#I wish I had the actual copies of the books tho

[sockdooe]

My god heart stopper is so goooodddddd

I’ve watched it twice which isn’t a lot but STILLLL

ITS SO SWEETTTTTT AND SAPPPYYY AND GAYYYYY

[toastsnaffler]

hyperion kinda fucks so far I'm drinking this shit up 😏😏😏😏

[cherryvampiro]

Older!Cotc AU Info

Hello!! I wanted to make a post with all my hcs/ideas of both the older creek kids and next generation creek kids. These are all headcanons of course!! 💝😊💝 This post follows the Stump Gang & main next Gen Kids.

Craig & Omar:

Before they got together, they used to date other people.

For Craig (from middle school to high school): Vanessa, Eileen, Canon Ball, & Dianne.

For Omar (MS to HS): Jp & Toman.

There was a 2-3 year gap where Omar & Craig hadn’t seen each other due to Omar leaving to college outside of Herkleton.

During a college break, Omar returned to Herkleton where the two reconnected. Since then they've been inseparable.

Craig (28) works as a carpenter contractor. Omar (30) works from home as a welder.

Craig still has a passion for art and still creates projects on the side (both personal and professional work).

They have one child as of right now named Sonya (3). Isabella/Stack’s is her surrogate mother.

Since Omar stays at home the most, Sonya favors him more over Craig (rip Craig 😔😂)

These two act like carbon copies of Craig’s parents with how openly goofy and affectionate they are to one another & to Sonya.

They own 1 cat and 1 big St. Bernard.

Kelsey & Isabella:

These two are the definition of childhood sweethearts. They’ve had a few fights sure but never broken up or took breaks from each other.

Kelsey (27) is the school coach at Herkleton High School. Isabella (27) works at the Library.

Even with their separate jobs, they still find time to write together and brainstorm on new story ideas. They still plan on releasing a novel together ❤️

When Craig & Omar were looking for a surrogate, Kelsey had offered to be it for them. But after they told her what she could and couldn’t do for 9 months she backed out. (Isabella happily volunteered afterwards)

They have 2 adopted kids together: Jamie (9) & Laura (10).

As a family they like to go to the gym or park together to exercise and bond. Kelsey & Jamie work out more for muscle/strength where as Isabella & Laura exercise for fun.

Aside from exercising, they like to read books together! Though it’s harder for Jamie to join in at first (he’s dyslexic). With some help & patience he’ll get there tho 💪🏽🌟🌟

As adults and parents they still have that fire & ice attitude!! Kelsey being very energetic & outspoken for her family while being warm & welcoming to them/others. Isabella being calm & understanding of her families needs while being strong & assertive when she needs to set someone straight or be a shoulder to lean on.

They own 3 birds & 1 bearded dragon.

Jp & Maney:

During the first year of high school they actually took a break from each other. Jp had dated Omar shortly while Maney dating someone else. During the end of Junior year they reconnected with each other.

Jp (29) works as a mechanic with the Junklord. Maney (29) works at a horse sanctuary & therapy organization called “Hugs for Horses”.

Despite Laura’s words of caution, Jp & Maney end up having a baby together sooner than expected.

When Marcello was born, he had water in his lungs. He had to stay in an incubator for 3 days. When MJ learned about this, he was 100% convinced he was part fish.

Out of all the Stump kids, Jp has kept the most in touch with kids from the creek. If there was as ever a kid from the creek someone wanted to contact, Jp was the guy to go to!

Despite being older & wiser now, Jp still ends up with a broken bone or two every once in a while. Maney wishes he’d be more careful whereas MJ thinks he’s invincible.

Maney still keeps close contact with Kelsey. You’ll often catch her on the phone with Kels planning their hikes together.

As parents they’re both very laid back. MJ doesn’t cause them much of a hassle so they don’t feel the need to be stern with him.

The Mercers don’t own any pets but do take care of the stray cats & dogs that live in their neighborhood (they feed them, make sure they’re not hurt, and are spayed/neutered.

MJ, Nancy, & Sonya

MJ (8) & Nancy (8) don’t have a designated hang out spot. They text each other on where to meet before they go and explore.

Their adventures focus less on exploring the creek and more on how much they can do that day.

MJ has a bucket list of all the things he’d want to do at the creek. When the list starts to run short, he either makes up more or ask other creek kids what to do.

Nancy has a very macabre sense of humor & vibe. She’s fascinated with the concept of life & death (especially with death).

Nancy lives with her grandmother & her older brother.

When Nancy grows up she’d like to be a mortician. When MJ grows up he’d like to be able to touch the top of the fridge.

Nancy always carries her Lil Oopsie Doll named Syd with her where ever she goes. No one is allowed to hold, let alone touch, Syd. MJ is the only acceptation.

If the weathers ever terrible at the creek, these two always run to The Williams house and make themselves at home. (MJ knocks, Nancy gets in through the back.)

Craig & Omar are used to MJ’s visits, they’re not used to Nancy’s. She has the tendency to sneak up behind them and every time it scares the living daylight out of them.

Sonya absolutely adores Nancy and is always happy when the two older kids visit her home.

Sonya’s not ready for the creek yet but has tried to sneak off into it. The farthest she’s explored to was her backyard before getting scared and running back inside. That’s all I have to share for now!! My apologies for any typos & grammatical errors 😵

[thegirlisuedtobe]

hey your post were you mention the narrator of rebecca lies by omission is haunting (pun intended teehee) me, what did you mean when you said she lies by omission, feel free to rant btw

-💗

Did you mean [this] post?

AHH!! mrs de winter,,, that girl is a liar and the most conniving woman i have ever had the pleasure of reading jk

but actually i mean it tho that she does lie by omission. i tagged this as the musical but in terms of the show, i dont think she actually lies in that one, especially as far as how most actors in that role interpret her character.

but book mrs de winter?? my goodness,,,, when i made this post the scene i was really thinking was the prologue for the most part, when shes describing her life living with maxim at that hotel after the fire. there's this kind of way where shes saying shes content but like against her descriptions about the kind of glamour that manderley had, their quaint life together feels so,,, dreary, like a half existence, not really a life not really in death yknow? if u read in between the lines at this listless kind of development of setting, shes saying all these things about living an ordinary life but in a tone where shes not satisfied with it at all,,,

this quote from the the top of chapter 2 is like one that gets referenced a lot but people never quote the whole thing, she says "we have conquered ours, or so we believe." like first of all who the fuck says "or so we believe" in a statement where shes trying to justify or rationalise the ordeal that they went through and the outcome of it (being this dreary life) as a net positive,,, like why are u being so ominous now,,, and then the next line "the devil does not ride with us" like babe,,, ur not being honest with yourself,,,, u just said "oh we conquered ours, jk unless,,, but we did yknow," she has such a flip floppy way of framing things that makes u question which is it really? i think its a testament to that idea of rebecca being a mirror and finding what you want to see, and for me i see this person desperately trying to frame something that is still deeply affecting her to this present day as if it doesnt. like someone else who might wish to feel the same way might only see the oh we've conquered it and not pick up on the unease of or so we believe, just that the devil does not ride us anymore. to a reader who wants to see that, they will interpret this quote as a triumph, which often is usually the case.

like she says that the unrest has "mercifully stilled" but at the drop of a hat "the past is still too close to us." their situation remains in this precarious balance, if they go too far in any direction they endanger this so called peace,,, this is not a life that has progressed beyond what happened,,,

and the cherry on top is this beautifully long gorgeous passage that is EXPOSING HER for her lies about being happy in this small hotel half-existence with maxim. u just have to read all of it actually to understand, and if u dont, well,,,

(i also annotated it; red is the negative aspects, blue is the postive/their ordinary life, and green is when she starts talking about manderley and her love of that place)

i feel like its so easy to attribute the love of manderley as being primarily held by danny or by rebecca or by maxim even, but the person who loves manderley most in this novel (yes by virtue of it being a first person pov but also bc its true) is mrs de winter. i highlighted in my physical copy of rebecca ever single time she mentioned manderley in a very flattering or loving way and its basically the whole book. she loves this castle, this place is the epitome of all her aspirations; becoming a lady, rising in class status, the image of a perfect marriage a perfect home a perfect family, manderley holds all of that in her heart so when she talks about manderley she exposes herself so deeply if you are willing to listen to her.

that part about her saying "colour and scent and sound, rain and the lapping water, even the msits of autum and the smell of the flood tide," these things that quite truly colours our quality of life are "secret indulgences" implies that these inherent basic things that make life beautiful are things she cant access without rocking the seemingly still peace that they have. especially with the way that maxim reacts to it and how she picks up on that. she has to rely on the dull and the boring monotonies to continue that so called peace even though thats not whats personally fulfilling for her,,, the line where she says "we prefer to store up our excitement; the result of a cricket match played many days ago means much to us" ,,, doesnt that sound so sad? theyre not even living in the moment anymore, if they did i think it would kill them to be quite honest.

so many of the positive/ordinary lifestyle descriptions are weaved against these pitiful sounding statements and its truly like,,, why stitch it like this? if daphne du maurier wanted us to feel like this was the life that was better, the one that you should choose or idealise, than the chaos of manderley why did she write it like this? why not just say that she was happy, why add those hints of melancholy?

and because of that i feel like shes lying by omission. its like all these things shes saying are half truths. its true that ordinary or even dull days are better than chaotic ones because youre not pained by such hurtful circumstances but at what cost? the joy and excitement of life? its like all of her descriptions of their life after the fire are backhanded compliments,,,, im just so curious about the other half that she isnt saying,,, when she doesnt say what shes implying it just feels like what she did say was a lie by omitting the rest of it.

does that make sense? do u get it?

[janeaustenlover]

hey, ali! i feel your pain about the tbosas adaptation! i cried so much during the movie but not because i felt emotional, seeing MY book comes alive on screen but because we were robbbbbbbbbbed and shot 😞😞😞😞😞😞 anyways, what's your opinion on the music tho? fav/least fav song? (my is the oldtherebefore and least fav the 0livia r0drigo's one)

hey, lollis!

‘robbed and shot’, exactly. i couldn’t have said it better myself because unfortunately, that’s spot on 🥲

I LOVED THE MUSIC! a dystopian reflection of our reality through intentional use of folk/bluegrass music is something that resonates strongly with me. i mean, they knew how to strike the right chord in the hearts of book readers for sure! *the only other thing i wish was different about the music it's the variety of tempo and rhythm because as much as i LOVED the unified sound of LG's songs, i would prefer each song to have its own individual tune and ~aura)

my absolute favourite adaptation that they did was 'nothing you can take from me' (boot-stompin’ version); i am utterly in awe of the powerful passionate energy that they gave to this song?? also i loveeed the similarity of rhythm and tone between 'nothing you can take from me' and a traditional american folk song 'man of constant sorrow', i kinda feel it was a deliberate parallel which worked just great. (also i’m glad they added maude ivory’s 'keep on the sunny side'!)

my least favourite is perhaps 'the ballad of lucy gray baird'?.. and though i did enjoy rachel’s rendition (she copies a young dolly parton in such a warm-hearted respectful manner!), and the respect for traditional appalachian music, she sang it in a cheerful 'to hell with you!' manner which is less intense and intimate that i remember it from the book to be? to quote tbosas here: 'the haunting melody set the tone, and her words did the rest as she began to sing in a voice husky from smoke and sadness' – the movie version really failed to capture both the haunting tune (their version doesn't really tell the story musically because of a major key) and the lucy gray's vulnerability here for me. in the book she did what carrie fisher told us all to do: 'take your broken heart and turn it into art' while in the movie she isn't even angry at billy taupe?? like his betrayal (and her place in the games) is not a big deal? she's openly rebellious and sassy with out of place 'i need no man' attitude and that simply didn't work for me personally.

it took some time for 'pure as the driven snow' to grow on me (i expected it to be more of a waltz-like, similar to maiah wynne's cover), but i'm coming around to it. yet… i wish it was STAGED differently??? they had to combine certain scenes and songs in the film but it was such a SURREAL idea to meld PATDS with 'sell you for a song' setting? and it took away so much from that moment of love and connection and unconditional acceptance, where lucy gray is finally ready to be emotionally unshielded in front of her lover (maybe for the first time ever)?? it was a PIVOTAL snowbaird moment but they needed to blend two songs together because obviously PATDS can't be love confession in form of a song because it should be taken as an ominous warning instead (duh!). 'bitch you better not turn out to be a bad guy even tho i knew you were a villain all along' :??? and it could've worked in its own angst-y way, if there had been any development in snowbaird love story?? but since movie!they are full on survival the whole time (there's no canonical teetering on the edge of an actual fondness/love and survival instinct), PATDS makes no sense at all. so… i extremely frustrated by the use of PATDS on screen but at the same time i love the sound of the full version on the soundtrack album.

annnd i'm actually IN PAIN because they had the audacity to leave so many songs out?? especially given their ties to the original trilogy?? 'deep in the meadow' aka rue's song???? 'the valley song' aka the one peeta mentioned seeing katniss sing at school when they were children????  the festive 'crawling to you' ('that thing i love with') likely performed at finnick’s wedding?? idk maybe it's a musical nerd who is speaking in me but i wish they could have included more of the book songs at least on the album, if not in the actual movie (even tho i'm still sure, it would've been possible to present the whole complexity of this book AND its poetic side too, if they decided to split the film in two).

[the score album wasn't much to talk about but 'snow lands on top' piece tho… vivid, striking, remarkable]

[papasbaseball]

15, 17, 24 🩷

Thank you for the ask, Roach💗💗💗

15. 5 most influential books over my life time

La Symphonie Pastorale by André Gide: An absolutely wild ride from start to finish, but I think it definitely laid foundational groundwork for me writing about fucking religious authority figures about 6 years later. Crazy that I read it for actual college credit.

Dracula by Bram Stoker: Another Epistolary novel. I re-read it every October and my favorite scene is when the Count forces Mina to drink Johnathan's blood. Peak 19th century subtle eroticism.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald: I will forever be chasing the musicality that he managed to capture with every single sentence. Poetic language is a big deal to me.

The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux: Quite literally saved my life. I grew up in an abusive household so from the ages of 10-17 the Phantom became a comfort figure. I used to pretend that he would be watching over me and I read my copy of the novel so much that the pages started falling out.

The Bible: Not in a fun way, but I can't deny that being raised in a fundamentalist household has proven useful later in making religious references and having a leg up in analyzing art and writing for those references. I do think the book of Esther and Revelations is sexy af tho.

17. Would you say Tumblr is a fair representation of the real you?

I used to be a Tumblr native. I left back in 2017 and only recently came back. Part of me feels a little alien in the environment. I don't always feel like I'm doing everything right and tend to hold back on expressing my true self bc I'm afraid that I'm doing it wrong and I'm too weird. I think the real me is not necessarily cut out for the 2020s internet. I often wish I could relive 2013-2015.

24. Have you ever felt like you had a mind-meld with a person?

A few times in my life. I'm pretty reserved for being an ENTP but I can be quite outgoing if I do find my right crowd. I've been making more of an effort lately to make friends. My life experiences and neurodivergency make it difficult to really understand most people, but I've been really working to overcome those and try to "fit in". It's difficult, but it's worth it.

[auradoniandreams]

What are your honest thoughts on Lonnie and her family in Descendants?

Personally, I've always liked Lonnie, but I have to admit that at this point in time I feel like I'm more attached to the fanon version of her (who has actual motivations and a backstory), than the canon version whose personality changes every 5 seconds. I feel like she had real potential as an AK who likes the VK's, and who's also not afraid to challenge Auradon's status quo, but something got lost along the way.

I don't really have any thoughts about her family, tho (outside of the og Mulan movie, anyway - but we're talking Descendants now). They're barely mentioned, and when they are, we're reminded that Disney doesn't know what to do with ethnic characters (*cough* Lil' Shang *cough*). I'm not Asian/Chinese myself, so I can't rly speak on the representation aspect (if you're Asian, and would like to, feel free to share your opinion in the replies/reblogs! I'd love to hear them), but it's obvious that Lonnie is not a Chinese name, and from what I understand, naming a kid after their parents is a big no-no in Chinese culture.

So...yeah. I have a lot of thoughts on her characterization tho, so if you wanna hear me ramble about her character arc, click on the read more link.

Before D1: The first time we see her, in the School of Secrets webseries that was released before D1 as promo, she's spying on the other AK's, trying to expose the shady things that happen behind closed doors, and to challenge the idea that the upcoming arrival of the VK's signals an imminent doom for Auradonian society. Granted, they never confirmed the fact that it was her behind the shorts, but she was voiced by the same actress that played her in the movies and if I remember correctly she also had the same bracelets.

Based on this appearance, she sounds like an incredibly interesting character, as the only other AK besides Ben and Doug who wants to give the VK's a chance. Additionally, she's standing up for what she believes in like her mother did, without turning into a carbon copy of Mulan.

D1: Her attitude towards the VK's is kind of confusing; one minute, she's asking the girls for a haircut and showing the c4 sympathy for their shitty childhoods, having little to no problem with them. The next, she's screaming and running along with Audrey and her princesses. Peer pressure? Personality shift? Fear of Mal's dark magic? Go figure.

D2: She sneaks out to the Isle of the Lost, helps the c4 fight Uma's crew, and she uses a loophole to enter the R.O.A.R. team as its first female captain. I loved seeing them develop her character more and give her a plotline, but I also kind of wished they hadn't turned her into a full carbon copy of her mother. I think this is when the writers also started getting confused abt her character, because in the first movie she was a lot more girly, and not necessarily athletic. Obviously she can be both at the same time but it felt like a sudden change.

Wicked World: Her personality (??) mostly stays the same, but for reasons that I can't figure out, she forgets she likes fencing, and is suddenly into...music??? She has a side gig as a DJ??? Uhh ok

School of Secrets: Lonnie's Warrior Sword: We're reverting back to her D2 characterization: she's athletic, headstrong, and anxious about her mother's legacy, or whether she can fulfill it. The plot also borrows a lot of elements from the og Mulan movie. It's an enjoyable read, but it's pretty much what you'd expect from a daughter of Mulan, and I wish they'd done more with her.

I liked her relationship with Jay, tho. Their dynamic (esp in the books ) is fun and they make a good team. That was a highlight for sure.

All in all, I like her, but she suffers from the same problem that every side character in this franchise does: inconsistency.

[star-sim]

hiihii, 🦊 anon back here !! Im gon be info dumping u the shii cuz u said u were invested, but if u dont want to readall of it I completely understand cuz like I wrote a whole ass shii 😭😭

--------

okay so like there's thay copycat, let's call her P !! technically, she's been a friend since last year, but I didnt really consider her as one cuz she mostly talked with my other two friends from our closest friend group n like nobody else. (we're a group of five without her) She sorta randomly appeared, but I ofc didnt mind cuz its always nice to meet new ppl n make new friends yk ??

(extra thingy for this year => one friend changed schools to another city, another doesnt hang out with us anymore but does online, n then there's another who isnt in the same classes so we only see each other during breaks. so its just me n another friend, (let's call her F) she's has been my closest friend since years ago so far !!

Okayokay now on to the real shii; since the new school year, P asked the school if she could be in the same class as me and F (because we're always together). so practically, P is also my classmate now. BUT !! I've noticed she favours F more than me, which doesnt bother me much bc we all have preferences at some point 🤷‍♀️ HOWEVER its getting a bit uncomfy because she's slowly been like starting to copy me and seems to be trying to exclude me to get closer to F ever since school started

Im insecure about friendships, so I get jealous when I see F paying more attention to P than to me (at least Im self aware 😞) oh, abt the copying part, I have a list to explain omllll !! for instance, I have an online school timetable with a specific colour palette (we have our own from our school's app but I'd like to use my own [another one] cuz then its a widget) she saw it and asked about the app n then the next week, she did the same thing with the exact same colors for each subject ?? Its not a big deal, but its abs noticeable.. like I get it u wanna use the same app cuz Ik how handy it is but using the same colours is starting to become extra .. then theres the school stationary, especially the pencil case and highlighters. I have a clear see-through pencil case and pastel highlighters (so coquette) n after two months or somewhere around that, she got the same ones. AGAIN, not a huge deal, but then she started comparing highlighters and saying she should have bought the same ones as me (?? Girl tf) Its frustrating because she's indirectly indicating that she wants to be or have the same shii as me 😭 n I dont like that. Ik some ppl do but I jst dont

Another example is my headphones. I have specific ones (JBL I lub em sm), n in December or smth, she also got the same ones but in pink (I have black ones) Its not about the headphones themselves tho, but the fact that she claimed we have the same ones when they're CLEARLY different. It's a fcking pattern, even with little things like a pocket mirror that she suddenly wants after seeing mine ?? 😭 "oh, I want to have one too now n use it like u" *proceeds to buy n never use it anyways* 💀

oh oh, then theres the issue of her comparing grades (no like wtaf) my average is at least 70%, which Im abs content with, but I wish I had more motivation to study m improve 😞 ahe studies n has an average of 74%, which is great for her ofc !! but she constantly YAPS abt having higher grades n being smarter, not realizing the difference between being book-smart n actually intelligent like girl theres a diff between the 2 yk 😭😭

P is actually fcking starting to get on my nerves, especially after half a year of this bs .. the friend who changed schools was like the mother of the group, n I miss her a lot (she's coming back next year tho, yippie !!) P seems to be trying to exclude me from the friend group n from my bestie F :( I havent told anyone else cuz like Im afraid theyll jst think Im overreacting, but I did confide in T ( the transfer student friend, lets call her that !!), n shes on my side (duh ofc cuz she also noticed from last year how she only sticked to F) but I dont want to tell F herself cuz I dont think she'll believe me. I used to feel happy and comfy being myself before P joined in, but now I feel like Im constantly being criticized n copied :// Its even worse bc she made fun of my cat's name !! (Like, I told her my cat's name cuz at one point we were talking abt cats n I told her I had gotten a new one that summer. atm she was doing that gossip whisper thingy to somebody else n when I told her that she had to be honest and confess she was making fun of my cat's name she went like "ohhhh, for a cat name !! I thought a human name" n then fake smiles omfl ..)

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ANYWAYSSSS, TAKE CARE 😽 love ur fics Istg I dont think I'd survive here w/out ur writings Im not joking 😭 ur fics r like one of the only ones that I'd even WANT to read no matter the 10k+ wc (thats a lot for me n I prefer short ones, but ur longer ffs r like TOP TIER MWAH)

-🦊

oh girl ur stronger than me bc P would make me yell....

u and F are like for-lifers.... the friends that you keep when things change are the ones that you need to CHERISH FR

i think ur like 100% valid for the friendship jealousy, i get SO jealous too ur like real for that. like looking at these individual examples it doesn't come off that P is trying to copy you.... but when you look at it ALTOGETHER as ONE BIG MASSIVE PICTURE.... yikessss

i cant stand P sorry... like the excluding thing is making me seethe

AND THE CATS NAME THING WOULD BE MY FINAL STRAW GIRLLL STAY IN UR OWN LANE

i don't think ur overreacting, ur like 100% valid for this one

i am SO on your side

imo i think it's important to talk to F about this... and if she does not react well then drop her!!! if your best friend cannot take your feelings into consideration then that's not good!!

i'm glad that you like me fics btw!! it means a lot <3333

thanks for stopping by 🦊 anon!!! mwah mwah love you (and lmk if i need to air raid P)

[bleachbleachbleach]

7/29 - 8/6/2023

I started last weekend really excited about writing Renji 2, and had a good time with that. And then proceeded to have no writing time past last weekend. =_= I just need to chill out and accept that life is going to be about driving and People and racecars and the Women's World Cup rn and not about my blorbos and stories. Not that I don't also like the aforementioned but also MY BLORBOS AND STORIES THO. ):

As excited as I am about this chapter I'm still not sure if it ~works because Renji is just infodumping about 79 different things, and the part I wrote was about written vs. actually-followed easement policy in West Rukongai and how long it takes to run places. Which on one hand, Renji Why, but on the other, Why Not, Renji.

Something I have done a lot of this week, though, is driving—more in the last 7 days than in the last 7 months, to be specific—and I got reacquainted with my nemesis, audiobooks. I still don’t think I actually like audiobooks, but all of the books I listened to were very enjoyable in spite of the format, and I recommend all of them! This is especially exciting because these choices were guided by "what is currently available at the library."

The week’s roadtrip audiobook selections:

H is for Hawk, Helen MacDonald (2014)

Psalm for the Wild-Built, Becky Chambers (2021)

Orange World, Karen Russell (2019)

The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead (2019)

H is for Hawk, Helen MacDonald (2014) I’ve been wanting to read this book for a long time, but I’m glad I didn’t get a chance to until now, because coming off of condor!Tobiume this book was especially exciting. I didn’t realize until listening that it drew so heavily on The Once and Future King (and TH White’s biography in general) as intertext, which has really made me want to re-read that book, since I haven’t read it since the summer after I graduated high school. H is for Hawk is a falconry memoir, and it is quite a bit about birds—the goshawk Mabel in particular—which I figured would be a good time, from a creative nonfiction, ecology writing POV, two genres I generally like. But oh my god it is so much better than I already thought it was going to be! MacDonald has such strong analysis of masculinist, neoliberal cultures past and present, and the kinds of mythologies falconry comes from with regard to class and gender (and sexuality, re: TH White), and her own parsing of these things as she grows up. I want to read this book again.

Psalm for the Wild-Built, Becky Chambers (2021) I am OBSESSED with this book and I keep recommending it to everyone I see. It’s about a tea monk on a future moon where, in the distant past, robots developed to work in human factories gained sapience and left the human places to go live freely and separate in the wilds. Yearning for something missing from their life, the tea monk sets off into the wilds and encounters a robot who has been sent out to check in on the humans, and to answer the question, “What do humans need?” I don’t know that I am usually a robot person—but I am a traveling tea monk person haha—but I love these robots so, so much. They name themselves for the first things they see, so they all have plant/animal names. They hyperfixate on watching stalagmites grow, for centuries. This book is so soft and thoughtful and incredibly thought-provoking. It’s about a future that doesn’t rely on post-apocalypse; nothing overtly dramatic happens but everything is gripping.

Orange World, Karen Russell (2019) This is collection of short stories—I was able to pay attention to some far more than others, but Russell had the most interesting prose for me. There were lines where I was like, man, I wish I were reading this so I could copy this down.” Really strong sense of region and place in each story, and the world building (as one might hope of a book titled Orange World) is superb. I was familiar with Russell conceptually but hadn’t read anything by her before. My favorites were the story about Plains State/Midwestern storm farmers, who captured, husbanded, and rented out storms of various stripes—and now their industry was being affected by climate change. And the story about four sisters who are gondoliers, and use echolocation (of a sort) to navigate the span of a short story.

WIP-wise, I guess LOL I’d love to write as beautifully as Karen Russell does!! But more seriously I guess it’s about being bold about the mechanics of a world and how much it is possible to accomplish even in the span of a short story.

The Nickel Boys, Colson Whitehead (2019) I’m only halfway through this one, but it’s historical fiction about a reform school in the South during Brown v Board of Education, and the false promises experienced while attempting to integrate the South.

As far as where this could be WIP research, Whitehead does a great job of minor timeskips across the parts of the novel, including skips of actually writing out major precipitating events, which makes me feel more embolden about how I’ve structured some of this WIP.

[usic]

I can’t believe I got my hands on a copy of The Sun and The Star. Btw, why was the only place that had it Target?? I went to two different malls a couple weeks back which were 30 minutes apart (when driving) and both Barnes and Nobles didn’t have it. Not a single copy. Btw, Percy Jackson is in the children-ish section, so I had to go in there to look at what they had BOTH times. Anyway, my overall takeaway from the mall experience is that, even though that same day I bought Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard in paperback, is that I what the series in Hardcover (after I read them multiple times and they get beaten to death because I am unintentionally, brutal to paperbacks).

The Sun and The Star, that’s what I was talking about, so yeah, I have it. Now I have to finish the Burning Maze and read the other two books so I can continue on (even tho I could drop ToA and just not understand it, I’m not going to). Wish me luck, random person on the internet!

(If you’ve actually read this, 10 extra brownie points for you)

[t34-mt]

If we're allowed to ask how did Monmartre die?

yes of course you are allowed! tho on my part idk how much i should reveal? all i could say it that it dies due to its own foolishness. It dies on accident and maybe could've lived longer if it wasn't so unreasonable (tho i don't wish for it to live longer)

if I ever plan to actually adapt GA's history into something it would suck to already know how some key characters of that time period die. I'd never make a comic/manga thing cause i suck at that, but if i lived in a perfect world where I had money I would looove to have it animated since i ADORE CINEMA i think i even have 409 movies checked on letterbox as im writing

A more plausible alternative would be a book series, like one you could actually buy that has a cover and all because i would hate having it all written down on a computer forever, i personally hate reading on screen and nothing can beat having the physical copy to me, I've got some ideas of drawing fake book covers one day for fun

sorry rambled a little!

[thebeautyoffanfics]

Okay, okay, hear me out. Hanako-kun x reader. Reader is really cute and Hanako-kun instantly loves her. She has insomnia tho, so she came to him to ask for help. Since he’s not great with super magical things and he’s more old fashioned than that (you all remember the love book) so he just helps how he can. Eventually, the two try cuddling and it works so well that the reader actually asks to be his helper in exchange for him regularly cuddling her to sleep. If this is too specific or you don’t do single character requests then you can ignore this, but I haven’t seen it yet and I connect to this on a spiritual level (if I met him, I would scrub a hundred toilets for him grant my wish of cuddling me to sleep). Thanks!

a/n: ahh , hello ??!! this has been sitting in my inbox for months , so i’m sure the sender has forgotten about it by now - still , i’m sorry to disappoint with this late response !! as well as disappointing with the lack of content overall ,,, very sorry !! it made me sad that i had to check my old fics to remember what i’d put after the a/n ^^;

Let me add , please !! I’m still going to be on hiatus , and I’m not sure how many fics I’ll be able to get done ,,,, still , I hope , even if I just get this one out , that you guys are happy with it :DD !!

warnings: none :D !!

word count: 1,153

Knock, knock, knock.

“Hanako-san, Hanako-san. Are you there?”

You sighed, your hands clasped together. You knew, surely, Hanako would answer- but, to make a wish, you felt obligated to preform the sort-of ritual. Maybe it could get you on his good side, instead of simply barging in, and demanding that you knew Yashiro wasn’t simply going crazy.

You felt a hand on your shoulder, as a vaguely eerie “Yep!! Right over here,” was stated, practically right in your ear.

Despite expecting some sort of trick, you yelped a bit, jumping to the side. Nervously, you glanced the ghost boy up and down. You’d never gotten this close of a look at him. “I, uhm… I have a wish I need granted!”

“Expected!! Isn’t that the point of summoning me? But, hey, why not get on a name basis? Going right into the ‘grant my wishes, for a priceeee’ is kinda rude.”

You sighed a bit, then nodded. “(Y/N) (L/N). Student, clearly, at Kamome Gakuen.”

“Right! Number 7, Hanako-san of the toilet!”

“Clearly,” You stated once again, raising your eyebrows a bit. “Either way, nice to meet you, Hanako-san.”

“Hanako-kun is fine,” He added on, reaching to shake your hand. You did the same, giving his hand a firm, yet slightly nervous, shake.

Hanako raised his eyebrows, noting how your hand didn’t phase through his.

“Exorcist-ish. Blood of an exorcist, I should say.”

“Hm… figures! You’re clearly not a Minamoto, right?”

“I gave you my last name,” You sighed, pulling your hand back.

“Ohh, right, right!! Well, I’ve gotta say, you’re the prettiest exorcist I’ve seen,” He grinned, placing his hands on his hips. “In that case, maybe you know the drill! What’s your wish?”

You ignored the way your face tinted a slight pink due to the compliment, and quickly brought yourself back to the reason you were here in the first place. “I wish for help with my insomnia.”

“Insomnia, huh… uhhhh, let’s see,” He muttered, floating over to a cabinet. He threw it open, rummaging a bit, before pulling out a book. “Insomniaaaa,” He continued muttering, flipping through the pages.

“A… book?”

“A book!”

“Huh? Where’s your magic? You’re a wish-granting ghost, aren’t you?”

Hanako glanced up at you, then up at the roof, a slight smile on his face. “Uhhm, well… yes! Magic doesn’t grow on trees though! So, practicality is best!!”

“Practicality,” It was your turn to mutter, crossing your arms a bit. “I’m pretty sure I’ve tried every trick in the book. Kind of the point of summoning a ghost.”

“If you’re an exorcist, we could have just talked,” “If you’re the same ‘Hanako-kun’,” You mimicked Yashiro’s voice lightheartedly, copying the annoyed tone you always heard, “I hear Yashiro talking to after school, I feel like your ‘old-fashioned’ ways would be unbeatable.”

Hanako simply laughed at that, placing a finger on a spot in the book.

“Ding-ding! We have a winner!” He shouted, tossing his other hand up in the air in a celebratory pose. “Warm milk?”

“Tried, failed.”

“Chamomile tea?”

“Tried, failed.”

“Steady sleep schedule?”

“Tried, failed.”

“Exercise! Nutrition! Reeeeelaxation!”

“I’ve told you, Hanako,” You sighed, sitting on the window seat next to him. “I’ve tried everything I can think of.”

“Everything?” He questioned, raising an eyebrow.

“Everything.”

He thought for a moment, swinging his legs as he did so. “We could always cuddle? A nice warm hug to lure you to sleep!!”

You made a face, shoving him lightly. “You aren’t warm in the first place, Hanako.”

“But I can give a good hug, c’mon! Hugs are practically therapeutic. You look like you could use a good cuddle!”

You sighed, glancing down at your feet. After thinking for a moment, you looked back up at him. Meeting his curious gaze, you quickly looked back in front of yourself. “Are you being serious? Do you really think it might help?” You questioned.

“I think so, yeah. I mean, does it really hurt to try?”

“I guess not…” You stated, hearing the dismissal bell ring, the last class of the day finally over. “I’ll be back later, then. Taking your word for it, Hanako.”

The boy grinned, giving you a thumbs up. 

---

Hours passed before you returned to the school, a sleeping bag tucked under your arm carefully. 

“Welcome back, (Y/N)!” Hanako cheered, his voice slightly jarring greeting you so loudly, so late at night.

“Thanks,” You responded, smiling a bit despite being lightly startled. You then nodded your head at the door, turning to leave.

“Huh? Where are you going?” Hanako questioned, floating up behind you. 

“I’m not sleeping on the bathroom floor, idiot. The library seems better… more sanitary, I guess.”

Hanako nodded, letting out a small “ohhh,” of realization. As they arrived at the library, you set your sleeping bag on the floor, and hesitantly crawled into it. Hanako paused for a moment, before making his way under the covers as well. You were glad to have had a large sleeping bag, you decided, laying on your side facing away from the ghost boy. Still, you couldn’t deny that it was comforting to have someone laying next to you. After a moment, you felt an arm wrap around you lightly, your face warming up slightly. 

“Goodnight, (Y/N)! Sleep tight!” Hanako said, a smile laced in his tone.

“Goodnight, Hanako-kun…” You responded, closing your eyes. Before you knew it, the feeling of a body next to you, though he was slightly cold, unbreathing, no beating heart… something about it comforted you, bringing a slight smile to your face as you drifted to sleep.

---

“(Y/NNNN),” You heard a voice say, a hand gently shaking your shoulder. “(Y/NNNNN),” It continued, as you slowly opened your eyes. 

“I’m awake,” You muttered, sitting up. As your eyes focused, you spotted the ghost, who you now were beginning to deem a friend. “Thanks,” You added, stretching a bit and standing up.

“No problem! I didn’t want you sleeping here when people would start arriving, haha!!”

“Oh, yeah… I mean, thanks for that, but thanks for uhh… y’know, helping.”

Hanako grinned at you, throwing up a peace sign. “No problem for that either! Your wish is my command!!”

You smiled back, grabbing your sleeping bag. As you did so, a question- no, more like a proposal- crossed your mind. “Uh… Hanako-kun, I was wondering…”

He tilted his head a bit, silently urging you to continue.

“Well, if you… well, I was thinking, if you’d continue cuddling me to sleep, I’ll pay you back by helping you clean and whatnot. Since… honestly, I don’t think I’ve slept that good ever.”

“Ohhh, hmm…!! For you, (Y/N), I’ll take you up on that offer! Sounds like a deal,” He smiled, reaching to shake your hand once more. A smile on your face, and a well-rested feeling in your body, you took his hand, giving it a friendly shake.

[just-my-type-x]

Deadline For Love

Pic not mine

I enter the high school yard and sit by the fence to wait for my friends to show up. As i do so, i reach for my phone to enter the documents on it to run over some lessons for the upcoming exam next week. I try to focus on the pieces of information, but I'm interrupted by loud music coming from a car. I glance over at the car and widen them when i see a brand new jaguar parking across the street from me. My mouth falls open and i turn my head back to my phone when the driver comes out. The last thing i need is trouble for staring at a beautiful and expensive car. But you know what they say.. Curiosity killed the cat. So i turn around to look at the car one more time, when a beautiful man walks out of it. Brown, curly hair, wind blowing it but the hair still manages to lool flawless. He opens the backseat door to take his backpack and i notice his tight black longsleeve tucked in his black jeans, some boots in his feet. I swallow the excess of saliva that I didn't know i had and turn around quickly when he looks at me. I close my eyes and face-palm myself, cringing to the core. I decide to go back to my studying and act like nothing happened. Hearing footsteps on my left, i fight the urge to look if the man comes my way, wishing to steal one more sight of him. The footsteps stop next to me anf he clears his voice loudly, so he can capture my attention.

"You're not so subtle", i look at him, playing dumb. "Just so you know", he smiles and i smile back at him. "I'm Brad", he extends a hand towards me and i shake it happily

"I'm y/n. I'm sorry, but we don't usually see random handsome guys pulling up in Jaguars", i chuckle. "Just so you know". Brad laughs and I'm quick to conclude that this is the most beautiful sounding laughter. "So, are you new here?"

"Yes, actually. I know school started for a while, but there have been some problems my dad had to take care of at my other high school.", Brad leans on the fence and i copy his move

"That sounded like your dad threw the people responsible in a river", he laughs and i try not to blush. I love making people happy.

"Don't worry, it's just paperwork.", a group of people pass us and greet me and Brad, coming over to us to exchange some words and to meet Brad. I see him shift in his place and running his hand through his hair multiple times. Anxiety habit maybe? The group leaves soon after and i look at him, smirking.

"Who would've thought that the rich kid is shy", i pick my backpack off the ground and swing it over my shoulder

"Don't call me that, ok? We're not that close yet", tho his words speak facts, his tone is still warm and i kinda appreciate it. I apologise and go inside the building, letting my friends know I'm no longer waiting for them.

"So, what's your first class?", i ask him awkwardly after the last thing I've told him

" 'M not sure, i think Geography.", he frowns, looking at his schedule on his phone

"Wait, we have the same classes. My coordinator just texted the group chat, we're colleagues", i show him the text and we walk to the classroom. We enter and we greet five other classmates, Brad introducing himself to them.

"Oh my God, he's so cute", a girl whispers to her friend and i roll my eyes, dropping the backpack on the empty seat of the double desk. Brad blushes and involuntarily runs a hand through his curls. He stops at my desk, looking at me, patiently waiting for me to acknowledge him, while my nose is already buried in today's lesson.

"May i help you?", i laugh and he smiles. He looks at the seat that's occupied by the backpack. "Ooooh", i take my backpack away and he's quick to seat next to me.

"Thank you, it's so nice of you to offer me this seat", he jokes and i shake my head smiling.

"i would've said something, but we're not friends yet", i click my tongue and put the book in the middle so he could look at what I'm reading

"That I'm rich and funny?", Brad raises an eyebrow while taking a pen and a notebook out of his backpack. I nod and he laughs.

"What's that thing you always do with your hair?", i ask, while studying his face. He doesn't lift his eyes from the book and absently answers

"Yiu wouldn't believe it, but i am actually shy and can't handle moments like this, when I'm the new guy and all the attention drops on me"

"Well, you shouldn't come with a Jaguar at school", i mock him

"Please drop the car thing or tomorrow I'm coming riding the actual animal.", Brad tries keeping a straight face but fails.

~~~

A few days past and having Brad as my desk mate is a total blast. We started to get to know each other better and it turns out he's a total sweetheart. His sense of humour matches mine and we're on the same page with a lot of things. Maybe not that many. While I ace geography, he's totally lost without my help and a very important exam is coming up. While i take some notes for the exam, Brad comes into the classroom and takes my book away from me. He takes my hands in his and i raise an eyebrow at him.

"You have to help me pass this or I'm lost"

"I can't give you my brain", i chuckle

"No, but you're intelligent and you've been going through the lessons everyday since i got here and I'm sure you can put some information in my brain", he looks at me hopeless. I sigh and ask myself why shouldn't i do it and i have no answer to that question. So i happily agree to that. He gives me a quick hug and when i get back in my seat properly, my elbow hits the wall behind me. I moan in pain and mumble a fuck under my breath. I feel Brad watching me so i look back at him and see him smirk. "If you sound like this in bed too, then that's intriguing", he laughs and i hit him playfully in the arm.

"You'll just have to imagine that, Simpson"

"Mmm, bet my imagination isn't that colorful as reality might be", Brad runs a hand through his hair and smirk at me while leaning on the back of the chair. I feel my cheeks heat up.

"Then you'll have to become creative", i wink at him and put my notes on the side of his desk. "Have some of this information learned by tomorrow afternoon. We'll go to my place to study together", i try to keep my voice neutral, tho this joke about my moaning got me playing since scenarios in my head that i didn't know i had the ability to create.

"If i guess the answers right, do i get any type of reward?", he goes through the notes and runs a finger over the highlighted words.

I gasp

"For a shy guy like you, you definitely have a dirty mind"

"And mouth, i can assure you." he's still looking through the notes, frowning, like he doesn't say any big deal. I fall back on my seat, trying to keep my mind from wondering off into the wrong direction. I study Brad, his back broad and muscular, his shirts and t-shirt making it look so masculine. His arms are well built as well, legs too. Little curls forming at the back of the head and the rest of the curls being parted everywhere in the front. His coffee eyes read carefully over the hours and hours of information I've studied for, his lips parted, whispering what he reads. His fingers nice and long, the rings adding an extra wish for me look longer at his hands. Brad runs a hand through his hair and i frown when a strand of hair isn't placed as nicely as before. "Just because i don't see you, it doesn't mean i don't feel uncomfortable when you're watching me", he leans back in his seat to face me. I turn on the side and put my arm on the back of the seat, holding my head with my hand, looking in his eyes and him looking into mine without blinking.

"I was trying to see if i invited a serial killer into my house"

"I think we'll have to wait and see"

"Brad!", i push him playfully.

"I was joking. There's nothing you have to worry about. Other than my excessive stupidness for this subject", we both laugh and give each other one more smile when the teacher enters the classroom

The class comes to an end and we all reach for our backpacks to get out of the classroom. "Don't go yet, one more thing", the teacher yells and we all stop in our tracks to pay attention to her. "I changed my mind about the exam.", a sigh of relief escapes all of our mouths. Brad looks at me and smiles and i wink at him. "It's gonna be a 2 people project.", a wave of disappointment is heard from all around the classroom, but i almost clap out of excitement. Projects are my thing and I always ace them. I look over to my best friend and we both smile at each other, because we always work together. "The project has to be about your European trips. If you went to Berlin, i want pictures, if yiu went to Rome, i want pictures and so on. Afterwards, i want information about type of climate, fauna vegetation and so on about the certain country. I'll email you all the requirements. Oh and i almost forgot, your team mates are your desk mates. No changes. ", the teacher leaves before we do and we remain with mouths open, because we're used to choosing our partners. I look at Brad who's already looking at me.

"I hope you've travelled outside England, pretty boy", i sigh and head towards the door, him following me.

"Oh, we're going to have fun", Brad smirks and we both head outside for the break.

~~~~~

After school, we both go back to my place to start working on the project. I get inside his car and don't know how to act casual enough in such a not avarege car for an 18 year old. Brad gets in the driver's seat and puts on his seatbelt, a sigh of relief escaping his lips. He's been overwhelmed in the past days since chsnging schools and being the new guy again. He doesn't like being in the public eye for sure, but his little habits he does when he's shy make my soul happy. We drive off in silence, while groups of people follow us with their eyes. I roll my eyes, but Brad doesn't seem to notice the jealous eyes of those who are the same age as he is and don't even have a driver's licence. The radio plays quietly in the background and Brad vibes to the music by tapping the wheel to the rythm. I decide to look outside the window, because i don't want him to believe i'm staring at him.

I replay the past week while we pass trees and houses fast. Meeting Brad was really unexpected and i didn't know i needed him to come into my life. I didn't think i needed to surround myself with new people so i could feel good and energetic. Somehow, he managed to bring my true self back and for that i'm going to be forever greatful to him.

We pull up at my house and instruct him to park into my family's garage, as it's empty. We get inside and i'm thankful my mom cooked, because we're both hungry and not patient enough to wait for food delievery. We eat, get to know each other a little bit better and laugh almost at everything the other says, not necesarily because it's funny, but because we have too much of a good vibe together.

An hour or so later, we're both on the living room floor and looking at pictures and videos of each other's vacations. Brad is part of a group of him and three other boys, who are his best friends, and he is pretty much always on the road with them. He says it's an unwritten rule for them to go out of the country as long as they can afford it, so whenever they're free, they hop on the first plane. I almost choke on my water when he says that and all of a sudden i look at my vacation photos that are mostly taken by my parents while on vacation with them.

"I'm sorry, i didn't mean to make you feel bad", he apologies and comes next to me, putting his hand on the small of my back. i look up at him and smile.

"Don't worry, i'm fine. You're the last person who would make me feel bad, Bradley", i pinch his cheek.

"Good. Oooh, what do we have here?", Brad reaches for my phone to look at a photo closely. "This picture should be illegal", he says in a serious voice, but i chuckle and lean on him to try get my phone back, but he raises his arm higher.

"Stop, i don't like that photo", i whine and get on my feet to reach the phone. The photo he's looking at is a picture taken at a restaurant on the beach and my friend took a picture of me having a sip of cocktail, my chest only covered by a small bikini bra.

"Shut up, you're breathtaking. We're not using this photo", he laughs and takes the phone away when i almost catch it. I give up and sit back down. "Ok,let's get back to our project, because you're distracting me and that's not good.", he hands me my phone.

"How am i distracting you?", i raise my eyebrow, but i know the answer to my question

"Y/N, I'm at the peak of my hormones and your exposed chest on a restaurant table look more appetising than the menu.", my mouth falls open while i question how he kept a straight face while saying all of this. I blush and look away from him.

"Thanks for the honesty", i chuckle

"Yeah, well, i can't thank you for other things", my face heats up even more and i push him away playfully.

"Just don't think about me when you do it. Please.", i manage to say, while going back to the laptop, seeing the empty slides we need to fill in.

"Will it make you do it yourself?", his voice is low in my ear and i breath heavily all of a sudden. I shake my head to forget the feeling.

"It will make me wanna finish this stupid project so i could focus on more important things"

"And when i thought you wanted to finish me", Brad fakes he's hurt by putting a hand over his chest

"After we finish the project", i smirk proudly when his face shifted with surprise, his eyes sparkling.

We start adding photos and information in our presentation, both Brad and i shifting in our places because of our conversation.

"Fuck it", Brad closes the laptop and moves it further from me, while pulling me by the hands towards him. He sits on the floor, his back leaning on the couch and he motions me to get on his lap. I do as told and he grabs my waist, his lips instantly landing on mine. We move in sync, our tongues brushing softly over one another, my crotch rubbing on him, creating a much needed friction by both of us. He gasps and moves his hands lower, holding me by the ass. We break the kiss and look into each other's eyes and smile. I want to move from his lap, but he grabs my thigh to hold me in place, murmuring a no. Brad puts a strand of hair behind my ear and cups my face before kissing me again, gently this time.

"Let's just take things slow, alright?", his voice is calm, while he's all blushy and needy

"Alright", i nod

"But i promise I'll make you call in sick when you won't be able to get out of bed when i finally get the chance to have sex with you", he slaps my ass gently, making me wish he hit it a little bit harder. I give him a kiss.

"I can't wait for that", i kiss him again, deepening the kiss

.

.

.

This became longer than expected so unfortunately i didn't get to write about preliminaries, but i hope u enjoyed the rest of the imagine. Also, as u can see in the request, it says 2 imagines, so of course i didn't respond to the whole request because i don't want people to see what's the request. However, i can make it as a part 2 to this one. So if you guys want that to be a part 2 (and trust me it's interesting) and if the anon who requested it sees it, pls let me know if u want the 2nd request to be somehow this part's continuation ♥️

[the-yearning-astronaut]

Thank your for your lengthy answer on the murderbot ask. I know neither you nor the author can influence the price I was just really surprised you know?

I'm not American so target is not an option for me. We do actually get it as paperback in my country tho.

I do wanna support the author that's why I wanted to buy a physical copy from a local book store instead of the ebook from amazon but I do wonder what the publisher were thinking at 20 bucks for a paperback when my normally 800 page paperbacks are like 10.

Sadly English audiobooks don't work at all for me, tho I did just check and my library does have the books available at the moment. But I'm not really a library person. I always worry to much about taking care of the book. I'm like a breaking the spine person. Tho with under 200 pages per book I probably could read it at the library in like two hours or so... Hmm we'll see.

Oh man I've seen some of the covers for the international versions and I'm High Key jealous -- they are so pretty. Anyway, I wish I had more relevant international resources/info to offer.... Unfortunately I struggle to even find things here in the US sometimes due to uhhhhh certain monopolies on advertising and distribution. And yeah the price is definitely surprising. I think it's becoming more common tho for novellas to have that price point? At least, one of my other favorite novella series is also $20/book. (Incidentally, A Psalm for the Wild Built is also about humanity and identity and robots...I'm sensing a Theme...)

I'd be surprised if the spines of the library books weren't already broken tbh so maybe you wouldn't have to worry about that! I'm the same way with books tho, especially when I'm borrowing them, so Can Relate.

And the author should still get compensated for the book, even when it's an ebook from Amazon! I just don't know how much. Same with any legitimate purchase/rental -- it's the pirating of books that actively harms the authors. So whether you do decide to check it out or purchase it, you'll be supporting the author either way ☺️

Me @ you:

[ferociousconscience]

Hey there dear Sir!

I've recently felt the urge to get obsessed with yet another thing and have decided that Les Mis does look quite interesting, so I wanted to ask where you would suggest one starts getting into it, there's a bunch of movie adaptations that have released within the past almost century, are there any outliers that are particularly good? Do you have a favorite play of it that you can recommend watching, if it is to be found somewhere in the depths of the Internet? Any input is appreciated really!

A wonderful day to you

a friend, enemy and lover

Good sir!!!! My friend! My enemy! My lover! You want to get into Les Mis!! This is an admirable endeavor and I wish you the best of luck. You have at your feet 161 years of love, fandom, and adaptation to dive into, which in truth is my favorite part of les mis. I will answer this ask in some semblance of order. Have a look under this readmore!! (karate chop motions)

I often think of the question of where would be a good way to start too. I myself got into it in a weird way. I tried to read it when I was young and had energy to devour huge books, but the translation I got was honestly abysmal and hard to read. I put it down pretty quickly. Later, I was part of a theater troupe for a handful of years, and while we never end up doing les mis (our director hated mainstream musicals LOL), I was pretty immersed in the fandom after the 2012 film came out, left the fandom after much lurking, and only rejoined recently after reading the book again. (Different translation this time!) I do think that for the general public, the musical is a great starting point, even if it changes a lot and musicals can be a hard sell for a lot of people. HOWEVER, I do not think the 2012 film is a good adaptation in any sense, and I do not think anyone should start there. This is perhaps a controversial opinion, but I do genuinely believe that one should avoid it at the start for various reasons. In the interest of keeping this reply short I'll save my opinions on the 2012 version for now. If you do want to get into the musical, a 4K re-upscale of the 10th Anniversary Concert is free on youtube (tho it is cut down, an older version of the present day musical which has many revisions, and lacks a lot of staging because it is a concert as opposed to an actual stage production). I think this version has a fantastic cast with talented performers. Also free on youtube is the admittedly kind of silly and yet still very compelling 1978 film, a non-musical cinematic version which is near and dear to my heart,. It also cuts down a looooot, drastically changes the ending, and is more focused on the Valjean and Javert side of things. As for the particularly good ones, I have answered that in a recent ask. Please do take a look there, and I hope it answers your question! Generally the older french adaptations are better and more faithful, lol. If you cannot find a particular adaptation of les mis, feel free to DM me, and I will either send you files, torrents, or I will hunt them down for you myself. As always, feel free to DM me here or on Discord (username is @vondieerde). I can also recommend reading the book once you feel you have a good grip of the story and you want more! So much more!!! Please do, though it is sort of a monolith (we in the fandom call it "The Brick" because you can make a sturdy house with copies of it lol). I will firmly state that I think the Julie Rose translation is the best, and can also really really recommend the Audiobook of it narrated by George Guidall, who has a wonderful voice and is a natural storyteller. If you were to read the book, reading one chapter a day (the chapters are pretty bite-sized), you would be done in exactly a year, 365 days (funny how that works out). I would love to do a book club style discussion of any chapters you read, should you really want to sink your teeth into the story and learn as much as you can. I've spent the last few years studying the heck out of the book and I want to talk to as many people I can about this thing I've fallen in love with again. message me on discord you fool i know who you are

[kikis-dump]

Hehehehe school project >:)

So basically we had to make an illuminated manuscript inspired book cover of any book of our choosing.

So I choose TSOA cause why tf not.

IT WAS SO OVERDUE I LITERALLY HAD TO DO IT IN 2 DAYS SO I WASN’T ABLE TO TAKE MY TIME (my fault really) TO ADD ALL THE SMALL DETAILS CAUSE NGL THE SPIRALS DIDN’T FIT THE VIBE I WAS GOING FOR BUT IT FILLED UP THE EMPTY SPACE SO IT’S FINE

also Achilles’ arms and hands are scuffed (BUT WHY ARE HIS SHOULDERS ALRIGHT???)

And I was supposed to copy that really known pattern in most greek pottery or art but then I messed it up THREE TIMES so now the pattern is different for 2 of them😭😭😭

IT’S FINE…IT’S NOT OBVIOUS…I THINK

And fun fact, the words at the bottom of the title are from the actual first page of TSOA. It isn’t in order but it’s the start of each line :)) I thought it was a neat detail

(Ngl I think I should’ve just made another design in place of the text to fill in space but too late for regrets)

Though I’m still happy with this so it’s a win win ☺️☺️☺️

(I wish I had markers tho cause doing this with colored pencils and 5 highlighters was a pain…)