ok it’s time for elvira’s yearly reading wrap up! best and worst of 2023:
worst:
the cabin at the end of the world, paul tremblay - disappointing. could have been so good but, alas, was not.
the silent patient, alex michaelides - quite possibly my least favourite of the year. people were telling me how shocking it was and how it had a huge plottwist. this plottwist was predictable from PAGE ONE. please.
the grimoire of grave fates - i remember nothing except being bored.
hide, keirsten white - i hate when horror is bad <3
filth, irvine welsh - okok my second attempt at reading irvine welsh. i liked parts of this book but not enough to even slightly enjoy it as a whole.
finnegans wake, james joyce - i wasn’t sure whether this should go in best or worst honestly. such a huge phenomenon, purely because it’s “unreadable”. i still don’t know how to feel.
best:
12 bytes, jeanette winterson - miss winterson can do no wrong in my eyes. brilliant reflections on technology, written beautifully.
new animal, ella baxter - just SUCH a good time!! great novel on grief and sexuality.
the gilded wolves, roshani chokshi - i’m very picky about my fantasy books, but i fell in love with this trilogy so fast. the characters are incredible and diverse, and finding a canonically autistic character meant a lot to me.
tripping arcadia, kit mayquist - creepy, gorgeous, has not left my mind. i can’t even explain it, it is just an Experience. Go read it.
how to sell a haunted house, grady hendrix - FUN HORROR!! HAUNTED HOUSE!! EVIL PUPPET!!
when we lost our heads, heather o’neill - lesbian marie antoinette historical fiction? yes.
no longer human, osamu dazai - gorgeous tale of existence and misery. loved loved this one.
i who have never known men, jacqueline harpman - heartbreaking and real. one of those books i think everyone should read.
patricia wants to cuddle, samantha allen - lesbians and furry little monsters. weird as fuck and so funny.
penance, eliza clark - reflections on true crime and the rivalries between teenage girls. gruesome and fascinating.
not forever but for now, chuck palahniuk - MY MAN RETURNED!!!! and i am so goddamn grateful. nauseating but stunning. masterpiece as always.
house of hunger, alexis henderson - gothic vampire novel with a touch of haunted house story and eerie lesbians.
sign here, claudia lux - one of the funniest books i’ve read in a LONG time. selling your soul to the devil is basically the same as working for capitalist organizations.
the child thief, gerald brom - HORRIFYING version of peter pan. brom always makes me utterly nauseous and i am ovsessed with him in every way.
the girls, emma cline - 60’s cult vibes, true crime, just a solid piece of literature.
angels before man, rafael nicolas - basically gay bible. 10/10.
silver under nightfall, rin chupeco - poly queer vampires. gritty gore. amazing world building. cannot WAIT for the sequel.
none shall sleep, ellie marney - me? enjoying crime fiction from someone other than karin slaughter or tana french? it IS, apparently, possible.
house of leaves, mark z danielewski - IT IS ABOUT! THE! SYMBOLISM! I WANT TO YELL.
hi there! call me krys. i'm a libra sun, in my late 20s, and i love to escape into writing. ultimately, my goal is to finish my novel, namesake, by the end of march, revise it throughout april, and spend the rest of 2023 querying until i land an agent.
please note that this blog is a side-blog. i follow, reply, like, and send asks from @briarroses!
greek mythology, fairy tales, science fiction, and fantasy have always burrowed closely within my heart, and really shaped the sort of writer i am now.
i chose my username because i write in what others have described as a "flowery, lyrical, or poetic” style.
a little about me: i recently started work at a new job that i love. i have two tabby cats who happen to be sisters and gorgeously precious. my fondness for flowers and plants tends to leak into my writing, more obnoxiously in namesake than anywhere else.
for me, writeblr is a sense of community and i love getting to read another person's craft and talk with them about their process. i'm less receptive to asks these days bc of how busy i am, but i do try to send out asks whenever i see games flooding my dash!
i'm also gay and will probably favour your female characters above all else.
you are always welcome to tag me in tag games or add me to a tag list of your wip if we are mutuals. (in fact, tagging me is a lifesaver bc i can't always check the dash anymore and i'm prone to missing things!) i'm not stingy about who i follow, although i personally try not to follow or engage with minors.
favourite books: lullabies for little criminals by heather o'neill, the girls by emma cline, circe and the song of achilles by madeline miller, all the ugly and wonderful things by bryn greenwood, the princess bride by william goldman, deathless by catherynne m. valente, we are okay by nina lacour, fangirl by rainbow rowell, her body and other parties by carmen maria machado, bunny and 13 ways of looking at a fat girl by mona awad, sharp objects by gillian flynn, writers & lovers by lily king, son of a trickster and dogs in winter by eden robinson, poison study trilogy by maria v. snyder, on earth we’re briefly gorgeous and night sky and exit wounds by ocean vuong, and lastly, red hood and damsel by elana k. arnold.
favourite writers: anne carson, madeline miller, heather o'neill, louise gluck, emma cline, gillian flynn, leigh bardugo, elana k. arnold, richard siken, eden robinson, mona awad, ocean vuong, and maria v. snyder.
works in progress
n a m e s a k e ⛓🏛🌷💀🌿🌾
summary: a hades and persephone myth retelling in which kore, newly dead, is taken to the underworld to rot as mortals do. when hades discovers she is the godly offspring of his older siblings, he tricks her into eating pomegranate seeds and siphons her abilities into his own domain, unleashing a curse that ultimately causes him to start to decay.
wip intro | writing | character intros
at home, with graves 🪦💀🥀🐺🌒⚰️
summary: Nearly eight years prior, Lovey and Olly were rescued from a man they called “Bishop”, a serial killer who imprisoned their mother and raised them like his own. In the present day, a documentary about Bishop and his infamous slayings starts filming in their hometown. As the twins near their eighteenth birthday, true crime enthusiasts begin to reach out, requesting intimate insight of what really happened in Bishop’s cabin. While their grandfather, their now sole guardian, slowly loses his battle to grief, Lovey starts to keep track of how much of Bishop was implanted in Olly, and how to avoid the fate of a victim.
Can any of them sing? What do they sound like and what kind of music do they like?
This one took WAY longer than I thought it would tbh
HENRY: This one's really, really obvious but...JD from the Heathers Musical. As for music he likes, it's mostly whatever you're into! But if he had to pick something, probably pop, like Wham! and Tears for Fears.
LYRA: I can't really explain it, but I think Lyra's singing voice claim could be Lana Del Rey - I feel like it just fits her. Lyra's into more goth (obviously) and alternative music, like Siouxsie & the Banshees and The Smiths.
ELIJAH: Another one I really can't explain - Hozier. It probably has something to do with how soft most of his songs are! Elijah has a pretty wide range in music taste so he doesn't have a favorite genre in particular, but some artists he likes are Queen and Elton John.
SANDY: I feel like country-era Taylor Swift could be a good singing voice claim for Sandy! She grew up with country music in her home, so she's very fond of artist like Patsy Cline and Dolly Parton, but she also really likes ABBA!
ANGELA SHEPARD, the girl who tries to keep her boys at bay, the girl who work to help her family around, tries not to stay around the gang too much, twenty, inanna sharkis, bisexual.
ARCHIE COMICS.
BETTY COOPER, perfect girl next door, daughter, who wants to do things for her. girl next door who tries to solve mistery like her old friend, nancy drew, eighteen, josephine langford, bisexual.
IT.
BEN HANSCOM, the boy who tries to live a normal life when a clowns isn’t trying to scare him away, a boy who loves poems and loves to build homes, eleven/thirty, jeremy ray taylor/ jay ryan, straight.
SCREAM.
SAM CARPENTER, girl who left town because of a dark secret. girl who tries not to lose her mind and talk to ghost that she so wants to forget dearly, twenty, melissa barrera, straight.
ROMEO AND JULIET.
JULIET CAPULET, capulet’s princess who falls in love with her enemy. loves to go shopping and being there for her loved ones. eighteen, madelyn cline, straight. MERCUTIO, the montague’s clown who loves to tourment people, especially his cousins and the prince, who’s family, twenty, john eyzen, biromantic.
ENCHANTED.
KIT CHARMING, prince who’s looking for his lost princess. though, a shoes isn’t helping, when ella comes home, everything is good in both world. twenty, richard madden, straight.
HEATHERS.
VERONICA SAWYER, teenage girl who loves to write on her diary on how much she hates the world and why not get some slushies somewhere. eighteen, adele exarchopoulos, bisexual.
MCU.
WADE WILSON AKA DEADPOOL, mercenary with a bit of adhd disfuntional. loves to make jokes even in situations who appears bad, can't help but flirt with danger all the freaking times. spoiler alert: curses a lot. twenty-eight, bisexual, michael vlamis.
FOOTLOOSE. ( 2011 versions )
WILLARD HEWITT, cowboy and dancer boy who doesn4t know what he is doing half of the times, loves to help people around and dance, even when it is forbiden. eighteen, bisexual, miles teller.
CAMP ROCK.
SHANE GRAY, rockstar who doesn't like camps. goes to his uncle's one anyway to do some music and maybe escape that bad boy image that kept being stuck on him, eighteen / twenty years, bisexual, nicholas galatzine.
Happy birthday darling I have no presents and fantasy cake but I hope I make you happy with everything I made like this edit right here with all of your pictures in it Shirley Jane Temple Black 1928-2014 April 23rd 1928-February 10th 2014 and special rest in peace to those who passed away Bishop Rance Allen, Conway Twitty, Loretta Lynn, Lisa Loring, Bob Saget, Betty White, Heather O'Rourke, Judith Barsi, baby Leroy, baby Peggy Montgomery, Peggy cartwright, Darla Jean Hood, Jean Darling, Peaches Jackson, Mary Ann Jackson, Dorothy DeBorba, Mary Kornman and Mildred Kornman, Kenny Rogers, Patsy Cline, Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky, Eazy-E, rest in peace Ana Ofelia Murguía December 31st 2023, Jim James Edward Jordan, Lucille Ricksen, Judy Garland, Margaret Hamilton and Terry and Pal, Eva Gabor, Geraldine Sue Page, Pat Buttram, Joe Flynn, Michael Gambon, Alan Rickman, Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson, Richard Belzer, Richard Harris, Bernard Fox, Raymond Burr, Perrette Pradier, Jeanette Nolan, Larry Clemmons, Bing Crosby, John Candy, John Heard, John Fiedler, Beate Hasenau, Billie Burke, Roberts Blossom, Billie Bird, Bill Erwin, Ralph Foody, Jack Haley, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Frank Morgan, Jim Nabors and Frank Sutton, John Wayne, Clara Blandick,Charley Grapewin, Buddy Ebsen, Angelo Rossitto, Clarence Chesterfield Howerton, Bridgette Andersen, Dominique Dunne, Dana Plato, Robbie Coltrane, Lance Reddick, Betty Ann Bruno, Betty Tanner, Elizabeth Taylor, Helen McCrory, Ray Liotta and Tom Sizemore and Burt Reynolds, Zari Elmassian, Frank Cucksey, Vyacheslav Baranov, Vladimir Ferapontov, Carol Tevis, George Shephard Houghton, Irving S. Brecher, Richard Griffiths, Andy Griffith and Don Knotts, Joe Conley, Alan Arkin, Jerry Heller, Fred Willard, Mary Ellen Trainor, Morgan Woodward, Anna Lee and John Ingle, David Lewis, Ken Curtis, Ed Asner, James Caan, James Arness, Amanda Blake, Avicii, Jane Withers and Virginia Weidler, Milburn Stone, Natasha Richardson, Joanna Barnes, Cameron Boyce and Tyree Boyce, Cammack"Cammie"King, Denny Miller, Jane Adams, June Marlowe rest in heavenly peace to all of them actors and actresses this is Shirley Temple birthday edit of the year
all fcs on this page are also available for new charas
* means not yet added to full muse page
males:
andrew rogers / sebastian stan fc / heterosexual / 31-36 yo / mob boss
august cowan / pablo schreiber fc / heterosexual / 41-48 yo
christian deleon / lewis tan fc / heterosexual / 33-42 yo / handyman
darren pittman / dacre montgomery fc / heterosexual / 28-34 yo
grant carpenter / andrew lincoln fc / heterosexual / 49-53 yo / rich divorcee
jason griffin / henry cavill fc / heterosexual / 35-39 yo
jude vega / jon bernthal fc / heterosexual / 42-51 yo
nicholas vaughn / ben barnes fc / heterosexual / 34-39 yo
samuel hart / frank grillo fc / heterosexual / 48-54 yo
vincent jimenez / pedro pascal fc / heterosexual / 44-52 yo
females:
addison greer / anne hathaway fc / pansexual / 36-42 yo
aida warren / alycia debnam carey fc / pansexual (prefers ladies) / 26-32 yo
arden blackwell / jessie mei li fc / pansexual / 29-34 yo
celine houston / alexis ren or lili reinhart fc / pansexual / 25-31 yo
channing graves / elizabeth olsen fc / pansexual / 28-34 yo
cherry bennett / natalia dyer fc / pansexual / 22-28 yo
frankie benton / jessica chastain fc / pansexual / 38-46 yo
hanna burgess / madelyn cline fc / pansexual / 23-29 yo
heather galvan / alexa demie fc / pansexual / 28-34 yo
ivanna marks / camila mendes fc / pansexual / 26-31 yo
maria almasi / may calamawy fc / pansexual / 34-40 yo
marie mcdaniels / famke janssen fc / pansexual / 41-47 yo
mayson hayes / morena baccarin fc / pansexual / 38-42 yo
rowan dunn / grace van dien fc / pansexual / 25-29 yo
stella monroe / dianna agron fc / pansexual / 26-37 yo
faces i'm willing to play
lili reinhart
madelaine petsch
sydney sweeney
dakota johnson
ella purnell
sophie nelisse
camila morrone
savannah smith
liz gillies
alexa demie
natasha lyonne
oscar isaac
jensen ackles
glen powell
charlie cox
andrew garfield
john boyega
+ more, just ask!
ANGELA SHEPARD, the girl who tries to keep her boys at bay, the girl who work to help her family around, tries not to stay around the gang too much, twenty, inanna sharkis, bisexual.
ARCHIE COMICS.
BETTY COOPER, perfect girl next door, daughter, who wants to do things for her. girl next door who tries to solve mistery like her old friend, nancy drew, eighteen, josephine langford, bisexual.
IT.
BEN HANSCOM, the boy who tries to live a normal life when a clowns isn’t trying to scare him away, a boy who loves poems and loves to build homes, eleven/thirty, jeremy ray taylor/ jay ryan, straight.
SCREAM.
SAM CARPENTER, girl who left town because of a dark secret. girl who tries not to lose her mind and talk to ghost that she so wants to forget dearly, twenty, melissa barrera, straight.
ROMEO AND JULIET.
JULIET CAPULET, capulet’s princess who falls in love with her enemy. loves to go shopping and being there for her loved ones. eighteen, madelyn cline, straight. MERCUTIO, the montague’s clown who loves to tourment people, especially his cousins and the prince, who’s family, twenty, john eyzen, biromantic.
ENCHANTED.
KIT CHARMING, prince who’s looking for his lost princess. though, a shoes isn’t helping, when ella comes home, everything is good in both world. twenty, richard madden, straight.
HEATHERS.
VERONICA SAWYER, teenage girl who loves to write on her diary on how much she hates the world and why not get some slushies somewhere. eighteen, adele exarchopoulos, bisexual.
MCU.
WADE WILSON AKA DEADPOOL, mercenary with a bit of adhd disfuntional. loves to make jokes even in situations who appears bad, can't help but flirt with danger all the freaking times. spoiler alert: curses a lot. twenty-eight, bisexual, michael vlamis.
FOOTLOOSE. ( 2011 versions )
WILLARD HEWITT, cowboy and dancer boy who doesn4t know what he is doing half of the times, loves to help people around and dance, even when it is forbiden. eighteen, bisexual, miles teller.
CAMP ROCK.
SHANE GRAY, rockstar who doesn't like camps. goes to his uncle's one anyway to do some music and maybe escape that bad boy image that kept being stuck on him, eighteen / twenty years, bisexual, nicholas galatzine.
SCOOBY DOO.
VELMA DINKLEY. twenty years old girl who loves to solves mystery and have a tendency to talk a lot about science and stars wars. bisexual. mary elizabeth winstead.
11. Books and/or authors who influenced you the most
i think if i were to study my style and influences, i could trace it back to a few key writers and their respective works that changed me:
anne carson (autobiography of red, grief lessons), heather o'neill (lullabies for little criminals), emma cline (the girls, daddy), madeline miller (the song of achilles, circe), china mieville (the scar, perdido street station), and louise gluck (averno, the triumph of achilles, the wild iris, poems 1962-2012), just to name a few.
25. Favourite part of writing
maybe the control it allows me? i set the stage, i cast the characters, i grow them into monsters and heroes (sometimes a medley; sometimes neither). i shed them of their skin, wound them with tragedies, uncover their grief, and entangle them in love worth dying for. it's like playing with barbies again.
38. Weirdest story idea you’ve ever had
during my first short fiction term, i became really overwhelmed with all the sexual assault stories being turned in (if you take a short fiction class in university, three things are certain: you will have peers who cannot punctuate dialogue, you will receive stories about sexual assault and serial killers, and you will read the worst drug-taking scenes from someone who has clearly never been high in their life).
so i wrote about a cruel and restrictive father who abuses his vegetarian child by force-feeding her meat. got an A for that one.