#And I've recently become obsessed with her solo stuff

[morimess]

FILL ME UP

POUR ME OUT

WASH HER NAME OUT OF MY MOUTH

I AM READY TO BE CLEAN

BURN MY LUNGS AND SHE WAS GONE

LONG BEFORE THE LIGHTS WENT ON

GOD I HOPE SHE'S DONE WITH ME

DO YOU BEG?

DO YOU PRAY?

TELL ME HOW YOU GET AWAY

FROM THE VOICES IN YOUR HEAD

I AM LOST

I'VE BEEN DONE

LONG BEFORE THE LIGHTS WENT ON

SOMEONE PLEASE PUT ME TO BED

Cause I-

I AM NOT WELL

[scrybe-scott]

The Silver Circle Character Intros!

I figured it's about time I posted one of these, so I'm doing it for the WIP I've been working on the most! These are just going to be little snippets about each character, so read on if you're interested in my writing or in fantasy wips in general!

Apologies for the delay for those who saw my other post about this, I’ve been BUSY.

Also, I'm going to be keeping this to the core cast for now. Keep in mind this is them as we start the story! Things here can and will change over the course of the book.

The Good Guys

Bran Brightwood - orphan taken in off the streets by Apprentice Librarian to Orulin the Wise, a powerful and ancient wizard. He's been living in the Tower of , keeping things tidy in exchange for a place to live. He picks up bits and pieces of magic from the wizard that runs the place, whenever he’s in. He’s a bit nervous around people, having spent most of his youth and the first year of his adult life in the Tower, and prefers to let his best friend Arryn do the talking. A human, he’s not particularly attuned to any of the cool fantasy stuff going on, but damned if he’s not interested in it. Has read more books than medically advisable. Arryn - Pickpocket, master attempter of stealth, Bran’s best friend, general moron. We love him. He’s been looking after Bran for as long as either of them can remember, and when Bran got taken in, Arryn insisted they were a package deal. After some pleading from Bran, Orulin accepted on the grounds that Arryn not be allowed to touch anything, ever. When that didn’t pan out, for obvious reason, Arryn’s restrictions loosened, though he wasn’t allowed into the Archives. That’s fine by him, though, as he prefers to spend his days down at the tavern or exploring the city. Kyra - A young half-Drakarran in training to become a Pale Warden. Her Mentor, Torren, has trusted her with a solo mission to help an old friend of his. She's eager to prove herself, especially as one of the few Drakarrans in the Wardens, but retains a sense of superiority around non-Wardens. Her work, she reckons, makes her more important and useful than her traveling companions. Mutual hatred shared with Arryn because of this. Throgg - An Ular mercenary recently discharged from the Iron Fang, a guild of monster hunters. He spends most of his days at the Hawk and Bishop tavern, taking on whatever work he can find. Owes Orulin a life debt, though as more time passes without the wizard calling on him to repay it, the more unsure he is about their deal. Big old grump, unless he knows you. Then he's just a regular grump. Aelar Lorhalien - Bright Prince of the Caeloran Dominion, an ancient Aetheri kingdom that’s recently had a coup under new management. He’s come to Orulin, an old traveling companion of his, for help. Obsessed with the history of his people, Aelar has devoted most of his century or so of life to the study of the mysteries of the Aetheri people, particularly interested in the pre-Aether times. He’s a bit snobbish and out of touch with the outside world, but Aelar is fiercely loyal to people who make themselves his ally. Lucian Arkalis - Master Wizard, Veteran Adventurer, and former apprentice to Orulin, Lucian is a bit of a loner. He studies applied magics in his effort to help his teacher unravel the mysteries of the Aether. Not ostentatious like some other wizards, he keeps his robes and staff simple. Spends most of his time traveling, as he believes magic is best used in active help of others. Twilly Whindlespring - Born to Hillfolk parents in a Stonefolk kingdom, Twilly is a product of both cultures. Her Stonefolk upbringing taught her to speak her mind, possibly at inopportune or inappropriate times, but her Hillfolk culture reminds her to always be chipper about it. Picking up a love of cartography from her father, Twilly is on a quest to create the first-ever map of the entire world. She won’t let anything stop her. Trenton Stoneroot- Ser Trenton Stoneroot is a knight. Mostly in name, as his father is the Duke of Ravencrest, the northernmost bastion of the Felean League. He’s noble, reliable, maybe a little too trusting, and dreams of one day becoming one of the Kingsworn, the High King’s most trusted and skilled personal guards.

The Bad Guys

The Children of the Forgotten One - a cult worshipping an old, dead god. One they are not supposed to remember. They will not rest until everyone does. The lucky among them are granted incredible powers and equipment to aid them in their goals. The less fortunate become Forgotten: warped, mindless creatures bent only on destruction. Astrid - the Cult’s foremost political asset. Has infiltrated the Felean League’s High Council and works from the inside, unbeknownst to any of our heroes. Incredibly brilliant and almost supernaturally persuasive. The head of the operation. Gabriel - Forgotten General. Leads and gathers a supernatural army for his god. Is the most religious of the big 3 villains, and is a zealot for the cause. Will do anything and kill anyone that gets in the way of his divine mission. Donovan - Mercenary leader of the Dragon’s Ire, a group contracted by Astrid to carry out more discreet operations. Not too big on the cult stuff, but the coin’s good, and a place in the new regime ain’t too bad, either.

That’s it for now! I tried to keep it short, this went on way longer than I meant it to lol. Like I said, feel free to ask any questions!

Edit: Oh, and for anyone curious what I mean when I say Aetheri, Ular, Drakarran, etc, check out my second answer here!

[jadelotusflower]

June 2021 Roundup

It's been a month of highs and lows. Every year my city holds a cabaret festival, and I've seen some truly amazing acts over the years - including Lea Salonga, Kristin Chenoweth, and Indina Menzel. This year's Artistic Director was the great Alan Cumming, and although due to covid he didn't quite get to curate the program he wanted to, the opening night Gala was still a highlight, as was Alan's DJ set at the pop-up Club Cumming afterwards, where there was much singing at the top of my lungs and dancing to pop anthems and theatre tunes. At one point Alan, dressed in a onesie and perched on the shoulders of a man wearing only sparkly short shorts, was carried around the dance floor while Circle of Life blared. Reader, I was delighted.

I was also able to see his solo show Alan Cumming Is Not Acting His Age, which was hilarious and damn, he can sing!

As for the low, I was meant to fly to Sydney for the weekend to see Hamilton, a trip I have been looking forward to for almost a year, but had to be cancelled because of a covid outbreak and border closures. The tickets have been rescheduled, but I'm still kind of bummed about it (while completely appreciating the need for covid safety, especially when our vaccine rollout has been completely botched by our incompetent, corrupt federal government)

Anyway.

Reading

The Hundred and One Dalmations (Dodie Smith) - With all the bewilderment over Disney's Cruella, I decided to revisit the original novel which I first read as a kid. It's funny, I had very vivid memories of this book, or rather thought I did, particularly the scene where Roger and Anita have dinner at Cruella's house that fixed in my young mind as utterly disturbing with all this devil imagery and the implication Cruella was literally some kind of demon, which must have been either a) my overactive imagination or b) an illustration, because it's not as clear as I thought it was. The strangeness is there (food with too much pepper, Cruella's inability to keep warm, the walls painted blood red) but not the explicit demon imagery I had remembered. There is a part later in the book recounting the history of Hell Hall and the rumors of Cruella's ancestor streaking out of the place conjuring blue lightening, but clearly child me was reading far more into the book than was on the page.

But I still wish they'd gone with this version of Cruella's backstory, because to me an aristocratic, ink-drinking, heat-obsessed, possibly-demon spawn, high camp villain is more interesting and rings far more true than plucky punk against the establishment.

Smith clearly had Facts About Dalmations to share, and she does really craft a wonderful animal-based story that the Disney animated film is largely faithful to. Key differences include: Roger's occupation (he doesn't have to pay tax because he wiped out government debt somehow?!?), Pongo's mate and the puppy's mother is called Missis, Perdita is another dalmation who acts as a kind of doggie wet nurse, Roger and Anita both have Nannies who come to live with them (Nanny Butler and Nanny Cook), Cruella is married to a furrier (who changed his last name to de Vil). Also odd, on her first description Cruella is described as having "dark skin" but later in the novel her "white face" is mentioned, so I'm chalking it up to 50's descriptors not having the same meanings they do today.

The Duke and I (Julia Quinn) - After being just whelmed by the tv series, I wasn't really planning on reading the books, but I saw this on the top picks shelf at the library and damn, the top picks shelf is irresistible. This is very much Daphne's book (and I had known each in the series dealt with the different sibling) so many of the characters and much of the plot of the show is absent, as are some of the more baffling elements of the show like the Diamond of the First Water nonsense, which I always thought was a strange character choice in that it stacks the deck for Daphne when her character arc is better served as somewhat of an underdog (in her third season, the kind of girl who is liked but not adored), and the Prince subplot which was always far too OTT even for soapy regency romance.

It's a breezy, fun read (that scene excepted), even if the misunderstandings are contrived and I'm never going to take "I'll never have kids because I hate my dad" as a credible romantic obstacle deserving of so much angst.

Faeries (Brian Froud and Alan Lee) - A lovingly detailed and illustrated compendium of Faerie and its inhabitants, drawing from a range of European (but primarily Celtic) folklore and mythology. Froud was a conceptual designer on The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth, and the link is clear in the art as well as the focus on faeries as mysterious but oftimes sinister beings, where human encounters with them rarely end well. Lee has illustrated several publications of Tolkien's novels, and was a lead concept artists for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, and there is a touch of Middle Earth here as well, or rather the common inspiration of the old world. A useful resource for my novel!

Watching

The Handmaid's Tale (season 4, episodes 4-8) SPOILERS - So when I last wrote about this show in the Roundup, I was complaining it wasn't going anywhere. Well, I'm happy to be wrong because they finally changed things up with June finally escaping to Canada. That part of the plot following the survivors and their trauma has always been far more compelling than Gilead, and so it was a welcome development even if I side-eye some of the choices (none of these characters is seeing an actual licensed therapist why?).

This show has always been difficult to watch given the subject matter, and that has not changed after the shift in power dynamics. I will give the show credit for showing a broad range of trauma responses, from Moira wanting to move on and not let it consume her, to June, a ball of rage and revenge on a downward spiral, to Emily, trying to follow Moira's path but being drawn to June's, to Luke, trying his best but utterly unequipped to deal with what is happening.

But it is very hard to watch June go down this path - raping her husband (I concede the show perhaps didn't intend for it to be rape, but that's what is on screen and framing it as just "taking away Luke's agency" doesn't change that), wishing death on Serena's unborn child, and orchestrating Fred's brutal murder by particulation, then holding her own daughter still covered in his blood and it getting smeared on Nicole's face (an unsubtle metaphor in a series full of unsubtle metaphors).

There are interesting questions being asked of the viewer, and the show (perhaps rightly) not giving any answers. I can certainly appreciate the catharsis of Fred getting what he deserves even if I personally find the manner of it horrifying, but where is the line between justice and revenge, is revenge the only option when justice is denied, when does a trauma release become cyclical violence/abuse - the show is, for now, letting the viewer decide.

Soul (dir. Pete Docter and Kemp Powers) - In a world full of remakes/reboots/sequels, Pixar is perhaps the lone segment under the Disney umbrella committed to original content. However, there does seem to be a Pixar formula at work directed to precision tugging the heart strings, and some of the film feels like well-trod ground. On the other hand, it's hard to criticise the risk of centering a kids film around the existential crisis of a middle aged man, even with the requisite cutesy elements (and of course, the uncomfortable pattern of yet another film where the black lead character spends a great deal of the runtime in non-human form - herein, an amorphous blob or a cat). But the animation is stunning, it successfully did tug my heart strings, and the design of the Great Before and the Jerrys is original and fun.

RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under - Drag Race is somewhat of a guilty pleasure for me, since I generally don't watch reality shows, and this is something I really enjoy even if I'm not invested in the fandom (which like many fandoms can be very yikes). This year it was time for the Australian/New Zealand (Aotearoa) queens to show their stuff, although it's been met with mixed reactions. Covid restrictions didn't allow for guest judges, relegating them to mere cameos via video calls, and its clear that Ru and Michelle really don't quite get all the cultural nuances - Aussie judge Rhys Nicholson was however always delightful. But it wouldn't be Australia without a racism scandal, with the great disappointment of the two queens of colour eliminated first, and one queen having done blackface in the recent past yet making it all the way to the top four.

In the end, the only viable and deserving winner was last Kiwi standing Kita Mean, and it was pure joy to see her get crowned. I do hope they fix the bugs and indeed do another season to better showcase AU/NZ talent.

Writing

A far more productive month - to try and get out of my writing funk I had a goal to try and write every day, even if it was only 100 words. While I didn't quite achieve a consecutive month, I did get a pretty good average, at least got something posted and two others nearly there.

The Lady of the Lake - 2441 words, Chapter 4 posted.

Against the Dying of the Light - 2745 words

Turn Your Face to the Sun - 1752 words.

Here I Go Again - 1144 words

Total words this month: 8082

Total words this year: 35,551