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[noblemaidenfell]

in light of this post by @incomingalbatross saying that we should write like ourselves:

... if we really want to write like Tolkien ... we shouldn’t specifically be trying to write like linguists, or historical experts, or veterans, or or or... We should try to write like people who’ve gathered all their favorite and most important things together, and are playing with the stuff those things are made of just for the joy of it. We need to write like ourselves.

let's make a little list of what makes our writing ours:

what's your Shire? as in: what's a place you remember fondly and love? (or: some place you hated, some place vivid to you, etc.)

what is your Hobbit culture? as in: values were you brought up in, culture you grew up with, etc.

who is your Tom Bombadil? as in: a character you loved as a child, in existence or from your imagination, a figure that took place in a lot of your play, etc.

what are your elves and dwarves? as in: something you studied or know a lot about, something you can geek out about, etc.

what are your middle earth languages? as in: something you have expertise in due to a career, a hobby, something you love, etc.

what are your themes? as in: something you've grown up knowing, like loss, something you know intimately, something you know because of your area/history/time/era, etc.

what is your moral of the story? as in: a guiding value, a life motto, faith/spirituality, etc.

To close, a quote from that same post:

What makes [Middle-Earth] good is that every element that went into it was an element J. R. R. Tolkien knew and loved and understood. He brought it out of his scholarship and hobbies and life experience and ideals, and he wrote the story no one else could have written... And did it so well that other people have been trying to write it ever since.

[noblemaidenfell]

women with swords. men with swords. everyone with swords . you agree. reblog

[noblemaidenfell]

So I was listening to The Sound of Silence and I really like it for reasons I can’t explain, especially the hard to quantify dystopian blend of modern and ancient spirituality and it reminded me of City of Sorrows by Fernando Ortega which I also really like but don’t completely understand.

//And the people bowed and prayed//To the neon god they made//And the sign flashed out its warning//In the words that it was forming//And the sign said, The words of the prophets are written on the subway walls and tenement halls//And whispered in the sound of silence

//By the waters of Babylon//Still and deep//The sun rose at midnight//I was not asleep//I saw a man with a javelin//A carriage of steel//His eyes burned like sapphires//Wheels turning in wheels

//I saw aluminum angels//Arrayed like a choir//Hailstones falling//Rivers of fire//By the waters of Babylon//I sank down in shame//Covered in ashes//I called out your name

[noblemaidenfell]

Lord of the Rings somehow perfectly unites the bone-deep nausea and unglamorous weariness that comes from facing a threat you rationally know you can’t win against with the peace, the warmth, even the thrill that is an inherent effect of choosing to fight for what is right, of not compromising, of standing with the people you love against the forces that threaten them and you and all goodness. And Tolkien never overplays that glow that comes from choosing goodness as a silly or sentimental high, as something that lasts long or that outweighs the grim endurance necessary to deal with fighting a losing battle. in fact, MOST of the time the heroes primarily have to deal with that uglier feeling as their constant companion with that better, more positive feeling barely even appearing—but that better feeling is still somehow the emotional and psychological bedrock of what keeps each of the heroes whole and what separates them from their despairing counterparts. just the fact that choosing to persevere, to have faith in the darkness, to hope when all seems hopeless, to make the act of goodness one more time is what keeps you sane, keeps you upright, keeps you moving forward, holds you back from hurtling into the abyss of madness and chaos and sin and despair even if you feel like you’re dancing on the edge …. that kills me.

[noblemaidenfell]

god can’t stop thinking about that post talking about how lightning is a representation for abuse and how lightning redirection is Zuko letting it pass through him but not destroy him and now I can’t stop thinking about how Iroh refuses to conjure lightning because Iroh, unlike Ozai, loves Zuko as if Zuko were his own son. and how Zuko specifically teaches Aang how to redirect lightning, because Aang is 13 now, and Zuko probably seems himself in Aang. sees his own 13 year old self begging for his father’s forgiveness, his father who burned half of his face off just for speaking out of turn. how he probably is scared sending this kid off to go face his father because Zuko knows that his father has no issue with murdering a child. and how Aang shows Ozai mercy by redirecting the lighting back into the sky and not killing him, shows him the mercy that he couldn’t and wouldn’t show to his own son. and all of it on the 100th anniversary of the Air Nomad’s genocide, no less. just like how when Aang first entered the avatar state, Ozai tried to burn his face in the same spot he burned Zuko’s, but Aang smacks his hand away, like a subtle way of standing up for Zuko in that moment, standing against the abuse Zuko went through, standing up for his friend. and how lightning redirection was invented by Iroh by watching waterbenders, water being an element of change and healing. god damn. god it fucking hits different. shut up this is literally the best show ever, literally nothing will ever top it.

[noblemaidenfell]

There is no pain like drawing on the wrong layer

i love listening to my fiancée drawing

“no stop” “oh no i didn’t mean to do that” “wRONG LAYER” “wait go back” “what line is that?!” “cAN YOU– [irritated noises]” “oh you…bastard” “what..layer is that on??”

she’s so cute djksfh

[noblemaidenfell]

King Arthur's sword Excalibur and the hand emerging from the lake

[noblemaidenfell]

Castle St. Michael’s Mount, Cornwall England

© Chris Hayward

[noblemaidenfell]

But really why is this not something I am able to do

Literally all I want is to be able to shoot fire from my hands like is that REALLY so much to ask???

[noblemaidenfell]

This is what I feel like right now

[noblemaidenfell]

Pro-choicers shut up forever challenge.

[noblemaidenfell]

Somehow each of these lines up almost perfectly with each of my four main characters, this is excellent

So, I’m still obsessed with The Golden Four classification of characters, and lately I’ve been having some thoughts that have streamlined my definitions for the categories.

This system (as I’ve started to approach it) classifies characters based on how they deal with problems. Characters can fit under multiple categories (and a lot of the most beloved fit all four), but they tend to have a primary approach that dominates.

Savior: Solves problems. They know the way they want the world to be, and they’ll take direct action to make it that way. If they have a problem, they’ll attack it head-on. If you have a problem, they’ll do everything they can to solve it for you. These make for great heroes who’ll do anything to help others, but they can also make fantastic villains, because they can be so confident in their way of doing things that they’ll solve problems without worrying about how it affects the people around them.

Trickster: Dodges problems. If a problem shows up, they’ll manipulate the system or the circumstances so the problem goes away or so the consequences don’t affect them. These people can be self-centered manipulators, who’ll lie and cheat and abuse loopholes to achieve their goals, but they can also use their talents for benevolent purposes, subverting the strictures of society to come up with creative solutions that benefit everyone.

Genius: Retreats from problems. Geniuses have a particular area of expertise, and they rely on this to solve their problems. They may also use their knowledge as a way to retreat from problems, preferring to focus on their special interest rather than address any of the bigger problems in their lives. They can be either heroes or villains depending on how they use their talents, but they tend to be self-reliant, focusing on their own skills as the way to deal with problems, though they can often contribute their skills to a team effort.

Martyr: Endures problems. If a problem shows up, they will use their internal fortitude to deal with whatever unpleasantness life forces them to deal with. These people can be passive because they don’t take action to solve their problems, but sometimes the problems can’t be solved by direct action, and these people are heroic for how patiently they endure hardship. They can be among the most selfless people, willing to take on hardships for the sake of sparing other characters suffering, but they can also be selfish, wallowing in their problems and blaming the world for difficulties rather than taking action.

[noblemaidenfell]

[grabs your shirt] listen. listen to me. the practical is holy. the everyday is sacred. the simple act of surviving is divine. do you get it? sanctity begins at home, in the hands that build and the lives we live and the deaths we die and the worms that eat our bodies. if making something by hand is not worthy of veneration then nothing is.

[noblemaidenfell]

Flaming sword just fits my aesthetic

UGH! It is so dark and rainy out this morning, I seriously did not want to get out of bed this morning. I need to brighten up my day. Maybe this will help ;)  

[noblemaidenfell]

Important

In case you writers ever wondered. Made by Carrie Patrick on Facebook.

[noblemaidenfell]

are u the blue coded character or the red one pls answer its important