wildjuniperjones

[wildjuniperjones]

have you lot heard about the tiktoker who’s taking on the actual government over a parking ticket? because she’s a hero

[wildjuniperjones]

[wildjuniperjones]

sometimes with conversations about anti-intellectualism in media, it's hard to gauge what is reality from what is a sensational fearmongering echo chamber. there certainly are a lot of well-written and vigorously edited books being published at all times, and it is the responsibility of good readers to seek those out.

but i do think booktuber marines is correct in her analysis that many mainstream and modern books, especially in fantasy and romance, have seen a sheer drop in the deftness and subtlety of their storytelling in the past 5 or so years. even books with the most intellectual aspirations such as babel are very heavy-handed in their messaging, to the point where they read more like an essay than successful fiction with dimensional characters and organic plotting--despite being lauded as exemplary novels.

and many of the other tentpole books right now are poorly concealed rpf/fanfic or even openly marketed as such, wholly dependent on another author's story and success rather than even attempting to carve their own identity and stance.

this is a result of booktok and readership blowing up after the pandemic, and publishers sacrificing quality for quantity to meet the new market demand. it is genuinely fantastic that more people became readers after the pandemic but there's been an unfortunate breakdown of standards for what qualifies an original, artistic, and engaging work, as well as even what an author ought to be able to accomplish skill-wise before being considered for publication

[wildjuniperjones]

one of my major gripes with a lot of contemporary novels is that it feels like you're never allowed to think for yourself and themes are communicated either with incredibly heavy-handed metaphor or by having a character straight-up turn to the camera and say them to the audience

but i'm in this beta reading group and now i'm getting some insight into why that might be, mainly in how people respond to writing that doesn't do that. they don't like being expected to do this mental legwork themselves. they see it as the writer passing off the difficult burden of interpretation onto the audience, resulting in a text that is unnecessarily "hard", opaque, and confusing. being expected to connect ideas that are not explicitly spelled out is treated as though it's totally unreasonable, because part of the writer's job, in their mind, is to make sure the reader is never confused or uncertain.

it just depresses the fuck out of me to see how people who identify as "bookish" before anything else just have zero interest in expending mental effort when they read

[wildjuniperjones]

The thing about growing up with undiagnosed autism is that you’re a bad kid. And you don’t know how to stop being a bad kid. But you’re pedantic, you hate hugs, you’d rather be alone than attend a family gathering, you play by yourself instead of with friends or family, you make mealtime impossible, you can’t even look your parents in the face, you lie to get out of going to school and when you’re there you complete your assignments correctly but in a way that is somehow inherently wrong. You’re wrong. There is something wrong with you and you can’t identify it or fix it. You can’t begin to explain it. You pull for justifications and apologies. You were a bad kid and there was nothing you could do to be better.

[wildjuniperjones]

“my teenage child is so selfish” is an interesting thing I only see online moms say about their daughters. I’ve never seen one say it about their son. I think it’s because daughters enter the teenage years and begin developing critical thinking skills and independence and it enrages these parents who were using their kids as their own little therapists and unpaid domestic laborers.

[wildjuniperjones]

I think using archaic terms to get around censorship should be the norm. Calling rape ‘grape’ or using the grape emoji is ridiculous, if they’re not going to let us use the correct terminology, let’s go back to saying ‘outraged’. Calling murder ‘unaliving’ or ‘m-word’ is also fucking ridiculous. Let’s start using ‘slain’ again. They can’t ban ‘slay’ and ‘slayed’ because it is such a ubiquitous slang term that going back to the other meaning of the word would be a perfect way to skirt the censors.

[wildjuniperjones]

Approximately 50% of marriages end in divorce and only around 8% of trans people detransition (with 62% of detransitioners subsequently transitioning again) so I think we should stop infantilizing trans people and hammering them over and over with “What if you regret this?” comments and start turning that scrutiny towards people who are engaged as they are statistically much more likely to regret their decision and suffer for it.

[wildjuniperjones]

fuuuuck i just realized that the future idealized version of myself cant exist without current me being the catalyst for change and doing hard things. has anybody heard about this

[wildjuniperjones]

(person who learned from childhood to make themself as small and unimportant as possible to avoid being a burden) yeah its okay we dont have to do my thing if you dont want i dont mind

[wildjuniperjones]

saddest thing that can happen to 2 guys with freak shit going on is people calling them boyfriends. yes i know theyve got something homosexual going on but brother it is NOT that

[wildjuniperjones]

Blue Pearl

[wildjuniperjones]

[wildjuniperjones]

i don’t like white ppl skewing these results so bad so WHITE PPL DNI. this is for poc ONLY

if you’re technically mixed but only identify with one thing, pick that one thing.

if you’re mixed with enough white that you consider it part of your racial identity, skip this one ty luv.

if you’re gonna ask “you forgot XYZ, is this white?” probably man idk. skip this one too.

pls rb for sample size god knows we’ll need it

[wildjuniperjones]

Flaws and Quirks in Male Characters That I’m BEGGING Writers to Explore

✧ Dudes who are bad at sports. Yes, Chad, not every male character needs to throw a perfect spiral in high school. Let him get hit in the face with a dodgeball. Let him (please) suck.

✧ The “pretty boy” who's not vain, just vibing. Like he knows he looks like he walked out of a Renaissance painting but has the self-esteem of a lost ferret.

✧ Shy, awkward boys who don’t magically become suave by Chapter 6. No, he’s still weird at parties and says “you too” when the waiter says “enjoy your meal.”

✧ Flirtatious guys who are actually super respectful. He's flirty but not a walking lawsuit. Shocker. He’s playful, not predatory.

✧ Male friendships that aren't emotionally constipated. Yes, two guys can say “I love you, bro” and not immediately punch each other to cancel it out.

✧ The soft-spoken leader. He doesn’t need to scream orders or have a “gruff, commanding voice.” He just talks, and people shut up and listen because he’s competent.

✧ Dudes with weird hobbies. like, your guy MC collect antique spoons or have a YouTube channel rating old vacuums. Why not. It’s his passion.

✧ Guys who are clingy and insecure in relationships. Not abusive, just genuinely terrified of being left on read for too long. He's trying his best, ok?

[wildjuniperjones]

you know, I've been thinking, after this trail of carnage, I might just hang my sword up. just gotta slay these last few villains and I'll have evil solved, and there will be a place for me in this peaceful world I've created. with the sword.

[wildjuniperjones]

people with chronic pain will go “ why can’t I sleep well? Why am I crying for no reason? Why am I getting frustrated easily ?” Not yet realizing their pain got worse