#the community of books and the community of other people via the book club and reconnecting with hs friends
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Pick a Pile Reading | Who’s Coming Into Your Life Soon? 🌠 🌸
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*Disclaimer: This is a collective reading — take what resonates and leave the rest. If this resonates with you, please show support by reposting (with credit), tipping, or booking with me! :)
*Exchanges with other intuitives/readers are available via dm’s
PILE 1 COLLECTIVE
This is a person who is a lover of the arts! You may meet them in an artistic environment (think art class, concert, museum, etc.) or they’ll just enjoy visiting those places and have a knack for creative talents. They also seem to be a people person who is a smooth talker and has a very strong aura. They like to entertain and make people feel relaxed, which could inspire them to host a lot of parties or be an active member of their community. For some, the person coming into your life will be a part of the LGBTQ+ community or advocate for such causes. This person will have a romantic purpose for most of you, but some may choose to keep this connection as a lighthearted friendship or FWB. You may feel slightly reluctant to take them seriously because of how carefree and popular they are. They will be comforting, but some of you could feel like you’re just another person under their spell and may become resistant to these romantic feelings as a result. It’s important to mention this person‘s energy feels very sincere. They want to cater to you and can often struggle with people pleasing tendencies.
~ miscellaneous: blueberries. the color blue. a coquette aesthetic. whicker baskets. white snocks + sneakers. aries, capricorn, taurus placements (tons of cardinal energy). piercings. hair parted to the side. ripped jeans. a laugh that sounds like a scoff/sarcastic humor.
PILE 2 COLLECTIVE
For most of pile 2, the person coming into your life soon is a platonic feminine around your age. Their personality is very peppy, organized, empathetic, hardworking, and sensual. You will meet this person through school, work, mutuals, or shared goals. They seem to be a lover of animals as well so they may have pets or easily connect with them. The two of you will bond over music and the type of people you aspire to become in the future. They’ll make you feel lighthearted and bring out a more extroverted side to you. You may have moments where you let them put stickers or makeup on you just to have something silly to do together. For the people who have a feminine energy coming in, they may also be skilled in things like speech & debate, reading long/foreign novels (especially russian), playing chess — something traditional and academic. This person is an avid lover of film, especially vintage or historical ones. They could be multilingual or come from a different culture than your own. It’s clear that the two of you will never run out of things to talk about, making it seem like you finally found your perfect mental match!
~ miscellaneous: blonde hair. teal/blue crystals or blue eyes. the letters c, e, i, s, n, a, l, and p. scarves. whimsigoth/hippie/70s aesthetic. winter time. romeo & juliet. film major. coffee hangouts. mercury or 3h synastry.
PILE 3 COLLECTIVE
Pile 3 has an entire friend group coming into your life (multiple individuals)! Psychically, there’s a lot of overlapping conversations I’m tuning into 😅 so the people coming into your life will be a big part of your life/daily schedule. You’ll stay quite busy because of their presence in your life and may notice yourself becoming more talkative or that you all can be quite loud and rambunctious together. Parties, social events, clubs, concerts, and any other crowded environment can be relevant to how you meet these people or where you’ll spend time with them. You may notice that the group’s energy becomes more alive at night so a lot of these people could be night owls and extroverts. It’s the kind of thing where you’ll always have thousands of notifications blowing up your phone or will always have something fun to do. There’s a huge blend of masculine and feminine energies here so some people may encounter a friend group of 2-4 people whereas others will find themselves with 6-8 new people in their lives. Some of the masculine energies in the group could like to wrestle so be wary of breakables/fragile furniture that’s in their vicinity 💀. I feel that these people coming into your life will all enjoy sharing food, secrets, tips, and so on. There’s a very open and excitable vibe here so some of them may even be slightly younger than you.
~ miscellaneous: matching tattoos. karaoke. late night escapades. musicians. fire sign placements. the book everything i know about love — dolly alderton. bars. pinterest boards/pinterest aesthetics (especially for those who use it to manifest). gaming/dart boards. bets/dares.
PILE 4 COLLECTIVE
A family member will either become a bigger part of your life or start a new relationship with you entirely. For some, this will relate to a grandmother figure and/or deceased relatives watching over you/being around your energy. For others, it’s more of a mentor vibe. Older, feminines with a lot of advice and maturity to offer you. At this stage in your life, you could be feeling anxious or uncertain about your future/career. This person coming in is meant to be a support system for you during this specific transition period. They will help you to broaden your horizons, believe in your dreams/capabilities, and strengthen your willingness to take risks. If your mental health has been low, you feel like you’ve stepped out of alignment with your desires, or you’ve just been processing some heavier topics lately, this person will come in to soften those experiences while helping you to work through them. They will teach you how to validate your emotions without feeling disempowered by the weight of them. “Your depth is beauty” and they will make you into a stronger person by honoring this part of yourself.
~ miscellaneous: the barbie movie scene where she meets her creator (ruth handler). what was i made for - billie eilish. holding hands. traditional baking. words of wisdom/words of affirmation. bridges. feeling at the end of your rope when they come in. disco music. the 60s - 70s as their birth year. gardening hats. flowers.
#astrology#law of assumption#zodiac signs#astro notes#astro observations#birth chart#horoscope#natal chart#astroblr#tarotblr#witchblr#pick a pile reading#pick a card reading#pick a pile#pac reading#pick one#100% accurate#intuitive#channeled messages#spells#baby witch#manifestation#witch tips#subliminals#daily tarot#free readings#love reading#psychic#divination#pick a photo
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Introducing the FAW Summer Asynch Session!
Many people have mentioned that the times I lead the spring and fall workshops aren’t accessible for those with busy/unpredictable schedules, but they would still like to participate in the workshop and join the FAW community. To address that feedback, I’m running an asynchronous summer session. An asynch session doesn’t have a set meeting time. Instead, you’ll read up to 2 pieces presented each week by fellow participants, write them crit letters, and participate in discussion over Discord.
The only required* meeting is an individual 30 minute Zoom call with me any time during the two weeks prior to the start of workshop. We'll use that time to go over the syllabus together and I can answer any questions you have. You'll book via Calendly once I send the welcome email.
*Optional for previous participants
Participants of the workshop receive:
Attendance in a 4-6 week asynchronous course during which you’ll provide feedback to your peers and workshop one piece of your own work, up to 6,000 words.
Access to the Fanauthor Workshop Discord server, an active community where we host weekly accountability meetings, writing sprints, a twice monthly short story club, and other events.
A 15-30 minute pre-workshop consultation with me to go over the syllabus and any questions you have.
A 30-45 minute post-workshop consultation with me to discuss the feedback you received, come up with a plan for revision and/or publication, or anything else you’d like to discuss regarding your writing.
Open enrollment option in future workshops.
Timeline
Applications close: June 14
Syllabus calls: July 1 - 12
Workshop begins: July 15
Workshop ends: Before August 23, depending on the number of participants
Cost
The recommended amount is $150. If you’re experiencing financial hardship and unable to pay, or can't pay the full amount, please let me know.
How to apply
Eligibility
Anyone over the age of 18 who considers themselves a participant of fandom and who is familiar with fanfiction may apply. A stable internet connection is also required. Submissions must be written in English.
Application requirements
To apply, you will need:
A brief cover letter discussing your fan history and goals as a (fan)writer (more specific instructions on submittable).
Maximum 1,000 words of your writing, either original work or fanfiction. This may be previously published/posted.
You can apply via submittable. Applications close June 14. There is no fee for applying.
FAQ and other info under the cut.
FAQ
Are there any content restrictions to what I can workshop?
The only restriction is word count (max 6k), with the following caveats:
If you workshop a piece in a form other than prose (for example, a script), your peers may not be able to offer constructive feedback on that aspect of the work. Participants are asked only to have a familiarity with prose.
Content warnings are required for each piece (if applicable), and participants who are uncomfortable reading certain subject matter may abstain from your workshop.
What is the time commitment of the workshop?
As a participant of the workshop, you'll be asked to:
Workshop any piece of your own prose up to 6k words, which will need to be uploaded no later than the Sunday prior to your workshop week. For example, if you sign up to workshop in week 2, your submission will be due July 14. Participants will have a week to read it and write their crit letter, and discussion will begin over Discord on July 22.
Read 2 pieces per week, write a 1-page crit letter for the author, and participate in the Discord discussion.
What are the benefits of being in the Fanauthor Workshop community?
We have an active Discord server open only to those who have participated in the workshop. Once you've completed the workshop, you'll have access to attend our weekly accountability meetings*, writing sprints, our twice monthly short story club, and other events we host.
*I'm working on figuring out an asynch accountability group.
You'll also have an open enrollment option in future workshops, where in lieu of applying again, you can pay a portion of what you intend to pay and secure your seat in the upcoming workshop.
I'll be working on rolling out additional events and benefits throughout the year.
Can workshop participants submit to OFIC Magazine?
Yes! Part of the reason I run the workshop is to inspire and promote the original work of fanwriters. You can follow us on tumblr @oficmag.
Who is running the workshop?
@bettsfic! In short, I lived a dreary cubicle life as a banker until I found fanfiction at 24. I loved it so much that I quit my job to get an MFA in creative writing. I loved the MFA so much that I became a writing teacher. I have some publications, awards, an agent, and 2 million words of fic on ao3. I don't have a book out yet but I'm getting there.
Currently I'm a writing coach and freelance editor. I also have a lowkey writing-related newsletter. And I've been answering writing advice asks on my blog for 10 years.
If you want an idea of the kind of writing activities I create, last summer I worked with @books on a workshop series which includes craft essays and some fun prompts.
If you're interested in my original work, my short story "Not If, When" is a good representation of my writing. For something darker, check out "Shut Up and Kill Me."
What is the workshop like?
Check out G's experience of attending the workshop. And here's some feedback from previous participants.
One final note: This is the first summer asynch session so there may be some hiccups. I've taught asynch classes before so it's not totally new to me, but there's still bound to be some pivoting when the workflow that makes sense in my head doesn't work super well in reality. It happens sometimes. I'm always taking feedback and trying to improve the workshop.
If you have questions about the workshop or application process, you can shoot me an ask, DM me, or add me on Discord (I'm bettsfic there too). Or you can email me at [email protected].
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December Workshop Update: The Fun(ds) & 2024
Well met Workshop Spectators! Besides our super shiny Beta presentation video, & new Mod Content FAQ, we have lots of exciting news to get through.
First and foremost, we are reopening our staff applications for our Community Team, specifically in search of new people to join our Discord moderation team. If you are interested in applying, please fill out this form, and someone from our Community Team will reach out to you in early January.
As per our last mini-update, the Workshop is looking to have a surplus budget of about 1100 USD -- or 500 lines worth of funding -- and we've been brainstorming up ways to add some goodies into the Kaidan Revoiced: Community Expansion mod 1.0 launch, internally (& lovingly) referred to as 'the FUN(ds)'. Starting today and running though February 1st, 2024, the community can vote on which of these to prioritize. You can read the details of those choices below and place your vote here.
Finally, the Workshop staff are going on vacation! We'll be around sparingly over the next few weeks as we all take a much needed break to prepare for the end of the Fun(ds) voting. We'll be back in full force on January 12th!
As always, from the staff to the Spectators; we are truly blessed to be the recipients of such support and good will. We can't wait to see what you vote for!
Intro Overhaul Pack - estimated 0 ~ 10 lines
This proposal was inspired by the mod Immersive Kaidan Start, created by WarTortle. Rather than the quest simply appearing in the player’s journal, there is instead a series of changes to point the player towards Kaidan’s Old Campsite or the Abandoned Prison in a more immersive way. We have obtained permission to adapt this mod and incorporate it within our 1.0 version of KR:CE; while we may be able to achieve this via splicing dialogue from vanilla Skyrim, we may need to arrange to have a small set of new lines recorded for one of the NPC interactions.
I’m Glad You’re Here - estimated 15 lines
This proposal revolves around the mod I’m Glad You’re Here, created by WhiteWolf424242, which allows the player to hug their companions and loved ones; it currently uses spliced lines from the original Kaidan 2 files to create responses for Kaidan. We would create a small collection of new and old lines to be recorded by our VA, then implement them within the 1.0 version of KR:CE.
Paarthurnax Quest Expansion Compatibility - estimated 10 ~ 20 lines
It is no secret that many players find the ultimatum Delphine gives them about killing Paarthurnax problematic, and while Kaidan has dialogue that acknowledges either choice, we wanted to create content that would acknowledge if the player uses the Paarthurnax Quest Expansion mod by Jayserpa to keep Paarthurnax alive.
The Book Review Pack - estimated 25 ~ 30 lines
In the vanilla Kaidan 2 mod, there is a feature that allows the player to give certain books to Kaidan; while he does have a few unique responses to some of the books, his primary replies can quickly become short and repetitive. To address this (and also because the idea of a Kaidan Book Club is just too endearing), this proposal would consist of creating unique responses to all of the books Kaidan can currently read.
NPC Revoice: Dremora, Ren, Myriah, Tarben - estimated 40 lines
One of the key reasons the Workshop was formed was to address the audio distortion that existed in the Kaidan 2 mod. During our process of reviewing and revoicing the base script, it became apparent that some of the other custom characters and voices included in the mod could also use a touch-up, or lacked a custom voice at all. This proposal would revolve around replacing nearly all of the custom NPC dialogue in KR:CE with revoiced lines from new voice actors.
The exception to this is Rosalind (recorded by voice actress Tanya S. Bartlett) for two key reasons – one, her lines are still in fantastic condition; and two, there have been many requests for an overhaul &/or extension for Rosalind and her dungeon. While we are definitely interested in this idea, pursuing something of this scale would add too much time to our current production cycle for the KR:CE 1.0 launch, and so we have elected to reserve reviewing Rosalind for a later date.
The Faction Pack - estimated 40 ~ 50 lines each
The base Kaidan mod lacks extended commentary on several of the major faction quests; particularly the Civil War, the Dark Brotherhood and the Thieves Guild faction questlines. This proposal would have the community pick among the three aforementioned factions for a full Workshop Original Script addition for our 1.0 launch.
Scripted CVF Pack - estimated 50 ~ 60 lines
New interactions with other custom voiced followers is one of our most requested content additions. While we aren’t fully prepared to tackle large expansions yet due to scheduling and production time concerns, we’ve selected a few CVF’s with whom we have the ability to produce new content relatively rapidly due to internal pre-existing scripts &/or the availability of our potential content collaborators. Those followers are Auri, Caryalind, Khash, and Rumarin.
The Daedra Pack - estimated 60 lines
Currently, Kaidan only has commentary for the Daedric quest “Pieces of the Past”, with a few one-off lines mentioning certain Daedric gods. The Daedra Pack would focus on adding four to eight lines to each of the following quests, similar to the line count of the original “Pieces of the Past” script.
“The Black Star”, “Boethiah's Calling”, “A Daedra's Best Friend”, “Discerning the Transmundane”, “Ill Met By Moonlight”, “The Cursed Tribe”, “The Whispering Door”, “The Break of Dawn”, “The House of Horrors”, “The Taste of Death”, “The Only Cure”, “A Night to Remember”, “The Mind of Madness”, & “Waking Nightmare”.
Commentary on Nocturnal is not included in this pack, but rather is tied up in the Thieves Guild questline, which is an option for selection in the Faction Pack.
The Reaction Pack - estimated 60 ~ 75 lines
During the many hours of playtesting the staff undertook, we noticed that there were just certain events that would occur in Skyrim (for example, Jarl Balgruuf asking the player to kill a dragon) that Kaidan just didn’t have any dialogue for. Alternatively, there are some reaction lines that fire frequently enough that they quickly become repetitive (for example, Kaidan lines when being healed by the player). This proposal is geared around creating single line additions throughout the script to make Kaidan be a touch more reactive to the wilds of Skyrim, as well as adding in extra takes of certain lines to reduce repetitiveness.
Note that this is not a full expansion for any given questline or faction – just extra lines to bolster the existing script.
The Roleplay Pack - estimated 60 ~ 75 lines
There are several instances where the mod allows the player to roleplay a bit with Kaidan, providing him details about your past, your family, and even your adventures. Given the staggering amount of options that are possible within the Elder Scrolls Universe, this proposal aims to expand the responses the player can give to Kaidan – for example, lines that acknowledge the specific province the player was born in, as well as the player's race, filling in the missing gaps for his commentary regarding the player’s level in different skills, or increase the variety of different gods the player can say they worship.
DLC (Dawnguard/Dragonborn) Pack - estimated 65 ~ 80 lines each
The base Kaidan mod lacks any commentary regarding the two DLC’s Dawnguard & Dragonborn. This proposal would have the community pick one of the two aforementioned factions for a full Workshop Original Script addition for our 1.0 launch.
#kaidan 2#kaidanworkshop#kaidan skyrim#custom voice follower skyrim#skyrim kaidan#elder scrolls skyrim#custom voiced follower#kaidan#tes v skyrim
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Idia Fact Sheet (No Book 6 Spoilers)
Note: This character sheet has no spoilers from the Ignihyde Dorm chapter because spoilers are the worst. There are references to JPN-only things like Idia's dorm uniform card vignette, etc, as usual.
(Ranked 7th in a combination of seven different character-ranking surveys by the jpn server held throughout 2021)
Idia rarely leaves his dorm room, attending classroom lectures via a tablet. He says he “never wanted to be housewarden”, insinuating that he was appointed to the position against his will.
In Book 5 we learn that Riddle has been housewarden of Heartslabyul longer than Idia has been of Ignihyde, so it is safe to assume that he did not become housewarden until his third year.
Illustration notes: "Stronger flames. He makes this expression sometimes when he gets excited. Like when he comes across a strong enemy in a video game, or when things are going according to plan. Most people won’t see this look at first; not until he’s grown close to them. Surprise.”
When provoked Idia becomes extremely upset, much like the character upon which he was based, but he cools down again very quickly. He also slips into outdated internet slang when he speaks with passion.
The name he uses most widely online is “Nekura Samurai”, and his closest online friend is “Muscle Red”. We learn in card vignettes that “Muscle Red” is actually Lilia, but neither student is aware of the online-identity of the other.
Despite his extreme dislike for talking to people face to face, it is surprisingly easy to goad him into becoming talkative, especially about his hobbies and interests. Idia seems to have great disdain for tradition (ref: homescreen and beansfest).
Idia is very protective of Ortho, an android he built himself and programmed to act as a little brother. When Idia was kidnapped by a ghost looking to marry (and subsequently murder) him, Ortho was the only student willing to try and save Idia’s life. Ortho joined Crowley in blackmailing the rest of the characters into helping.
Idia spends the vast majority of the “Wish Upon a Star” event fulfilling his tasks to the bare minimum while constantly, audibly hoping that it will be cancelled. When this ‘wish’ comes close to being fulfilled, he witnesses Ortho’s disappointment and turns around to invent the Stargazer gear for Ortho that saves the entire event, even participating in-person in accordance with a bet he lost to Deuce.
Idia’s desire to not disappoint Ortho is, however, fallible. In his ceremonial robes vignette we see Idia get goaded by Riddle into promising that he will attend the opening ceremonies, much to Ortho's delight. Ortho asks that they take a picture together in their robes, as Ortho had not been allowed to participate in Idia's opening ceremonies upon his enrollment in the school (just like the player and Grim, Idia and Ortho are enrolled as two halves of one student).
Idia gets as far as changing into his robes and reaching the school’s courtyard, but when a confused Malleus comments on his clothing (“I simply cannot understand the meaningless things humans do at times”), Idia panics, insults Malleus and retreats to the safety of his room without ever seeing Ortho at all.
Ortho follows up later to apologize for asking him to attend in the first place, assuring his “brother” that “We don’t need to go somewhere to be together” and “I’ll always be with you”.
There are only a few characters with whom Idia will communicate in person and only under certain circumstances, like Jamil and fellow board games club-member Azul. He is particularly uncomfortable around Kalim, Cater, Trey and Rook.
In his birthday vignette he is asked what dorm, besides Ignihyde, he would like to live in (a question asked of all the students in the second round of birthday cards), he answers “Octavinelle wouldn’t be bad, but I want to stay far away from those disturbing twins", insinuating he has issues with Jade and Floyd as well.
When Ortho requested that Idia design him a pair of legs that can walk on land (instead of levitate) Idia refused on the basis that “floating around is every guy’s dream”, “ walking is total NPC stuff” and “flying is for heroes”.
Floyd and Jade proceed to blackmail Idia into designing the legs for Ortho anyway (via an “interesting piece of information” they have about him), with Floyd underlining their point by gifting Ortho a pair of shoes for his birthday. This incident may have something to do with Idia's discomfort around them.
Idia had originally intended to join the Science Club, but it had more members than he’d anticipated and he switched to the Boardgames Club instead. In the official fan book, it is said that the club is a reference to Disney’s Hercules movie.
Idia dislikes the outdoors and physical activity extremely. (“Humans are the only creatures that do pointless exercise to consume the nutrients they have taken in! It's really stupid!" from homescreen)
In the Beansfest event, we learn he has set up a deal with Sam where he hides out in Sam’s shop until the end of the event. In exchange, Idia (under the alias “Mr. Smith”) designs one-of-a-kind bean-shooting weapons for players to purchase from Sam.
While constantly down-playing his abilities and knowledge, we learn in the Phantom Bride event that, if goaded enough, he will reveal that he actually thinks very highly of himself and his accomplishments (much to the surprise and awkwardness of Riddle and the other students). He can also become quick to insult and belittle others, leading to Ace’s comment of “he’s actually really cool…as long as he keeps his mouth shut.”
Rook refers to him as “King of his own room”, Floyd as “Hotaruika-senpai” (for firefly squid) and Leona calls him カイワレ大根 (kaiware daikon), for being shady, frail and tall. Despite this unflattering name, Leona tells us that “He’s got more power and brains than ordinary students”.
Idia has said he likes cats, will try talking to Lucius during history lessons and accidentally terrified Grim in his lab wear vignette when he mistook Grim for a regular cat. He is also fond of dogs, but has said he does not get along with dog people like Crewel.
Idia seems to have something of a complex with his hair, and his fear of others making fun of it in his ceremonial robes vignette and Book 5 seems to insinuate that it is unusual even for the Twisted Wonderland universe. He also expresses concern that people will recognize him as a member of the Shroud family.
Despite being only eighteen, he seems to be a household name in the field of magical engineering, and we learn that that he “can buy a gymnasium full of canned tuna” with just a single part of the various elements that make up Ortho.
From his voice line of “Tests are like games. The higher you score, the better you feel”, it seems that he might actually be an accomplished student despite his habit of staying up all night, absorbed in his hobbies.
At the very end of Book 5 Ortho reveals that Idia has received a large number of offers from various companies soliciting him for internships, including the VDC event’s sponsor, Olympos Co. Idia orders Ortho to delete them all, saying “I’m not going anywhere regardless…”
Rather than a magical pen, Idia uses a floating, skull-like drone in battles that also stirs the cauldron in alchemy lessons.
He is always wearing headphones in order to listen to music with the best possible sound quality and to shut out the world around him through noise-canceling. His favorite music is by a three-member girl group called “Precipice Moirai” whose members are “older than they look” (although, in Epel’s dorm uniform vignette, he says they look old while having the spirits of 17 year olds. This conflicting information is consistent on both the ENG- and JPN-servers, and may be a continuity error). It is speculated in the fan community that is a reference to the three Fates in Disney’s Hercules.
Idia’s favorite food is dagashi because “it is easy to eat while gaming”. Dagashi are cheap snackfoods that became popular in Japan during the Edo Period when sugar was particularly expensive.
This site is great if you would like to learn more (bonus: if you have seen Spirited Away and ever wondered about the star-shaped food eaten by the soot sprites? Those are a form of dagashi, introduced to Japan by Portugal).
Potato chips and cheap chocolate are also dagashi.
Idia dislikes raw fish because of the smell, how it is eaten neither hot nor cold, the texture and how troublesome it is to prepare. Idia says that “block snacks” are good enough for him, as he is only interested in consuming the nutrition he needs to function, regardless of the form it comes in.
Dagashi comes in both sweet and savory forms. By “block snacks”, I would assume that twst is referring to something similar to “Calorie Mate”-brand snacks without using the copyrighted name. A common snack food in Japan, it is marketed as being an alternative way to consume enough calories to keep going when you don’t have enough time to prepare and eat a proper meal.
Some great artists for Idia fan-art and more (SFW, no story spoilers)
Idia looking amazing
Idia and Ortho
Various Idia
Stargazer Idia and Ortho
Voice
Idia is voiced by Uchiyama Kouki (内山 昂輝) whose other work includes Roxas from Kingdom Hearts II, Neku Sakuraba from The World Ends with You, Shigaraki Tomura from My Hero Academia, Soul Eater Evans from Soul Eater, Kamyu from Dragon Quest XI and Kirishima Ikuya from Free! -Dive to the Future-
More information here
Additional Fact Sheets
・Riddle Rosehearts ・Trey Clover・Cater Diamond
・Ace Trappola・Deuce Spade
・Leona Kingscholar ・Ruggie Bucchi ・Jack Howl
・Azul Ashengrotto・Floyd Leech・Jade Leech
・Kalim Al-Asim・Jamil Viper
・Vil Schoenheit・Rook Hunt ・Epel Felmier
・Idia Shroud・Ortho Shroud
・Malleus Draconia ・Silver・Sebek Zigvolt・Lilia Vanrouge
・Sam・Crewel・Trein・Vargas・Crowley
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BTS Book Club Server
Okay - I talked about this like an hour ago but a lot of people reached out about it so I want to gauge some interest. If I built a Discord server where readers could join a book club and vote on/read one book together a month (I'm thinking genres like fantasy, romantasy but open to others), and where we can all chat about the books we're reading, including the book of the month, would people be into that? Just a very lowkey server where you do or don't have to read the selected book each month, but can at least chat with avid readers!
I would want to focus on books that are easily accessible via Amazon, Kindle, B&N, Kindle Unlimited, and any other books that are accessible and reasonably priced.
This would have zero fic adjacent etc. like this will have nothing to do with the writing and reading community on Tumblr, and specifically be for book reading only.
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Elodie, is there an amount I can pay you to persuade you to translate all of Moby Dick like that during Whale Weekly? It's incredible and I desperately want to read the whole thing. I am serious about the money.
(In reference to this “line by line translation of the first chapter of Moby Dick into insufferable modern idiom” I wrote:)
For those who don’t know, Moby Dick is getting a Dracula Daily treatment starting November 21, which will be called “Whale Weekly.” Rumor has it that it will take ~2 years to complete. I’ve seen a blog called @whaleweekly which is collecting an initial book club, and I believe there’s a discord, etc, so there should be a small community of people to read it with.
People HAVE been deliciously split between “reading this post has been strangely educational, and has made Moby Dick easier to understand in its original form” and “OP this is an active and violent warcrime and feels like acid on my skin,” which are exactly the two emotions I like to evoke in my writing.
And I AM about to go on maternity leave for about a year, so it’s tempting! I get demonstrably weird when my intellectual life is supposed to revolve around babies too much. Based on prior experience I write strange posts like “why are dogs dogs” and get way too invested in correcting people on the internet who are wrong. This strongly suggests, in fact, that I (being mentally healthy ofc) need to be more mature about things and simply go to sea. Or simply have a clear project. And part of mat leave, even with good benefits, is always unpaid and therefore terrifying, so it seems charming and hilarious to counter that by “graduate level analysis of Moby Dick.” CAN YOU IMAGINE. What a conversation starter.
“What are you doing after rhyme time?”
“Oh, putting this thing down for a nap and translating Moby Dick for tips.”
“Translating? Like, into another language?”
“You could say that yeah”
But I’ve never taken money on the internet, so I’d have to think about it. Especially the pressure I would feel was implied to produce something worth paying for. Like, in the first chapter of Moby Dick there’s a whole entire joke to unpack about Pythagoras, beans, winds, and farting. It’s an elaborate fart joke that I just didn’t sit down to unpack because I wrote it on a lunch break: I would feel more compelled to unpack every joke and reference and modernise them, and that would literally become a graduate-school-level course of study.
Also, I really don’t have the education and political knowledge to think deeply and helpfully enough about Ishmael’s/Melville’s racial lenses, nor do I have the savvy and experience to interpret them usefully for a diverse audience, that will naturally consist of people at all different levels of learning. It’s fine enough to translate the first chapter, so that people can see how underneath the 19th century styling, this is an unreliable narrator with lots of things wrong with him, and lots of jokes that you’d miss.
But the layers on layers of “how to interpret Ishmael-via-Melville’s chaotic, festering, toxic, educational, revelatory, exoticising, sympathetic, distasteful race relations - which show the underpinnings of American racial construction and other educational things, and are quite useful for humanities majors to study - without referencing Elodie’s own politics? or having Elodie be annoyed by people assuming that interpreting 19th century literature means that Elodie subscribed to Melville’s beliefs?” (Because I have some experience with reading comprehension on the internet, enough to make me look at some chapters of the Big D and say, I am not touching that in public, not even with a very long harpoon). If it was for a graduate-level or lived-experience or otherwise politically savvy/invested audience you could trust everyone a bit more to get to work on critical thinking and unpacking the translation, but if your audience is naturally assembled because you promised to make something accessible, the intention of the project being to make it accessible to more people, then you have to take your lumps and accept that people will take the translated content in bad faith and will go, like, “wait, this is uncomfortable content!!! I take it at face value! I blame YOU for it!” And I’d have to think REALLY proactively about how I managed that. If I was a scholar of English, literature or politics I would consider it my duty to do so; but I minored in English a long time ago and am on the journey of gradual acceptance that my best contributions are basically just jokes.
This is a long-winded answer to a lovely question, and probably shows way too much insight into why I enjoy comprehending Moby Dick.
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Can I be real for a second?
I’ve gone back and forth in my head about whether or not to post about this very real side of me online or not. There’s nothing shameful about being disabled, but I don’t want to be known as my disability, either. I don’t want that to be my identity.
But I’m hoping to post some of my writing tomorrow for Six Sentence Sunday. Post something I’ve written, albeit just a small bit, online where anyone can see it. It will be the first time I’ve done so since the car accident three years ago. And the truth is, the terrible truth is, my writing is what hurts the most.
Stories have always been a part of my life. They have always been my motivation, why I slogged through everything else - my reason for existing. I wrote novels and hoped to publish, and I fell in love with the writing community and made it my home. I volunteered and organized events. I created an extremely successful and fulfilling teen writing club where I taught creative writing. I was in love with stories, and writing them. I have never not been in love with stories.
(Before I was a writer I was an artist. I’m not going to go into that part of my life in detail, but it was just as heavily affected.)
At the beginning of 2020 I was in a car accident. The driver at fault was pulling out of a bar parking lot in the middle of the day. Make of that what you will. The accident he caused left me with more than a few issues, but for this post I’m focusing on the vision impairment.
Because of COVID, I wasn’t able to seek any diagnosis or treatment until June. I didn’t even begin physical therapy until August. Due to a myriad of issues and unfortunate reasons, I couldn’t complete my treatment. That meant a year and a half of work and struggle went down the drain.
This continues to affect me in many ways. Sometimes it’s things that you might expect - I can’t read Tumblr, or books, most days. Some limitations are less obvious, like how I’m afraid to ask questions (e.g. “what kind of car did Fiona drive?”) because the resources to find the answers myself are out there. Why don’t I just google it? Or reference that amazing spreadsheet someone did? Why am I asking other people to do the work for me? Am I just lazy?
People don’t mean to judge (and I’m sure there are plenty who don’t). But my issues aren’t apparent, so they won’t know unless I take the time to explain it. Able-eyed people should be able to find these simple answers. Just look in the book.
So I don’t ask. Or I apologize a lot for asking. Because it’s just too hard to explain why I need such basic help. (And sadly, some people still don’t believe me and treat me as thought I’m making excuses.)
I lost most of my friends simply for being unable to chat online, particularly during lockdown. I kept three people in my life - the three people willing to break with their comfort zones and talk to me on the phone instead of via text or chat. Those people probably saved my life. I know everyone went through isolation issues in 2020. But I went through them unable to even use a computer or read a book.
Since I’m typing this, you can guess that I’ve recovered somewhat, or made some accommodations that help. Yes. I have. Both of those. But I still have more bad days than good. Typing too long, or playing a phone game, surfing Tumblr - anything done for too long can break my eyes and send me back into total isolation for days.
I was a really good writer. I would regularly write 10-20k every weekend, and I wrote well. I wrote great stuff. (Rough drafts are always rough drafts, but I felt good about what I wrote.) I would sink into a character and go for hours.
Here’s the part that’s relevant to me now: I can’t do that anymore. I can’t write for hours, I can’t take the time to slip into character. I’m doing really well if I can pound out a speedy 1k in 30 minutes and have it not break my eyes. (It usually breaks my eyes.)
If you’re a writer, though - or any kind of creative - you know that the need doesn’t just go away.
(I have tried to record notes on my phone, but I just cannot dictate writing fiction. Only my fingers know how to speak well, and in character. And no, I’m not going to learn braille. It would not be helpful.)
So I’m going to try to write. It’s going to suck, because the things I did to write well before are things I can’t do anymore. I will cry. And then I will wait a week or however long it takes for my eyes to chill the fuck out, and I’ll try again.
(I’ve also started treatment again, just this month. I have to start at square one again, which means it will get worse before it gets better. It will take time, and money - lots of both. Like years. But I can’t give up.)
Anyway. This is why I chose the Simon Snow fandom to try again, for the first time in forever. Because that’s the story, and those are the characters, and these are the people. I know it. So. Hi.
#this is real#some real me stuff in between the fun fandom fluff#reality of disability#actually disabled#vision impairment#keep on#carry on#simon snow series#fandom community#open for voice chat cause really...#questions accepted here#gulp here I go posting now
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Ineffable Interns (?)
New Headcanon for Muriel and Disposable Demon Eric after they become friends via bonding over being the lowest tier demon/angel. (Ineffable Grunts? Ineffable Minions? Ineffable Interns?)
Muriel ends up finding music and falling in love with the likes of Buffy St. Marie, Tanya Tagaq, and The Halluci Nation (as well as Brazilian protest music along the same veins). She is somewhat radicalized by them against the Church and is moving towards having more faith in herself and the Universe than in God and Heaven. Crowley finds himself bemused, but does put in effort to keep her from falling similar to Aziraphale (though she'd be fine on her own). [Little Wheel Spin and Spin] [Tongues] [Colonizer Halluci Nation Remix]
Disposable Demon Eric on the other hand ends up really liking stuff that's a little more fluffy and varied. Think Joker Out, Michael Bublé, Walker and Wylde, etc. He's taking Sanctuary in the bookshop because he's kind of sick of being disposable to people. He, like Crowley, continues to do the right thing for the right reason and goes along with Hell as far as he can (which is less than Crowley could at the same point in Crowley's arc). Eric continues to be brave and ask questions, which Crowley hasn't seen from any other demon and he's kind of impressed tbh. [Carpe Diem - English] [Feeling Good] [Life of the Cursed Intro / Outro]
They still dress in their respective side's colours, with Muriel being modest and liking pale colours (pastels are her fave, especially pastel pink) and Eric continuing along with his black/green goth motif. They like to do a book club once a month. Neither fall into the pitfalls of Crowley/Aziraphale in the way they fall for one another (ie. they figure out that they need to learn how to communicate effectively rather than speaking in nuance), nor do they fall in love in a selfish way like Gabriel/Beelzebub. Their love is the most platonic out of the angel/demon pairings and once they figure out that they won't die from touching one another, they are very physically affectionate with one another. Eric is not jealous if Muriel goes out on a date, though he does pout sometimes because he enjoys her company.
On a separate note, Hastur meeting a human and threatening them only to have the human be like "Oh, who are you? Christopher Columbus? You going to cut off my hands? Chop off my genitals and eat them for lunch? Going to skin my children alive, season them, and have some long pork jerky after fucking their corpses? No? Then get outta here with your nonsense. Anything you're threatening is a faster and less painful way to die than the death my own people offer." And that is how Hastur learns that humans are scarier and more depraved than he could ever hope to be.
#ineffable interns#they're radicalized and want to form a union#good omens#I'm not sorry for this one and I hope you all enjoy the music#Hastur hasn't met a human that he has never been able to put fear into so when he does he's very taken aback
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youtube
Donovan's Missing 5th Leg
Donovan correctly recognizes that masculinity can only be defined by other men, but he fails to provide a reason why they should strive for it together. You have to look at many of his followers to see that a straight dude can never truly appreciate masculinity because his thoughts only revolve around women. In the end, it makes no difference whether this happens in an oppressive or submissive manner; the focus on femininity remains.
They only define their masculinity through women in one way or another, what Donovan himself ironically propagates through his book, contradicting the rest of his striving for manliness with other men, when he describes women as the real purpose of existence for men. However, he resorts – even more contradictorily – to primitive heterosexual chimpanzee sociology as an example, where beating females is typical behavior, and considers this to be more masculine than the balanced bisexual bonobo community with fucking males.
Donovan ultimately reduces his own masculinity to mere acceptance as a male by sexual competitors and females as prey, even though – again contradictorily – he himself was once a gay go-go dancer. The fact that Donovan is seriously engaging with this mindset is truly a betrayal of our cause. We men, who can experience and appreciate masculinity in all its fullness, should stick together to form a stronger androphilic counterbalance instead of identifying with that shit, whether rainbow-flavored or as conservative cunt worship.
Because where is the motivation for men to stick together beyond material things? Where is the real reason for brotherhood?! To me, Donovan's solar cult appears to be just a desert playground for straight bodybuilders to give more dignity to their longing for the oppression of women by alienating old world culture in Walt Disney style, as their accessory. This is even more embarrassing for non-Americans to witness.
Commercialization of Masculinity
This is made all the more impressive by the way he confuses wrestling with this silly shit in the USA, where people just mess around in a ridiculous way for the amusement of others. Is this supposed to save our civilization? Is this now universally masculine? Couldn't lesbians beef up and strive for strength equally well?!
In my culture, craftsmanship and expertise are considered much more typical male characteristics, less bodybuilding and fighting like little boys. That's why I find it a bit idiotic that he puts "fitness" right at the top as a condition for entry into his "Order of Fire". For the fact that he describes himself as sexually "transcended", he still puts nevertheless a lot of emphasis on his bros' muscles, which is pretty homo. :D
If I wanted to start a movement, I would make my books available for free and not expect others to buy or read them as a condition of entry, just to join a club with a monthly fee after a fitness check via video call, and then go "solar" be whatever that means…
To me the whole thing seems more like a hobby lifestyle club rather than something to build a real independent community, let alone something like a true brotherhood. For this you would need more than just muscles, but also technical skills and like-minded patrons who are most likely not physically fit, but who bring in know-how and the necessary money to create self-sufficient infrastructures, if you don't want to just craft stone sun circles with your bodybuilder buddies in the Arizona desert.
In view of this, an Amazon comment of his religious patchwork, the reading of which he makes a requirement for acceptance into his club, seems extremely credible to me:
»
Dilettante loses interest and moves onto the next thing...
Fire in The Dark deals with timeless themes, but is Jack's interest similarly timeless or a passing fancy? Do you want to make an emotional investment in something if he's just going to bin it when he gets bored?
You know Jack: first a go-go dancer in gay clubs...then a Church of Satan devotee...then an Alt. Right outrider...then a masculinity theorist...then a Norse tribalist...now, in his own words, a 'Zeus man'. Wherever you come on board with his work, it seems there'll always come a time when Jack does a volte face, rejects it, throws it all overboard and leaves it behind. Eventually, you have to ask how much he ever meant any of it and how much was a passing phase. I'm not the only one to reach this point:
"It's hard for me to recommend Jack Donovan's books anymore after a couple of years knowing him as a person and seeing that be in complete opposition to his writings...
He was struggling to re-create himself after he was removed from the Wolves, which seems to have led him to some sort of 3%er pro-America stuff, which is a very conflicting set of ideas and values compared with the attitude in Becoming A Barbarian and his former opinions on government...
Someone sent me a screencap of one of his emails where he wished that right wing guys would stop reading his books and burn them...
There was an oath of loyalty and silence in place - which we take very seriously...(but) he also made statements about us in the latest long hit piece put out by some Portland journalist, which I consider to be a form of dry snitching." (Paul Waggener, 2021).
One of Jack's followers recently told him that he was "Like Gandalf - you start something over here and then after a time you move over there and you're onto the next thing." Jack liked it enough to repeat it several times. Me, I'm not sure it's a compliment.
«
—
I guess I've now paid enough attention to him and extracted everything I need for my own work. I had only read his book "The Way of Men" and was thinking about reading the others too. But after this Amazon review and my own analysis, I'd rather save the money. Maybe one of my followers would like to read up on Donovan's application process and train to experience masculinity from the sexually transcended Gandalf personally. But I'm just annoyed that I was so foolish as to see this tattooed spoilage as an androphilic role model. The reason I bothered with him at all was because he is very often quoted as a kind of masculinity prophet. But the whole thing turned out to be more marketing than substantial.
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Hello hello!
Thank you for the amazing headcanons, I loved them with all my heart <3.
If it's okay I would like some headcanons about how Jelly Rollstone feel towards the other neighbors (like if there is a specific neighbor who they like the most).
I love their design and that they are the owner of the neighborhood's public library. (^_^)
ANGLERFISH!
"Oh no... It's daytime, again."
summary. jelly's a hermit and everyone knows that, but not a lot of people are willing to just let jelly be in their library. (headcanons, see author's note at the end)
contents. mentions of anxiety, panic attacks (not descriptive) and a generally unwell mindset. most of it is fine and comedic, i think
✦ Most new neighbors move in the daylight, all happy and smiling, and most definitely ready to get to know the others. Jelly is the unfortunate exception to that and may or amy not have made a few residents not sleep for a couple fortnights.
✦ Jelly moved into town with the help of a personal helper and set up their library before the sun could even wake the neighborhood. They often go out on nightly walks but due to their shy nature, they oull their cape over their head and wander around looking like a ghost.
✦ Everyone was ... concerned about it, panicking even. Some thought it was one of the many forest spirits coming to haunt the town, some thought it was a fairy delivering gifts to good people but some people with common sense insisted it's the newcomer AKA Jelly Rollstone themself.
✦ In the end, Wally and his friends managed to lure out Jelly and had a good chat with them that most definitely did not start with Jelly nearly having a panic attack. Now, whenever someone sees a floating cape going around town, they'll say: "Oh, that's just Jelly. Don't mind them!"
✦ After the whole situation, people became used to Jelly and some even visit their library. It's mostly Wally checking on them and talking through them via a magical phone. Speaking of Wally, why don't we start with the darling himself?
WALLY DARLING!
✦ Out of all the residents, Wally is the only one who Jelly had a proper conversation with. I mean, as proper as you can get by talking on the phone. Regardless of how silly their ways of communication is, Jelly is extremely grateful for Wally taking a time out of his day just to talk with them.
✦ In some shape or form, Jelly sees Wally as an older brother. They wouldn't tell him that though and even if they did, they won't be able to talk to anyone for a couple of weeks out of embarrassment.
✦ Wally appreciates them a lot as a friend, though he worries a lot for their health. It's obvious that Jelly is unwell, physically and mentally, and the little painter tries his best in making sure Jelly's comfortable with the neighborhood. He tries to get them out of their library but to no avail, but he was so close but the shrimps he brought as bribe wasn't enough to convince them.
✦ He's also the only one who knows about Jelly being a writer and that they're the one who wrote most of the books and poems in their library. He keeps it as a secret and have to resist bringing the squid puppet up whenever someone rants to him about their books.
✦ Speaking of Jelly's books, Wally draws the illustrations in their novel in exchange to being their beta reader. Though Wally will never admit, he did cry once or twice while reading their work.
SALLY STARLET!
✦ Sally is the self-proclaimed number one fan of J.E Seamoyr, who is actually Jelly under a pen name. She doesn't know though and she writes Jelly a lot of letters, talking about their books. So much so that Eddie had to put Sally on a mail ban because how much mail he had to deliver to the midmight library every single day, hours even. She also started her own book club and a few neighbors joined much to Jelly's dismay.
✦ Jelly's relationship with Sally is a bit rocky. While Sally want to have a friendly relationship with the squid, Jelly isn't that keen on actually hanging out with Sally and prefers that she stops stepping into their library every single time. They wouldn't mind if she didn't keep interrupt their afternoon naps.
✦ As much as they want to tell Sally to get off their back, they don't have the heart to do so because she reminds them a lot of who they were back then... And also because they don't want to receive another scolding from Wally, he says a lot for someone like his size.
✦ Jelly sometimes writes to Sally as J.E Seamoyr after seeing how happy she is and how it helped her on stage. They might not be as bright as the other residents of the neighborhood, but they can and will appreciate good acting.
EDDIE DEAR!
✦ Jelly fears Eddie for no particular reason and the poor puppet has no idea why. Jelly often goes out when the sun is still rising and has a few run ins with Eddie, they always run away before Eddie could even utter a word to them.
✦ In some way, Eddie is also afraid of Jelly. Unfortunately, he's one of the few people who stumbled across a recently moved in Jelly at 5 am, walking around like a lost ghost. He didn't get any sleep for a couple of days and that cost him many, many late letters.
✦ Weirdly enough, he's one of the extremely few people who have seen Jelly. Only a few parts of them since they still wear their cape over their head and their tentacle-like hair covering half of their face. Eddie always remembers Jelly by the sound of their star pins clanking against each other, he'd sometimes wake up in cold sweat and fear whenever he hears Jelly pass his house at 1 am.
✦ They do slowly develop a stable relationship and Jelly has been able to communicate with him through sign language and writing down on their notebook. Eddie's learning sign language because of them and he even has it written down in his little notepad of many reminders.
HOWDY PILLAR!
✦ Howdy met Jelly a couple of times, mostly because he opens his store early in the morning and Jelly does need supplies for their work, so they visit every friday or thursday.
✦ At first, Howdy found Jelly a bit strange ... Maybe creepy too. But when he saw Jelly's tired-looking face, he couldn't help but be concerned. He somewhat looks after them though, but not as much as Wally does since Jelly doesn't exactly trust him.
✦ They do enjoy his presence though. Calming and reassuring, Jelly would describe it, but they'd rather eat pickled peppers than even say it out loud. Sometimes, they would use sign language to communicate with Howdy but it's mostly awkward small talk as Howdy scans their items.
✦ Howdy would drop by the library whenever it's the weekend or he's on break, pick up a short and simple book by J.E Seamoyr and get wrecked in the most emotional and gut-wretching way as possible. Sally recruited him into her book club after she and Howdy had a cry out over one of Seamoyr's novels. Jelly worries that the book club might turn into a cult one day.
(BONUS) THE READER!
✦ Jelly's relationship with you is ... highly dependent on how you treat them. If you're more soft-spoken and kind, you might become one of Jelly's idols and possibly another beta reader. But if you're loud and rash, they'd avoid you anytime you and them met but they'll probably admire you for your boldness. But if you're like the rest of the residents, then there's only a 40% chance you might be their friend or anything else.
✦ As their lover though, Jelly is a worrywart. They're ways running around, nagging you to be careful and is ... clingy for the lack of better wording. They still give you free autonomy over your life, but their hair (or what assume is hair) will turn white if you keep getting into any weird trouble.
✦ Has probably asked Wally and/or Sally to watch you, so don't be surprised if they start hanging out with you more than usual. Speaking of those two, Wally would absolutely disagree with you being Jelly's lover but will control himself for his little sibling their sake, while Sally is be bouncing off the walls and ask you many questions regarding them, most of them are really personal and touchy though.
✦ But regardless if you're their lover, friend, or whatnot, Jelly has a lot of work dedicated to you and maybe even wrote a character based on you. They'll never publish any novel with that character so you'll have dig deep in their drawers for it.
author's note. hi hello!!! tysm for requestin <33 i always wanted to expand more on jelly since they were my first welcome home oc, i just never got them as full developed as june :")) i decided to do four + you since this is an x reader blog after all
i'll share on info about the others if you guys liked this !!! as always, reqs are open and any support is appreciated <3
random thought but would this be considered a headcanon if it is canon... like oc lore wise ... also check out this other headcanons thing i wrote for jelly
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Lots of new work, some comedy, and an upcoming pub quiz for Galway Pride!
Good evening!
You can get these updates direct to your email inbox here.
So much to cover this week. I have a bunch of event announcements and several media recs - just scroll down to the bottom if you just want my round-up of new works published.
First things first - I've started playing with some buttons on Zazzle, trialling some badge designs for when I'm selling books at conventions next year.
These, and a few other designs, are available on my Zazzle store now! They're obviously quite expensive for individual badges because it's a print-on-demand store, but I'm planning to experiment with some designs over the next year or so, with the hope of selling these sorts of pin badges (as well as stickers and so on) for cheaper later on.
Secondly, I did a comedy set at Ireland's Smallest Comedy Club last week, and I'm going to do another set at Basement Jokes, also here in Galway City, on the 17th of May. If you're up this end of Ireland, come along at 8pm! Basement Jokes is a free entry comedy club, and it's in the basement of The Cellar Bar. Here's the show info.
Thirdly, if you're not in Galway next week but you can make it down the week after, I'll be hosting a pub quiz to help fundraise for Galway Pride this year. There'll be a big quiz with a bunch of rounds, and there'll also be a raffle with prizes from local businesses - there'll be a few signed copies of Heart of Stone in with the other prizes. Quiz entry is €5 per person, and you can find the info here on EventBrite.
A few people have recently approached me about doing book clubs and so on, so I just wanted to state explicitly here that I'm more than happy to answer questions and chat on stream at queer or fantasy book clubs via Zoom or similar! If you're going to have Heart of Stone or any of my other work as your book club pick in Ireland, the North of England, or Bristol, depending on where you are, I might be able to come along in person and sign books and so on! You can reach out with that sort of enquiry at [email protected].
Media Recommendations
Maintenance Phase - Maintenance Phase is a great podcast that Lewis got me into, and I've been catching up on a bunch of their old episodes of recent - Maintenance Phase is put together by Aubrey Gordon and Michael Hobbes, and it's a podcast where they unpack common myths and outright lies told in the wellness and diet industries, especially common fatphobic rhetoric, bad science, and conartistry by fitspo and health "experts". They get so catty with unpacking this stuff and it's so cathartic to listen to, but it's all backed up with good, robust tear-downs of the shitty science behind a lot of what they're tearing apart. If you want to listen to just one episode to see how you feel, I would recommend, Is Being Fat Bad For You?, from 16/11/2021.
Yellowjackets (2021--) - Presumably everyone and their mother has been telling you already to check out Yellowjackets - let me just add to the cacophony of voices and say, absolutely, do it. It's got cannibalism, it's got lesbianism, it's got toxic codependency, it's got mental health issues out the wazoo, it's got all the trauma, it's got a breakdown of the effects of misogyny on young sports women in the 90s, it's got cults, it's got the wildest gore, it's got bears, it's got a classic plane, it's got everything! It's fucked up and it's pretty fucking harrowing, especially in the second series, but I'm very much enjoying it.
Lawn Dogs (1997, dir. John Duigan) - This is such a fun flick, and one that I think I related to a lot in regards to the childhood emotions depicted - this is about a young girl growing up in an isolated gated community and her friendship with a guy who mows lawns and is an outsider to that community. I really fucking dug it, I loved the fairy tale aesthetics contrasted with the miserable reality, loved the unpacking of class and gender feels, loved the trauma, love the particularly scathing depiction of emotional neglect. I did review it, and I also watched the same director's 1994 film, Sirens, which stars Hugh Grant. I was planning to go through Duigan's back catalogue and watch some more of his work, but I just want to forewarn that Thandiwe Newton has accused him of sexual abuse - this has obviously put me off going back through it and has tempered my feelings about the art to say the least. Obviously I believe Newton, and if you are going to watch Duigan's work, make sure to do it in a way that won't give him further payment or aplomb where you can.
For new releases, I watched The Pope's Exorcist (2023, dir. Julius Avery) and Dungeons and Dragons: Honour Among Thieves (2023, dir. John Francis Daley & Jonatham M. Goldstein). These are obviously very different films, one a supernatural horror about an Italian exorcist on a silly little mopend and the other a fucking A++ adventurous romp of a DnD party on a disastrous and delightful campaign - I recommend them, glowingly and with love, in the same breath because both of them feel so completely sincere and earnest in their shameless love of their subject. There's no ironic self-effacement, there's no sarcasm about the plot from within the plot iself, there's no attempts to imply that the characters or the plot are above or superior to others in their genre. Everyone in these movies goes fucking ham, they camp it up, and it's absolutely glorious. I am so tired of Joss Whedon-esque quips about how shitty the tropes are while we're doing the trope - this sort of return to open sincerity is where it's at. I also watched Renfield (2023, dir. Chris McKay), which unfortunately is not nearly as good - I mention it because it's Nicholas Hoult and Nicholas Cage hamming it up as vampires, and there's some fun aesthetics even though the broader execution is unfortunately pretty shit.
I was in a mood for classic musicals this week, and so I went back and watched Fiddler on the Roof (1971, dir. Norman Jewison) which is obviously one of the best film musicals ever made, and also Guys and Dolls (1955, dir. Joseph L. Mankiewicz) and Hello, Dolly! (1969, dir. Gene Kelly). They're fun, silly films, and I'm planning to dive deeper and watch a few more old musicals if I can stay on this kick. If you're in the mood for classic movie M/F/M threesomes, there's obviously Cabaret (1972, dir. Bob Fosse) and Singin' in the Rain (1952, dir. Stephen Donen & Gene Kelly).
I've also been replaying Xenoblade Chronicles (2010) this week, and I really recommend it if you've never played it before! It's a gorgeous game with a beautiful soundtrack and some really fucked up themes around body horror, cannibalism, and war alongside the central fantastical plot, and I love it a lot. It's on a few platforms, but I'm playing the original on the Wii.
New Works Published
Firstly, for some Tumblr stuff, I had:
Some notes about casual sex and hook-ups as a disabled person, for which I would love if people do have resources to contribute!
I gave some advice about approaching the introduction of new characters, especially when coming from a background in fanfic.
And if you're doing Monstrous May, I put together some header images for use on your social medias!
Movie Review: Lawn Dogs (1997, dir. John Duigan)
I talked about this movie a bit in my media recs section, but this review is a more extensive dive into the film's themes, especially class, childhood neglect and isolation, queerness and going stealth, and the social dynamics at play in the film.
On Medium / / On Letterboxd
Erotic Short: Hypnotised
Monstrous May Day #3: Hypnotised - An assistant bartender is drawn in by a vampire.
1k, M/M, rated M. Some sexy hypnosis for the purposes of public blood drinking — no sex. An entry for Day #3 of #MonstrousMay.
On Medium / / On Patreon
Erotic Short: The Tentacle Beast
Monstrous May Challenge Day #5: The Tentacle Beast - A priest makes a pledge to his chapter's master.
Cis M/tentacle beast. Just 600w, short and sweet! For the Monstrous May Challenge 2023.
On Medium / / On Patreon
Fantasy Short: The Many Deaths of Baldr the Undying
One of Odin’s record-keepers interviews the god Loki.
Here’s a big one! 13.6k, rated M for violence, featuring some Loki and Baldr, some Odin scheming off-screen. Lots of delving into and playing with the stories, but with an angel thrown in for flavour.
On Medium / / On Patreon
Fantasy Short: The Injured King
A king seeks out the healing services of a local witch.
Just a little 800w piece.
On Medium / / On Patreon
Fantasy/Romance Short: Paper Houses
A train conductor begins a relationship with a regular passenger.
7k, rated M, M/M. Some sweet autistic 4 autistic love and affection with a build to the relationship and some fantastical elements on the side. Adapted from a TweetFic.
On Medium / / On Patreon
Fantasy Short: Luca's Monster
Cute fiction short! A boy talks to the monster that keeps coming out from under his bed.
1.2k, rated G. Sweet fantasy piece. Adapted from a TweetFic.
On Medium / / On Patreon
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I'm pretty sure I'm arospec. I used to think I would be fine as long as I had a few close, meaningful friendships, but after losing one of those friendships recently, I'm really questioning whether there's any place in the world for someone like me. I'm not sure if I even know what a friend is anymore -- maybe I wanted too much, more than what's 'normal'. I feel like I'm simultaneously too much (for anyone who just wants a regular, casual friendship) and not enough (for anyone who would want to be close to me via a romantic relationship). I'm lonely, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to have the kind of relationships that work for me. I want to believe there's people out there on the same wavelength, but...I thought my former friend was, too, and that didn't turn out very well.
yeah, that's tough, Anon. And people don't talk about it enough, but losing a friend can be just as hard and hurt just as much as any other relationship. I think that's one of the big issues with how loosely we define friendships, it's hard to navigate if you feel the same commitment or meaningfulness for a friend as they do for you. Though of course any type of relationship can break down sometimes.
There are definitely people on your wavelength, and historically (and likely in other modern cultures as well), close platonic bonds have been very valued too. It's not a aro vs allo thing, there are a lot of allo people out there too who do care about this stuff too. The real problem is that as a society we've moved away from community in general and have been losing community spaces.
This is part of why I'm moving more and more towards pushing people in similar situations towards community spaces and finding communities you can belong to on top of fostering friendships. I definitely think you have the right idea with a few close friendship, even if one didn't work out. But I'd also suggesting seeking out community as well. And that can be things like hobbies (maybe a book or knitting club, maybe a DnD group, etc.), volunteering, cultural spaces, queer spaces, etc.
The important thing though is don't give up, Anon. Loneliness is a big modern issue, but people and communities like what you're looking for do exist. The kind of relationships you want with people are reasonable goals. Even if it can be hard sometimes.
All the best and good luck!
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Book Review
I got this book from the library and finished reading it on Thursday night. It was a very wholesome story! It begins sometime in the middle of March and ends at the beginning of May followed by an epilogue in December.
After Leena Cotton has a panic attack in the middle of a presentation at work, her boss gives her a two-month sabbatical. Meanwhile, her 79-year-old grandmother Eileen is looking for a new relationship after the end of a long marriage. However, she lives in a small village where there are slim pickings of eligible single men. Leena and Eileen decide to swap lives so that Leena can get some much-needed rest at her grandmother's house while Eileen stays in Leena's apartment so she can meet some men in London.
Eileen goes on some dates with a man she meets via online dating, gives advice to Leena's roommates, and fixes up an abandoned communal area in the entryway of the apartment building so the tenants can enjoy it. She also starts a club for seniors over 70 so elderly people can meet new friends. Leena takes care of Eileen's everyday projects such as dog-walking, going to meetings with her neighbors, and organizing the annual May Day festival. She also repairs her relationship with her mother as they continue grieving and healing from a death in their family the previous year.
This book was very sweet. I really enjoyed the dynamics and interactions between Leena with her grandma's older friends in the rural village and Eileen with Leena's younger friends in London. There were funny and heartwarming moments within both groups of characters. Living each other's lives allows Leena and Eileen to learn about themselves and figure out who they are as well as what (and who) they're looking for in the next chapter (no pun intended) of their lives.
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“ For everyone that was asking for a webinar about trauma informed martial arts, I gotchuuuuuuuu! I'm running a free webinar about trauma informed body awareness in martial arts. Register to come along live or watch the recording: “
Found here via the The Conscious Combat Community, the actual register link is here.
For more about the concept of ‘trauma informed’ training modalities check out this recent post.
HEMA itself and more generally historical fencing doesn’t tend to have modern self-defense in mind, but it does get practiced amongst people using consensual violence in a variety of contexts, as such trauma of various sorts can come up in a variety of ways that we may not always expect.
Learning more about trauma-informed coaching can be useful even if you’re not an instructor yourself but a beginner and trying to find a healthy training space to flourish in.
For anyone who hasn’t yet seen the following links:
Some advice on how to start studying the sources generally can be found in these older posts
Remember to check out A Guide to Starting a Liberation Martial Arts Gym as it may help with your own club/gym/dojo/school culture and approach.
Check out their curriculum too.
Fear is the Mind Killer: How to Build a Training Culture that Fosters Strength and Resilience by Kajetan Sadowski may be relevant as well.
“How We Learn to Move: A Revolution in the Way We Coach & Practice Sports Skills” by Rob Gray
Another useful book to check out is The Theory and Practice of Historical European Martial Arts (while about HEMA, a lot of it is applicable to other historical martial arts clubs dealing with research and recreation of old fighting systems).
Why having a systematic approach to training can be beneficial
Worth checking out are this blogs tags on pedagogy and teaching for other related useful posts.
Consider getting some patches of this sort or these cool rashguards to show support for good causes or a t-shirt like to send a good message while at training.
And stay safe
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I have a few crack predictions, some realistic and some not:
-The whole team comes out as some kind of queer person and Colin's dream has come true
-We get Michael this episode (and if they win Colin gets to kiss him, maybe not in front of the cameras but surrounded by his friends)
-Totally ripped off another person's post but the team finds out Ted's leaving and they all run to the airport to stop him rom-communism style
-Trent will once again be serving cunt
-I am a TedTrent girly so I desperately want another interaction
-Bex and Rupert break up and she gets the club :)))
-Say Ted does leave to Kansas and we see him there, I want him to mention his boys are coming for a visit soon 🥺🥺
-Roy and Keeley back together, and they're in a throuple with Jamie
-I kinda wanna see Henry again this episode??? Like maybe even if it's just via FaceTime and Henry is the one that convinces Ted to stay in London (because if the whole reason Ted is leaving London is for his son, then I think his son should be the one to convince him to stay)
-I WANT TED TO CALL THE TEAM HIS BOYS AND TELL THEM HOW PROUD HE IS OF THEM OKAY IS THAT SO MUCH TO ASK FOR?????
-I want Richard and Jan to have some more screen time I love them so much 🥺🥺
This went off the rails a bit but yeah 👍 this is my list what do you think???
Ahhhh thank you!!
Gonna take these one by one.
1. I think there are a few token straights in there, but definitely few and far between! Someone call Oprah, stat!
2. Yes yes yes. Before Amsterdam I was convinced that Colin was going to kiss Michael after a match or something and prove Nate wrong when he told Colin he doesn't inspire people. Notably, I thought he would inspire Baz to introduce his West Ham boyfriend to the pub gang. But then Colin said he didn't want to be a spokesperson, so I think maybe at a post-season or leaving party. Having said that I think that Colin and Will are adorable and should date.
3. YES. I saw this post too! Absolutely love this idea and want it to be true more than any other theory. He has won them over (even Roy!) with the Romcommunism. And the absolute chaos of all of them running through the airport would be a thing of beauty.
4. When is Trent not?
5. I too have fallen prey to the Tedependent brain rot. They have to talk about the book surely? And Ted HAS to ask Trent what he is doing next, right?? I mean, in a world where the ship became canon there are a million different scenarios I would be happy with. Trent doing the airport dash (maybe with the himbos as support), Trent saying nothing and Ted realising when he read the book which is just a long love letter, Trent turning up on the plane to Kansas, something in the press room, they go out for a meal to relive their first date interview... the list goes on.
6. Yes. 100% think this will actually happen. Slightly more on the cracky side: Rebecca and Bex are slowly going to get all the Premier League owners' wives to take over the clubs 🤣
7. Beard and Rebecca are going to arrange some friendly matches for Richmond to play against US Teams so everyone will visit.
8. Wouldn't be mad about Roy/Jamie/Keeley if it happened. It would certainly make sense after the last few episodes! Phoebe would be over the fucking moon. She is gonna be one rich niece! 🤣
9. I think Henry will play a big part for sure. Either he stops Ted from leaving, convinces him to go back to London because he's unhappy, or he moves to London. I am sort of half convinced it's the last one because they have been laying the ground work for it with the bullying and the failing science and the fact he doesn't seem to care too much for Dr. Jacob.
10. There will for sure be one last locker room speech, but I am kinda holding out for him winning Manager of the Season and saying something like that then and making everyone (especially me) cry.
11. Richard and Jan both crack me up. I am so grateful that we have gotten more of the team this series, but there's never enough time 😩
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Make Your Own Values: Introducing Tarot in Community
We must be critical of new age practices even as we work with them.
New age spirituality easily slides towards the right because it easily slides.
It's malleable. It's individual.
That individualism leaves new age practices without an inherent values system.
They can be picked up by anyone. They can be used in any way.
Some of the practices that fall under "new age" were once part of much older systems of belief. Stripping such practices of their origins made them easier to sell.
This is why much of new age practice is ideal for capitalist individualism.
The 1/6 "shaman." Trump's Christian witch (look it up.) The person who says a vegan diet and crystal meditation will cure an active cancer diagnosis.
These people are united in using these modalities on the side of hate.
Because there's no organized new age values, no real elders, and the isolation of practitioners from one another, there's no other side. No collective force is mounting an opposition.
Tarot is neither ancient, nor new age.
It's a lifted tool used for leisure time play by Italy's colonizer class.
Yet because of its inclusion in new age spaces, we're wise to be wary of the way its archetypes are universalized and depoliticized.
Tionfi, the playing card game upon which tarot is based, was, well, a game.
The archetypes that shaped it were exported with European colonialism. They were codified with the founding of the United States over the bodies of Indigenous and Black people.
They exist in our laws, our culture, and in our bodies.
Tarochi, what Tionfi became, emerged in the early 1500s. By 1526, the first enslaved Africans reached the United States.
Tarot is as old as that. Tarot is as young as that.
It's no surprise it can be hard to peg it. We know a fair amount about tarot's history as a playing card game.
We know little when it comes to its history as a tool of divination. What we have are compelling historical anecdotes and conjecture.
So, in the immortal words of Rihanna, "what now?"
We find our own values and let them guide our practice.
Values form our ethics.
Values and ethics guide our actions. Ethics and actions decide whether we are a safe reader, let alone a good one.
When we're clear about and acting in alignment with our values, we seek out people who are doing the same.
I hope Tarot in Community can be one of those places.
If you're ready to join Tarot in Community, here's a rundown of what the next month of your life will look like:
Now--October 30th, 2023
Course: Tarot for Liberation
This is the first course in Tarot in Community!
Courses will be delivered via the app and the internet once every quarter. One segment will be made available each week until the whole course is visible.
This is called a "drip course." Right now, I am opting for drip courses in Tarot in Community so that people are able to learn at a slower pace.
If you're anything like me, you may be tempted to watch every video available in the course, then experience burnout, then be surprised when the course wasn't fun anymore.
In a couple of weeks, you'll have that option lol. But for now, let's take it slow and ease into this learning community!
Thursday, October 5th at 7pm ET
Welcome Party
We're having a party! Come meet the other members of Tarot in Community and celebrate learning tarot to merge it with our work in the world!
Thursday, October 12th at Noon ET
Tarot Reading Swap
Come Flex Your Tarot Muscles! Tarot in Community's monthly reading swap will give you a chance to practice with others and sharpen your skills
Saturday, October 21st at Noon ET
Workshop: The Emperor Beyond Gender
The Emperor is a card that makes a lot of queer people feel, uh, very uncomfortable.
But it's not as gendered you think in a capitalist society. We'll talk about how patriarchy is a learned behavior, minor arcana influences, and feminism (of course!)
Thursday, October 26th at 7pm ET
Book Club Check-In
The monthly check-in for our quarterly shared read.
That may be confusing, so let me explain!
We'll read 4 books together per year. That's one per quarter. But we'll meet once per month to check in about how the book is progressing.
Make sense? If not, ask me questions.
I'll update the event name once we pick a book at our welcome party and in a poll on on the feed in Mighty Networks for folks who can't make it!
You can learn more about Tarot in Community here.
If you're ready to join, click here 😁
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