stupid Girl - Framing Hanley   Die For You - Red F*cking Boyfriend - The Bird & The Bee Mean - Nicole Dollanganger Must Be Crazy for Me - Melissa Etheridge That Girl - Alexz Johnson FMLYHM - Seether Bad Romance - Halestorm Aquarius - Within Temptation Flirt (With Me) - Zeromancer I'm With Stupid - Pet Shop Boys Stop This Song (Love Sick Melody) - Paramore Trying Not To Love You - Nickelback Kill for You - Zolita A Love Like War - All Time Low You Need Me - SWANS Hatef--k - The Bravery Bottled Affection - Cold War Kids True Love - ThouShaltNot Terrible Thing - Ag I Can't Decide - Scissor Sisters Exit Wounds - The Romanovs Gun - Chvrches Every Breath You Take - Chase Holfelder Whole Lotta Love - Smash Mouth Bloodsport - Sneaker Pimps XXX - Imran-C Bitter Rivals - Sleigh Bells Destruction Of Us - Mr.Kitty Teeth - 5 Seconds of Summer Love Me Dead - Ludo Paralyzed - The Used River - Bishop Briggs Neon - VERSA Sucker For Pain - Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa & Imagine Dragons I'm Your Villain - Franz Ferdinand Beautiful Monster - Ne-Yo I Own You - Birgit Let Me Be Your Armor - ASSEMBLAGE 23 Perfect Enemy - t.A.T.u. Straight for the Knife - Sia One More Night - Maroon 5 I Hate You (Don't Leave Me) - Ke$ha The Moth - Aimee Mann Mad Love - The Veronicas Toxic (Acoustic Britney Spears Cover) - Johnny Goth Bad Intentions - Digital Daggers Shut Up - Nick Lachey Soldier - Bitter Ruin First Bad Habit - Vanessa Hudgens In The Darkness - Dead By Sunrise Tearin' Up My Heart - *NSYNC You'll Be Back - Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton & Jonathan Groff Crazy In A Good Way - VERIDIA Combat Baby - Metric In Bluebeard's Castle - Unwoman When Doves Cry - Prince State of Seduction - Digital Daggers Whataya Want From Me - Adam Lambert Broken Inside - Broken Iris Murder (feat. Minx, Chilled) - Boyinaband Why Do You Love Me - Charlotte Lawrence Follow You Home - Nickelback Love To See You Cry - Enrique Iglesias Impressed - Natalie Imbruglia Die For You - Megan McCauley Your Kind (Speak to Me) - Danger Radio Tyrant - The Bravery Violent Games - Polica Toxicated Love - NEO Nemeses (feat. John Roderick) - Jonathan Coulton Miserable - Lit Running From My Shadow - The Velvet Teaparty Barricade - Stars Trouble (Stripped) - Halsey Brutal Hearts - Bedouin Soundclash Desire - Meg Myers Sticks And Stones - The Pierces Just the Girl - The Click Five Himerus and Eros - The Spill Canvas Blood - In This Moment I'm Insane - Myah Marie Fiction (Dreams In Digital) - Orgy Whore - In This Moment Monster - Ryan Adames Foundations - Kate Nash Only When I Lose Myself - Depeche Mode Hatchet - Archive The Beginning of the Twist - The Futureheads Change - Deftones Trust Me - Marc Senter Love Me Hate Kiss Me Kill Me (Scndl Remix) - Fukkk Offf Big Bad Handsome Man - Imelda May The Mighty Fall - Fall Out Boy My Obsession - Cinema Bizarre Stitches - Orgy Miss Kiss Kiss Bang - Alex Swings Oscar Sings! Sweet Dreams - Beyonce Fuel To The Fire - The Maine Closer (Nine Inch Nails Cover) - Niki Barr Band Clueless - Orla Gartland Devil Woman - Cliff Richard Hatefuck - Motionless In White I Love You But I Don’t Like You - Molly Moore Overpower Thee - AUF dER MAUR Get Down On Your Knees And Tell Me You Love Me - All Time Low Post Blue - Placebo Genghis Khan - Miike Snow Poison - Alice Cooper I Know I'm A Wolf - Young Heretics Little Toy Gun - honeyhoney I Miss the Misery - Halestorm Dirty Sticky Floors (radio mix) - Dave Gahan Clarity - Zedd I Get A Kick Out Of You - Frank Sinatra I Hate Myself for Loving You - Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Die for You - Otherwise Labyrinth - Oomph! Black Black Heart - David Usher I Want to Destroy Something Beautiful - Josh Woodward I'm a Priest - Daniel Lavoie You Need Me - SWANS Afraid of the Dark - Phildel Virus - Ryan Adames I Wanna Be Your Dog (remix) - Emilie Simon Hello Goodbye - The Beatles Sarcasm (Album Version) - Get Scared Use Me - Hinder Poison & Wine - The Civil Wars Pretty When You Cry - VAST Tainted Love - Soft Cell Scream - Avenged Sevenfold Think About It - Danger Radio Gallery Piece - Of Montreal Bang Bang Bang Bang - Sohodolls Little Girls - Say Anything I Hate Everything About You - Three Days Grace Love Runs Out - OneRepublic Disarm - Smashing Pumpkins Hit Me Like a Man - The Pretty Reckless Bang Bang (feat. Adam Levine) - K'naan Hurts So Good - John Mellencamp Addicted - Kelly Clarkson Whiplash - FEMM Paralyzer - Finger Eleven Crime - Temposhark Misery Loves Company - Emilie Autumn It Was Good for You Too - Marian Call Price Of Company - The White Tie Affair Burn! - Kobra And The Lotus I Love My Lawyer - Ofelia K I Want Blood - empires (I Always Kill) The Things I Love (ft. The Real Tuesday Weld) - Claudia Brucken Misery (Cutmore Radio) - Maroon 5 Fire and Ice - Pat Benatar I Lust You - Neon Neon Pistol Whipped - Marilyn Manson Bitches Brew - Crosses A Formidable Marinade - Mikelangelo And The Black Sea Gentlemen Control - Puddle of Mudd Scary Love - Skye Sweetnam Loveyouhateyou - Sad Robot Untangle Me - Snow Ghosts A Little Taste - Skyler Stonestreet E.V.O.L - Marina and the Diamonds   (You're the) Devil in Disguise - Elvis Presley Shut Up & Kiss - Me Orianthi Cool for Chaos - Nostalghia Oyeme - Enrique Iglesias I Hate You - Sick Puppies GirlShapedLoveDrug - Gomez You Only Tell Me You Love Me When You're Drunk - Pet Shop Boys Need You Like A Drug - Zeromancer Werewolf - Cat Power Bathwater - No Doubt Bad Dog - Neon Hitch Guns And Horses - Ellie Goulding Rev 22-20 - Puscifer Won't You Please Be Nice - Nellie McKay The Perfect Drug - Nine Inch Nails Until The Day I Die - Story of the Year Womanizer - Britney Spears Build Me Up Buttercup - The Foundations I Think I Love You David Cassidy Stalkers - Mindless Self Indulgence   Kill Me Every Time - Blue Stahli Preface - FKA twigs Every You Every Me - Placebo Want - Disturbed Spit It Out - IAMX Destroy Me - Mr Kitty My Sweet Prince - Placebo Psycho - Imelda May Monster - Meg Myers Figured You Out - Nickelback Suffocated Love - Tricky Satisfy Me One More Time - Frank Sinatra This Love - Maroon 5 Miss Jackson (feat. Lolo) - Panic! At The Disco Fire and Ice - Pat Benatar Every Other Time Lyte - Funky Ones How Do You Love Someone - Ashley Tisdale Poison - Gin Wigmore Bitter and Sick - One Two The Outsider - Marina & the Diamonds True Love (feat Lily Rose Cooper) - Pink Bad Boy - Cascada Irresistible - Temposhark Painkiller - The Queenstons Born to Die / Russian Roulette - Amazinglyjon Like Sugar - Matchbox Twenty Mad About You - Hooverphonic Stupify - Disturbed Problems - Mother Mother What Is Love - Haddaway Animal - The Cab Marionette - Antonia I Hate You But I Love You - Russian Red Carve A Name - Mother Mother Criminal - Britney Spears Danger - Hilary Duff Fell in Love w/an Android - Simon Curtis Demon Lover - Róisín Murphy Always - Saliva Too Close - Alex Clare Little of Your Time - Maroon 5 Sex and Violence - Scissor Sisters Electric Storm - Delta Goodrem Black widow - Susanne Sundfør Dangerous Kind - Rasmus You've Really Got a Hold on Me - The Miracles Over and Over - Three Days Grace Devour - Marilyn Manson Nature of Inviting - IAMX The Odd Couple - Weezer Hurt Me Harder - Zolita Terrible Love - The National Mad Love - Jojo Boomerang - Reliant K Bad News - Sleeper Agent I Was An Island (EP Version) - Allison Weiss Rock Bottom - Hailee Steinfeld You’re the One That I Want - Lo Fang Poison - Rita Ora Kill For You - Skylar Grey ft Eminem Wouldn't Be Love - Ritual Hate Me - Nico Collins Irresistible - Fall Out Boy I Love You... I'll Kill You - Enigma

#enemies to lovers #fanmix #three days grace #simon curtis #love hate #Playlist

[fuckyeahwomenfilmdirectors]

Hi! i made the very ambitious goal of watching 180 films directed by women this year. I study and love film so i know about the big female directors like Varda, Coppola, DuVernay, but i was wondering what were some hidden gems you would recommend? Im open to all genres, eras, languages, just hoping to watch and learn a lot

Sounds like a lot of fun!

Okay, so I might double up on directors you already know because even when talking people who seem to be familiar with women film directors there are usually knowledge gaps even with directors with prominent careers who have won major awards. With the more prominent directors you can just go to imdb and go diving through their careers since they’ve done a lot of work worth seeing. For the more obscure directors I’ve highlighted some of their prominent films in parenthesis.

Prominent directors:

Kelly Reichardt, Vera Chytilová, Ann Hui, Naomi Kawase, Ildikó Enyedi, Maren Ade, Céline Sciamma, Maïwenn, Dorothy Arzner, Elaine May, Shirley Clarke, Doris Wishman, Barbara Hammer, Amy Heckerling, Lina Wertmüller, Gillian Armstrong, Margarethe von Trotta, Sally Potter, Lynne Ramsay, Andrea Arnold, Nicole Holofcener, Lucrecia Martel, Joan Micklin Silver, Susan Seidelman, Penelope Spheeris, Helma Sanders-Brahms, Larissa Shepitko, Barbara Kopple, Ida Lupino, Lone Scherfig, Tamara Jenkins, Mia Hansen-Løve, Allison Anders, Catherine Corsini, Anne Fontaine, Susanne Bier

More obscure choices:Cheryl Dunye (The Watermelon Woman), Maja Miloš (Clip), Claudia Weill (Girlfriends), Rama Burshtein, Cate Shortland, Sandra Goldbacher, Rebecca Zlotowski, Ronit Elkabetz (Gett), Kathleen Collins (Losing Ground), Daniela Thomas (Vazante), Reed Morano (I Think We’re Alone Now), Alice Wu (Saving Face), Eliza Hittman, Chloé Zhao, Julia Loktev (The Loneliest Planet), Wanda Jakubowska (The Last Stage), Valérie Donzelli (Declaration of War), Chloé Robichaud, Anna Muylaert (The Second Mother), María Luisa Bemberg (I, the Worst of All), Gillian Robespierre, Ana Lily Amirpour, Agnieszka Smoczynska, Aurora Guerrero

Also if you are looking for more recs I just put out my 52 favourite films of the decade list so that might be worth perusing. 

Anyway please hit me up if you need any more suggestions or even just to let me know if you loved or hated anything I recommended! Have fun!

#recs #list #ask #anon

[heysnowflake]

20 Questions Book Tag

1. How many books are too many for a series? 

Honestly, if you’re really invested in the story, the universe and the characters, you can never have enough. However, I would say that J.K. Rowling- for example- got it right with 7 books. Going from one book to the next, it didn’t feel dragged out at all. I mean my favourite trilogy of all time, The Dark Elements trilogy, whilst I was left wanting more, I also felt that Jennifer L. Armentrout spaced out the entire plot satisfactorily; keeping it well paced. However, I am bloody excited to dive back into the world again with her new book Storm and Fury. So, all in all, it does vary depending on the quality of the series and the story being told, but I’d say 7 is a good number. 

2. How do you feel about cliffhangers? 

Whilst they can be BLOODY PAINFUL AT TIMES, I love when a book has me on edge like that- just throw my lifeless body off that cliff baby and let me dangle. But yeah, I would need to read the next book soon or lest my peers feel my wrath. 

3. Hardcover or Paperback? 

Whilst I do really love the look and aesthetic of a hardcover, especially in my flatlays, I prefer reading from a paperback. I find a book bounding in hardback too constricting and I can’t bend the book as much as I’d like. Plus, paperback are softer to hold in the hand and lighter in weight. If I really love a book, I’ll have them in both paperback and hardback, if available. 

4. Favourite Book? 

Oh for fuck sake, I knew this was coming! Let me at least give you a list: 

- Goblet of Fire by J.K . Rowling (probs my favourite of all time as I’ve read it 17 times and still want to read it again) 

- Twilight by Stephanie Meyer (read it 7 times and still thinking about reading it again, what a damn book) 

- The entire Dark Elements trilogy (White Hot Kiss, Stone Cold Touch and Every Last Breath) by Jennifer L. Armentrout (read the whole trilogy twice and will be re-reading now to prepare for Storm and Fury)

- A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (I’ve read it every Christmas for 6 years now) 

- Catching Fire by Susanne Collins (favourite from the trilogy, it built up so much from The Hunger Games)

- Outlander by Diana Gabaldon (Jaaaaaaaaamie, my god! But also Claire is one of the strongest characters I’ve ever read in any book) 

- Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardobe (a childhood fave, love me some Aslan)

5. Least Favourite Book? 

Easily Vampire Diaries 1. LOOK, I absolutely bloody love The Vampire Diaries television series, it’s in my top 5 favourite TV shows of all time. However, the show really took all the potential that the story had from the books and made it 1000 x better. This is one of the rare cases when the book/books are far worse than their screen adaptation. I mean, no spoilers for anyone interested in reading the books still but, Elena in the books is just so unlikable which is hard to think of when you see her in the show. Nina Dobrev’s portrayal of Elena is the complete opposite of the written word and thank god it is, and she does it brilliantly. Major respect for all the actors, writers, producers, etc. in the show, they did a wonderful job. 

6. Love Triangles, yes or no? 

When done well, abso-bloody-lutely! Most of my favourite books have a love triangle in them and they always keep me turning the page (and no Twilight does not technically count because it’s very obvious in the books that Edward was always the choice for Bella, the movies only changed it slightly to sell the story and strengthen the fanbase which, to be fair to them, worked and I went along with it xD). I would like to see a new version of the trope being done though, like the two fighting for the protagonist’s affection end up falling in love with each other or something, not THAT would be interesting. 

7. The most recent book you couldn’t finish? 

Probably Vampire Diaries actually, I just... I don’t like wasting time on books that I’m not enjoying. 

8. A book you’re currently reading? 

Literally just started reading 13 Reasons Why because I’m hungover from the series on Netflix. I am one of those idiots that actually like to watch the movie first (if available) before the book as I can visualize it better that way (other than that, I love dream-casting when reading a new book). Additionally, the Netflix series... oh my god. I have never physically and emotionally reacted to a show more. That season 2 finale, my jaw was LITERALLY to my chest and i had to pause at certain moments because I couldn’t believe what happened. Wow. 

9. Last book you recommended to someone? 

I think it was A Court of Thorns and Roses to my mother, she absolutely loves all the YAs, it’s a great thing to share with her. She’s now read all of the Court books so far. The bitch is further ahead than me! 

10. Oldest book you’ve read by publication date? 

Does the Bible count? xD I kid- kinda. I used to be slightly religious when I was younger, didn’t help that I was brought up in a primary church school. Now that I’m 22 going on 57, I label myself as more of an agnostic. I believe everything has the possibility to exist until proven otherwise, and I fully respect everyone’s opinions and beliefs on the matter (though people who deny the existence of aliens and ghosts perplex me). Anyway, to actually answer the question (I’m not a concise person), probably Frankenstein published in 1818. 

11. Newest book you’ve read by publication date? 

Probably When The Curtain Falls by Carrie Hope Fletcher, released in 2018. 

12. Favourite Author? 

Ugggh it’s between Cassandra Clare, J. K. Rowling and Jennifer L. Armentrout. Don’t make me choose. 

13. Buying or borrowing books? 

Buying always buying, I want to own my own library, which I’m starting off well now with around 400 and odd books. 

14. A book you dislike that everyone seems to love? 

The only book I’ve ever disliked is Vampire Diaries and I think a few people are obsessed with them so I’ll say that. 

15. Bookmarks or Dog Ears? 

Are... are you kidding me? Please tell me other people are using bookmarks? PLEASE!!

16. A book you can always re-read? 

Goblet of Fire, and I know I can re-read it because I’ve read that beautiful bugger 17 times! Still not bored of it. 

17. Can you read while listening to music? 

Oh hell no, I have to read in complete silence so that I can fully focus and enjoy each word. 

18. One POV or multiple? 

I personally prefer one POV, however one of my favourite fan fictions is written in a couple or more POV’s and it really added to the story and suspense and mystery. But, generally speaking, I prefer POV. 

19. Do you read a book in one sitting or over multiple days? 

Over multiple weeks more like xD I mean, it depends on my mood and how much I’m enjoying the book. The quickest I’ve read a book is in two days. The longest I’ve ever taken to read a book is three months. 

20. Book boyfriend? 

Multiple... but my main man has to be Roth from Dark Elements trilogy. 

#tag questions #questions tag #book #books #book question #dark elements

[darkpoisonouslove]

1, 2, 12, 15, 21, 28 :)

Thank you!

I answered 1 here.

2. What are some common elements of stories you are tired of seeing? What would you avoid writing about?

I don't want to be too negative so I'll just try to list them briefly:

- love triangles - they're almost never done well. Like, 99.9% of the time they don't make any sense and are obviously just added for cheap drama. Can we, please, see something new?

- time travel - it also doesn't make sense and I feel like you don't need to go through so much trouble in order to set up a compelling story. Like, what does it add to the story, really? I'm tired of "ooh, we have to be careful not to change anything" when they already have just by being in a time period where they're not supposed to be (at least Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. addressed that which is why their time travel is one of the few times where it was done in an acceptable way).

- secondhand embarrassment - that's really a "tool" used only on TV but I hate the hell out of it. So much comedy relies on it and that's one of the biggest reasons why I don't watch much comedy. If you can't be funny in any other way, then you're not funny, period.

- Chosen Ones - talk about done to death. Really, we've seen this plot a thousand times and it rarely has something interesting to offer. If the hero is an unwilling emo about it, there are a thousand other people who'll be happy to do the job and will probably do it better. Can we just read some of their stories?

- prophesies - again, something that we've seen way too much of. It's either "ooh, we misinterpreted the prophecy so it turns out the hero won't die" or "well, now it's real depressing". And I say this with the full awareness that my favorite series (the Underland Chronicles) has prophecies. However, Susanne Collins knows how to write.

- "you can't bring people back from the dead because it makes death meaningless" - I. Am. So. SICK. of hearing about that. Yes, we know death is part of the journey and that in life you can't avoid it. But this is fiction. We can explore other options. Besides, who says that once a necromancer has brought you back to life that removes death from the journey? You were still dead. It was part of the journey. Just not the part we are used to it being. Why do we have to limit ourselves to the realities of human life when we can explore other scenarios? I have many feelings on this but I don't think I can structure any of them more so I will leave it off here.

12. What is the fashion like in your wip? Do you have any pictures saved of outfits your characters would wear?

Okay, I spent several hours making moodboards here because there were too many pictures to actually put all of them in.

The first one (on the left) is Samara and the one on the right is Stella. I feel like those are outfits they could wear in the canon universe.

Here I put some stray outfit ideas for different Winx characters:

Those are some ideas I have for Marion:

These are all pics I have for Ediltrude:

Now here's some AUs. This one is for the Arranged Marriage AU:

And this one is for the Artist/Painter AU:

And here are some ideas for Griffin that I haven't necessarily sorted out in my different verses yet:

I also did one with hairstyles for her:

I have more but it's starting to get late and my eyes are tired from making these.

15. Why physical quirks do your characters tend to have? Eyebrow raising, picking nails, biting lips, pacing, crossing arms, etc.

Smirking. That's pretty much it with all of the characters I write (I mean, is this really a surprise with Griffin and especially Valtor?)

In the couple chapters I've written from the Winx rewrite Bloom's been blushing and just showing all the signs of anxiety and embarrassment quite a lot as well. But that's supposed to go away with time.

21. How do you come up with titles? Do you use placeholders or tend to change your titles while writing the first draft?

The titles rarely come to me during the first draft. Only if I'm lucky. Since I write most of my first drafts on paper, though, they usually go titleless until I need a title for the document when I start editing and typing them up on the computer. That's when the struggle begins. I usually have some ideas for a title at some point but sometimes I have to edit the story and even then I don't always have the title. If that's the case, I do happen to use placeholder titles sometimes. It's rare that I'd have the title beforehand. I just try to think of words connected to the main idea of the story and then piece together a title that isn't a whole novel in and of itself.

28. Do you need background noise to write? If so, what do you listen to?

I listen to songs from my music library. Sometimes I may even have a playlist for the specific work I'm writing. But usually that's not the case so I just try to play songs that have a similar vibe to what I'm working on. If I find it too hard to concentrate with music, I try to find something without any lyrics or something in a language I don't understand (hence the Turkish radio experiences). In rare cases I resort to white noise. Also in rare cases I might even watch something while I'm writing but that doesn't usually give results because I just end up watching the thing. I can't really write in silence, though. Somehow that ends up distracting me.

Send me writing asks

#ask #her-majesty-wears-jeans #about me #tropes #my opinions #stories #winx club #wc rewrite #winx samara #winx stella #winx marion #winx ediltrude #winx griffin #painter au #arranged marriage au #1.0 #moodboard #visuals #aesthetic

[ssabbrinawww]

All tributes attention please, a new book from Susanne Collins!

#hunger games #the hunger games #jennifer lawrence #josh hutcherson #mockingjay #girl on fire

[movietvtechgeeks]

Latest story from https://movietvtechgeeks.com/la-la-land-stranger-things-atlanta-sweep-2017-pga-awards/

'La La Land,' 'Stranger Things' and 'Atlanta' sweep 2017 PGA Awards

“La La Land” is easily sweeping up all the awards this year, but Netflix’s “Stranger Things” jumped in on the action along with “Atlanta” for the 28th annual Producers Guild Awards (PGA).

The musical comedy-drama went up against “Arrival,” “Deadpool,” “Fences,” “Hacksaw Ridge,” “Hell or High Water,” “Hidden Figures,”  “Lion,” “Manchester by the Sea,” and “Moonlight,” but was able to come out the winner which was presented by Dustin Hoffman.

The guild recognized the candy-colored musical with its Darryl F. Zanuck Award for theatrical motion picture production Saturday, a prize that often precedes the best picture Academy Award. (Last year was an exception, when “The Big Short” won the guild award, while “Spotlight” got the Oscar.) The nominees for the guild’s top film prize echo Oscars’ best picture nominees this year, with the exception of “Deadpool,” which made the cut with producers but not the film academy.

But the guild’s celebration at the Beverly Hilton Hotel of the year’s outstanding film and television productions had a decidedly political tone, as President Donald Trump’s ban on refugees and visitors from several Muslim countries triggered protests in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Seattle and other cities.

“Our America is big, it is free, and it is open to dreamers of all races, all countries, all religions,” singer John Legend said as he introduced “La La Land” at Saturday’s untelevised ceremony. “Our vision of America is directly antithetical to that of President Trump. I want to specifically, tonight, reject his vision and affirm America has to be better than that.”

Ezra Edelman, producer and director of “O.J.: Made in America,” which claimed the guild’s documentary prize, echoed Legend’s sentiments.

“Please keep telling stories that are about our humanity,” he said.

Other winners Saturday included “Zootopia” for animated feature, “Atlanta” for episodic television comedy and “Stranger Things” for episodic TV drama.

Presenters included Justin Timberlake, Octavia Spencer, Taraji P. Henson, Nicole Kidman, Jeff Bridges, Kerry Washington, Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese. Veteran producers James L. Brooks, Tom Rothman and Irwin Winkler received special awards.

Dustin Hoffman presented the night’s top prize. As producer Marc Platt accepted for “La La Land,” he said, “The power of cinema cannot be denied and has no borders … We must believe love can change our lives, much as it can change the world.”

Full List of 2017 Producers Guild Awards Winners:

The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures: • La La Land (WINNER) Producers: Fred Berger, Jordan Horowitz, Marc Platt • Arrival Producers: Dan Levine, Shawn Levy, Aaron Ryder, David Linde • Deadpool Producers: Simon Kinberg, Ryan Reynolds, Lauren Shuler Donner • Fences Producers: Scott Rudin, Denzel Washington, Todd Black • Hacksaw Ridge Producers: Bill Mechanic, David Permut • Hell or High Water Producers: Carla Hacken, Julie Yorn • Hidden Figures Producers: Donna Gigliotti, Peter Chernin & Jenno Topping, Pharrell Williams, Theodore Melfi • Lion Producers: Emile Sherman & Iain Canning, Angie Fielder • Manchester By the Sea Producers: Matt Damon, Kimberly Steward, Chris Moore, Lauren Beck, Kevin Walsh • Moonlight Producers: Adele Romanski, Dede Gardner & Jeremy Kleiner

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures: • Zootopia (WINNER) Producer: Clark Spencer • Finding Dory Producer: Lindsey Collins • Kubo and the Two Strings Producers: Arianne Sutner, Travis Knight • Moana Producer: Osnat Shurer • The Secret Life of Pets Producers: Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures: • O.J.: Made in America (WINNER) Producers: Ezra Edelman, Caroline Waterlow • Dancer Producer: Gabrielle Tana • The Eagle Huntress Producers: Stacey Reiss, Otto Bell • Life, Animated Producers: Julie Goldman, Roger Ross Williams • Tower Producers: Keith Maitland, Susan Thomson, Megan Gilbride

The David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Long-Form Television: • The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story (Season 1) (WINNER) Producers: Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, Ryan Murphy, Brad Falchuk, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, D.V. DeVincentis, Anthony Hemingway, Alexis Martin Woodall, John Travolta, Chip Vucelich • Black Mirror (Season 3) Producers: Annabel Jones, Charlie Brooker • The Night Manager (Season 1) Producers: Simon Cornwell, Stephen Garrett, Stephen Cornwell, Hugh Laurie, Tom Hiddleston, Susanne Bier, David Farr, John le Carré, William D. Johnson, Alexei Boltho, Rob Bullock • The Night Of Producers: Steven Zaillian, Richard Price, Jane Tranter, Garrett Basch, Scott Ferguson • Sherlock: The Abominable Bride Producers: Mark Gatiss, Steven Moffat, Sue Vertue, Beryl Vertue

The Award for Outstanding Sports Program: • VICE World of Sports (Season 1) (WINNER — TIE)  • Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (Season 22) (WINNER — TIE) • E:60 (2016) • The Fight Game with Jim Lampley: A Tribute to Muhammad Ali • Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Los Angeles Rams (Season 11)

The Award for Outstanding Digital Series: • Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee (Season 7, Season 8) (WINNER) • 30 for 30 Shorts (Season 5) • Epic Rap Battles of History (Season 5) • Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: ACADEMY (Season 1) • National Endowment for the Arts: United States of Arts

The Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama: • Stranger Things (Season 1) (WINNER) Producers: Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer, Shawn Levy, Dan Cohen, Iain Paterson • Better Call Saul (Season 2) Producers: Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Melissa Bernstein, Mark Johnson, Thomas Schnauz, Gennifer Hutchison, Nina Jack, Robin Sweet, Diane Mercer, Bob Odenkirk • Game of Thrones (Season 6) Producers: David Benioff, D.B. Weiss, Bernadette Caulfield, Frank Doelger, Carolyn Strauss, Bryan Cogman, Lisa McAtackney, Chris Newman, Greg Spence • House of Cards (Season 4) Producers: Beau Willimon, Dana Brunetti, Michael Dobbs, Josh Donen, David Fincher, Eric Roth, Kevin Spacey, Robin Wright, John Mankiewicz, Robert Zotnowski, Jay Carson, Frank Pugliese, Boris Malden, Hameed Shaukat • Westworld (Season 1) Producers: J.J. Abrams, Jonathan Nolan, Lisa Joy, Bryan Burk, Athena Wickham, Kathy Lingg, Richard J. Lewis, Roberto Patino, Katherine Lingenfelter, Cherylanne Martin

The Danny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy: • Atlanta (Season 1) (WINNER) Producers: Donald Glover, Dianne McGunigle, Paul Simms, Hiro Murai, Alex Orr • black-ish (Season 2) Producers: Kenya Barris, Jonathan Groff, Anthony Anderson, Laurence Fishburne, Helen Sugland, E. Brian Dobbins, Vijal Patel, Gail Lerner, Corey Nickerson, Courtney Lilly, Lindsey Shockley, Peter Saji, Jenifer Rice-Genzuk Henry, Hale Rothstein, Michael Petok, Yvette Lee Bowser • Modern Family (Season 7) Producers: Steven Levitan, Christopher Lloyd, Paul Corrigan, Abraham Higginbotham, Elaine Ko, Jeff Morton, Jeffrey Richman, Brad Walsh, Danny Zuker, Vali Chandrasekaran, Andy Gordon, Vanessa McCarthy, Jon Pollack, Chuck Tatham, Chris Smirnoff, Sally Young • Silicon Valley (Season 3) Producers: Mike Judge, Alec Berg, Jim Kleverweis, Clay Tarver, Dan O’Keefe, Michael Rotenberg, Tom Lassally, John Levenstein, Ron Weiner, Carrie Kemper, Adam Countee • Veep (Season 5) Producers: David Mandel, Frank Rich, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lew Morton, Morgan Sackett, Sean Gray, Peter Huyck, Alex Gregory, Jim Margolis, Georgia Pritchett, Will Smith, Chris Addison, Rachel Axler, David Hyman, Erik Kenward, Billy Kimball, Steve Koren

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television: • Making a Murderer (Season 1) (WINNER) Producers: Laura Ricciardi, Moira Demos • 30 for 30 (Season 7) Producers: Connor Schell, John Dahl, Libby Geist, Bill Simmons, Erin Leyden, Gentry Kirby, Andrew Billman, Marquis Daisy, Deirdre Fenton • 60 Minutes (Season 48, Season 49) Producers: Jeff Fager • Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown (Season 5-8) Producers: Anthony Bourdain, Christopher Collins, Lydia Tenaglia, Sandra Zweig • Hamilton’s America Producers: Alex Horwitz, Nicole Pusateri, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeffrey Seller, Dave Sirulnick, Jon Kamen, Justin Wilkes

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Competition Television: • The Voice (Season 9-11) (WINNER) Producers: Audrey Morrissey, Jay Bienstock, Mark Burnett, John de Mol, Chad Hines, Lee Metzger, Kyra Thompson, Mike Yurchuk, Amanda Zucker, Carson Daly • The Amazing Race (Season 27, Season 28) Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer, Bertram van Munster, Jonathan Littman, Elise Doganieri, Mark Vertullo • American Ninja Warrior (Season 7, Season 8) Producers: Arthur Smith, Kent Weed, Anthony Storm, Brian Richardson, Kristen Stabile, David Markus, J.D. Pruess, D. Max Poris, Zayna Abi-Hashim, Royce Toni, John, Gunn, Matt Silverberg, Briana Vowels, Mason Funk, Jonathan Provost • Lip Sync Battle (Season 1, Season 2) Producers: Casey Patterson, Jay Peterson, John Krasinski, Stephen Merchant, Leah Gonzalez, Genna Gintzig, LL Cool J • Top Chef (Season 13) Producers: Daniel Cutforth, Jane Lipsitz, Doneen Arquines, Tom Colicchio, Casey Kriley, Padma Lakshmi, Tara Siener, Erica Ross, Patrick Schmedeman, Wade Sheeler, Ellie Carbajal

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television: • Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (Season 3) (WINNER) Producers: Tim Carvell, John Oliver, Liz Stanton • Full Frontal with Samantha Bee (Season 1) Producers: Samantha Bee, Jo Miller, Jason Jones, Tony Hernandez, Miles Kahn, Pat King, Alison Camillo, Kristen Everman • The Late Late Show with James Corden (Season 2) Producers: Ben Winston, Rob Crabbe, Mike Gibbons, Amy Ozols, Sheila Rogers, Michael Kaplan, Jeff Kopp, James Longman, Josie Cliff, James Corden • Real Time with Bill Maher (Season 14) Producers: Bill Maher, Scott Carter, Sheila Griffiths, Marc Gurvitz, Billy Martin, Dean E. Johnsen, Chris Kelly, Matt Wood • Saturday Night Live (Season 42) Producers: Lorne Michaels, Steve Higgins, Erik Kenward, Lindsay Shookus, Erin Doyle, Ken Aymong

The Award for Outstanding Children’s Program: • Sesame Street (Season 46) (WINNER) • Girl Meets World (Season 2, Season 3) • Octonauts (Season 4) • School of Rock (Season 1) • SpongeBob SquarePants (Season 9)

Movie TV Tech Geeks News

#Featured #La La Land #Moonlight #Producers Guild Awards #Stranger Things

[bainelland]

Tag Game

I was tagged by @redwooddragon7 Thank you so much! ♥

Rules: Replace the choices with your own and tag ten followers you want to get to know better.

Okay, so I’m not tagging 10 people for sure, but if you see this and you want to do this, go for it and say I tagged you. Also, I’m tagging mostly at random, so sorry. If you don’t want to do this you don’t have to.

@100years-to-live @hickker @a-fistful-of-stardust @star-galaxy @tessmays @euphemiafleurtrinket

10 favorite TV shows:

Skam ♥ ♥

Stranger Things

Orange Is The New Black

Once Upon a Time (yeah, I’ve finally got my shit together and started to watch season 2... Yay!)

Friends

Yeah, well. I don’t have 10 favorite TV shows, so here’s all I’m watching. Oh, and if you have something worth watching, please let me know!

10 favorite songs:

I have way too many of those, so if I’ll get carried away, forgive me.

Impossible Year - P!ATD (I think that this one is beautiful, but do yourself a favor and listen to Dodie’s version)

Kamikaze - Susanne Sundfør

Waiting - Nils Bech

Don’t You Remember - Adele

Again - Archive

Your Man - Chris Stapleton

Wade - Jay Stolar

Save Your Kisses For Me - Brotherhood Of Man (this is one of my biggest weaknesses)

Angel By The Wings - Sia

Never Give Up - Sia

Confetti - Sia (pretty much every song by Sia is my favorite)

Already Gone - Sleeping At Last (same as with Sia. Every song by them is my favorite)

Fine One Day - Tom Rosenthal

Million Reasons - Lady Gaga (the whole album is amazing)

You - Keaton Henson ♥

Beautiful Birds - Passenger feat. Birdy

I’ll Be Good - Jaymes Young

Slip - Elliot Moss

Królowa Łez - Agnieszka Chylińska

Game Of Survival - Ruelle

20 instead of 10? Well, it’s not even the half of my favorites. To be honest I knew it was going to happen xD If you wanna hear some more songs, here’s a link to my playlist on Spotify

10 favorite books:

I’ll Give You The Sun by Jandy Nelson

The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Skulduggery Pleasant Series by Derek Landy

The Hunger Games Trilogy by Suzanne Collins

Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green, David Levithan

Forgive Me, Leonard Peacock by Matthew Quick

A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

The Darkest Minds Series by Alexandra Bracken

His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman

10 favorite ships:

Hayffie

Noora x Eva (Skam)

Evan x Isak (Skam)

Jaqueenie

Dramione

Swan Queen

Ginny x Luna

Coin x Snow (I won’t change my mind!)

Newtina

Quirrell x Voldemort (I blame A Very Potter Musical!!!)

10 favorite female characters:

Effie Trinket

Minerva McGonagall

Moana

Tanith Low

Luna Lovegood

Regina Mills

Eleven

Noora Sætre

Sana Bakkoush

Red

10 favorite male characters:

To be honest I don’t have favorite male characters... Wow. I really can’t think of other than Haymitch Abernathy and Remus Lupin, and Isak. My mind just went blank.

Okay, nevermind.

Thanks for tagging me! ♥

#tags game #basically me

[firstdraftpod]

A Seething Undercurrent of Rage with Renee Ahdieh

First Draft Episode #213: Renee Ahdieh

Renee Ahdieh, New York Times bestselling author of The Wrath and the Dawn, The Rose and the Dagger, the Flame in the Mist duology, talks about her latest series, which kicks off with The Beautiful, out October 8.

This episode was brought to you by Freedom — upgrade to Premium and use code FIRSTDRAFT for 40% off a yearly or Forever plan!

Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode

Renee says The Flame in the Mist contains nods to Disney’s Mulan and the classic marital arts film 47 Ronin

When it comes to pitching books by Sabaa Tahir (listen to her First Draft interview here), Traci Chee, or Sarah Nicole Lemon (listen to her First Draft interview here), Renee has you covered. Not so much, she says, when it comes to pitching her own books.

Though Renee loves physically strong female heroes like Katniss, from Susanne Collins’ The Hunger Games, she says the hero of the Flame in the Mist series has “strength of the heart.”

The Beautiful series is an homage to Anne Rice’s seminal Interview with the Vampire series (omigod don’t miss the movie version, optimistically titled Interview With the Vampire: The Vampire Chronicles, starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt). She read The Queen of the Damned first. Renee loves Twilight by Stephenie Meyer, too.

Each book in The Beautiful’s four-part series will have a different main character, but they will all take place in the same world. Renee borrowed this narrative structure from the world of regency romance novels; in particular, Renee cites Sabrina Jeffries’ Hellions of Halstead Hall series as an inspiration. I came across this in getting recommendations from Bea and Leah Koch, who run The Ripped Bodice bookstore in Culver City, Calif. (listen to their First Draft interview here)!

Renee loves mysteries, like the TV series Columbo and Agatha Christie’s Poirot

In addition to Anne Rice’s many vampires novels and Twilight, Renee was also inspired by Charlaine Harris’ Sookie Stackhouse books (which were adapted into the True Blood HBO show) (and I recommended fellow YA author Morgan Matson watch the series - hear me and Morgan chat in her First Draft interviews here and here!).

Renee says almost every book series she loves is a version of Romeo & Juliet by William Shakespeare or The Count of Monte Christo by Alexandre Duma, and she’s also obsessed with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Renee and I gush over Mirage by Somaiya Daud, but I have a bone to pick with her vis a vis robots

Google is funding efforts to delay or end death! Science is trying to restore activity to a deceased brain! Dogs and cats are being cloned (Barbara Streisand did it)! Life is wild!

Laini Taylor, New York Times bestselling author of the Strange the Dreamer series and the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy, gave incredible worldbuilding advice on her episode of First Draft!

I want to hear from you!

Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call [phone]. You can also email the podcast at [email protected]. 

Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni

Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, New York Times bestselling author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone’s an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too;  Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie’s Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works.

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#Join host Sarah Enni every Tuesday for a quality hang with your favorite authors.

[achrisstevenson]

Celebrity Endorsements

Celebrity endorsements, also called blurbs, are those little quotes that appear on your book’s cover, or in the front matter of the pages. Example: “This was a riveting ride from start to finish”–Stephen King. You might get one or several. Celebrity blurbs can be a real minefield for the new-up-and-coming   author who is about to release his/her prized tome. Even some great  mid-listers can get caught up in this hunt for star approval. BTW,  soliciting for a  blurb should take place about three months before release. There are many Big 5 houses that start a marketing campaign six  months in advance! Catalogs and free e-copies start raining down on the  reading public, with the purpose to entice, tease, dare and suck anyone  into anticipating the new wunder child’s masterpiece. These promos can  also be galleys or ARC copies of the book. Just make sure  you leave  enough time to get the blurb on the cover or in the front matter before  it  hits retail. The earlier the better, because this little  admiration/vindication blip   can be used to boost pre-order and future sales.   Otherwise, if it’s post-release time and you haven’t done anything, it  could cost you or your publisher a small fortune to send out trade or   hardback copies in order to catch up. This has happened to me. Then there is an additional print cost. So who should be solicited for a gold star blurb? Unless you know them,   please refrain from contacting the current heavy hitters–Charlaine Harris,   Stephanie Meyer, Veronica Roth, Susanne Collins–and certainly avoid  King, Rice and Rowling. You aren’t dust underneath their  shoes (in a  figurative sense–no one hates you). But…they don’t know  you; they likely  haven’t got time for you and you could be a bother in the middle of  their  busy lives. Please don’t send them copies cold. You can ask first if  you are intent on it. That’s the reality of it. While we’re at it, you  might pass on the self-published heavy weight stars because they are  also in demand and loaded down with time constraints. Believe me, I went  that route and I knew a few of them personally. At this very minute  they might be using my book pages to clean up pet spills.  These are busy, busy people.   The self-published crowd definitely has to do the soliciting themselves.  They might  even be better at it than any trade-published author! In  fact, I think they  get real good at it and have more success in their  contacts within their own ranks. The indie community is huge and  tight-knit.     Now who should send out copies for blurbs? Aside from some exceptions,  not you right yet (indies excluded). Successful mid-list and recent breakout   novelists just might give you the time. If you personally know a fairly   successful author, give it a shot. I can speak from experience and tell   you that I’ve lost a half dozen hardback books that cost $30.00  apiece,   countless trade paperbacks and a truckload of ARCs. I knew  these   high-profile authors from some venue or another. They knew me. Circumstances got in the way–it happens.

In 1990, Ralph Nader agreed to do the foreword in my auto repair book.   My editor told me the great news. I was delighted with the prospect.  Little did I know that my publisher paid $4,000 for a page of comments (Foreword)  and then they took that amount out of my royalties. DO NOT PAY-FOR-PLAY   BLURBS. Ever. That goes for pre-order reviews, too. Read your  publisher’s contract and make sure they don’t have the right to pull  royalties or advance money from you for a celebrity endorsement, or any  promotion or marketing efforts.   What can go wrong with hunting down blurbs? Those star  authors don’t have the time to  read your book–they’re way too busy.  Your solicitation could be construed as a sign of  desperation. They  might think your publisher is  beneath them, or that your publisher  trademark is really a disguised  self-published label. They read it and  hated it (or very unlikely that they read it). You’re a bothersome  intrusion into their privacy, even if you’re a fan. They can get free  copies this way without payment or risk. It happens. You’ve nudged them  too often and annoyed them. Your publisher will solicit blurbs. Seen from the eyes of the  celebrity  author (or whoever), it is more respectful. The publisher is  not as  obviously biased or as desperate as an inquiring author. There  is more  weight behind a publisher request–more status–more importance  and dignity. You  might get the email or home address of the author  wrong. The publisher  marketing team, not you, will know who to send  copies or books to in  advance. This is their expertise –they’ve done it  They probably have a marketing  and sales department, and a publicity manager loaded for bear and ready  to get you a shot in the lime light. They also have a tried and true list of contacts, and they certainly know how to target your book better than you do.

If you are determined to be proactive, go ahead. Coordinate with your publisher, though. You don’t want submission repeats to the same source. If you have landed   numerous celebrity blurbs by your own hand without your publisher’s   assistance,  you’ve performed a small miracle. If you  have a repeat celebrity author giving you grand endorsements, then you  are locked in. I doff my  worn fedora to you.

Just be careful. Target celeb authors who write in your genre. Don’t send a contemporary romance to Clive Barker or Dean Koontz.

Never mind if you’ve  bought a truckload of books  and tossed them every which way in sundry.  There’s no reason to go into dept before your book is published. Sure,  send some signed paperbacks out there, but purchase single copies and not  cases of your book.

A neat little plan that works is to join some fan clubs of your favorite authors or even movie stars. Be sincere with yourself and choose those persons that you truly admire. Be active with your comments on their pages, and once in awhile you will actually get responses, likes, semi-recommendations, re-Tweets or even followers. This kind of association can take you off the dirt road and place you on the major highway. It can be effective in building your name brand. This move takes a while to cultivate. You can’t rush it. You can’t (or shouldn’t) come right out and ask for favors in a comment section or PM. If you appeal to the celeb in any fashion, trust me, they will contact you. I can attest to this because I’ve done it. Red-shifting out of here. Happy blurb trails!