#deep in the thrall of this fictional narrative

[speaker-of-the-void-cats]

"My mentor couldn't teach me how to interpret dreams, so he taught me in hypotheticals."

Hey all! I'm a Warlock main named Matt and I've been posting my scattershot Destiny musings, ramblings, and theories since Lightfall's release. In that time, I've really enjoyed exploring the mysteries of the lore and honing my thoughts on Destiny's story through various posting styles. Particularly, I've loved exploring topics like the nature of the Darkness, the Veil, the Witness and its place in the story, as well as the generally rhyming, looping, spiraling structure of the game's narrative. I also love Eris, Drifter, Savathûn, and Osiris!

Sometimes I get a little goofy with it, especially in those early posts, with big swings and a lot of my own writing connecting the dots in an attempt to see a year into the future. But as we've gone through the seasons and learned more, I've tried a sort of variation on web-weaving using lore entries, images, video, and sometimes song lyrics and poetry in order to evoke specific moods or convey big, hard to articulate ideas and speculation. Sometimes, I simply explore a theme or specific lore nook that fascinates me.

As we near The Final Shape, I wanted to finally compile a list of links to all my posts. Pardon the amount of repetition and, probably, off-the-wall speculation, but I hope you find something interesting if you decide to check them out! Also, keep an eye out for links. Sometimes it's simply the source text on Ishtar, other times.... something more. Please keep in mind that all these are products of the moment in time they were posted in, so topics I explored in early ones may have questions answered in the seasons since. The list will largely go from earliest to most recent, and I'll put a * next to my favorites!

The Veil, Nezarec, and Jakob Bohme

Seeing the murals above the Veil enclosure*

EMBRACE THE DARKNESS

Thank You, Verse 154i:4 - Call the Thrall

MCXLLII-I, forthcoming.

The EDZ saw paracausal conflict long before the Collapse

Pattern is system and system is sequence, but what is sequence?

Forsaken Lightfall

Deterministic Chaos*

Eight

SALVAGE THE TRUTH

Aren't they beautiful?

"What is this feeling? I do not want it."

"They desired meaning. A Winnower to shape the garden."*

"How many legends of katabasis do we have, Ikora?"*

The Sundial

The Dreaming Cities

Not Light, not Dark: Power.*

Chiasmus*

Conspiracy Theory-D

The Truth in the Darkness...

Have you ever been afraid of your own Shadow?*

[I could be wrong. Is it possible the Black Heart will beat again?]*

[The following posts contain trailer spoilers for the Final Shape]

©0RrUptIôN.*

Prismatic Hearts*

"We are unique emanations of the same shared Light."

Kugelblitz*

Final attempts to understand before the Shape is unveiled*

Paradrome

Speaker's Sight — Study the voice. Gaze into the heart.

"Focus. The Pyramid distracts. Nothing more."

It all means one thing

DECRYPTION KEY: 3136664202-777

Ruinous Effigy

There is only SUFFERING

SPOILER ALERT

Hope for the Future

It's not over

Echoes

Eyes up, Guardian

Reading for world-building is a skill. I have seen brilliant people, laureates, inventors, Ph.D.s, try to read fiction with deep world-building and fail completely, looping back, rereading, never following events, trapped in a sense of muddled wandering. Reading for world-building requires retaining information without context: a term, a place, a coin, a category comes up once and we know what that is—a puzzle piece—and that our task is to gather up these pieces as the author drops them, and to slowly assemble the whole. This is not easy. Human memory needs hooks for facts: a mnemonic, a story, context, something; grueling textbook rote-learning fades quickly, but a story of the statesman or the king, that's what makes knowledge stay. To retain puzzle pieces that don't connect, dropped without context, is a skill that not all have. All had it once: it is how children read, every book, poster, and headline a stream of unknown terms, far too many to ask about them all, but the child retains them, trusting that they will connect to something someday. Kids collect Earth's puzzle pieces every time they read, but as we move to grown-up books they all use the same picture, and define immediately those terms they fear a reader may not know. Thus the skill of keeping puzzle pieces fades, unless we read books set in other worlds, new puzzle pictures which make us retain the skill, as frogs sometimes retain their tadpole tails into adulthood. This—many have observed—is why most F&SF readers come to the genre young, it's hard to start in adulthood when one's puzzle memory skill has sat atrophied.

We find dozens of other puzzle pieces—creatures, buried engines, monstrous plants—but they don't connect either, no explanations, no recurrences. We trust. We ponder. We wade through the clutter of clashing technologies, tales of degeneration, glories lost, but there's no fall-of-space-Rome story to connect it up. We can guess at one, as we can guess the missing end of the story of the strange plants, as we can guess at several ways rats could gain language if time passed and—click—we see it. These puzzle pieces do not fit together—rather this puzzle-maker trusts that we are puzzle-masters and know the archetypes that must fill in between (a rise, an age, a destined king.) So we spread our disconnected puzzle pieces out, not assuming that the strange creatures come from one origin, the ruins from one era, and as we spread out, looking not for direct connections but for fragments of arcs and colors, our 100 puzzle pieces let us glimpse an image so vast it would take 100,000—an image large enough to capture true Deep Future, years numbered in millions, where contours that do connect do so at scales which make the layers of Freud's Rome appear shallow as coats of paint.

—Excerpts from The Path of the New Sun by Ada Palmer, introduction to The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe

[valtyrofficial]

Legend of the Dark Elf - Fantasy Novel

Time and again, tales and legends twine around the fantastical denizens of myriad realms, filling the younger kin with delight and a sense of mysterious adventure, of far flung journeys into fairy-tale lands and encounters with unknown creatures and forces.

For some, these stories may lull them to sleep, for others, they wile away the evening hours, yet this narrative is anything but mere fiction. Indeed, you shall meet the most astonishing beings of the various kingdoms, hear of great wars and the magical pestilence that preceded them, drawing both young and old into their ghastly thrall, plunging them into the deepest darkness and bringing a sorrow into the world the likes of which had never been known before, an echo of which resonates to this day and shapes all historical chronicles.

Dragons that are anything but compliant to the whims of their masters, tribes of the most ghastly and at the same time beautiful dark elves with their large, noble hearts, and the shy, enigmatic Thuldocks - creatures more mysterious than the deepest depths of the forests themselves, which no creature of Aereathor truly understands.

Witches, whose greed is as deep as the chasms of the world, ready to strip the flesh from your bones without hesitation, wild, warlike mountain spirits carrying in their damned hearts only an echo of war, unable to find peace in eternal slumber, and beings of ethereal grace that walk between the veils of worlds, gentle yet unattainable. All this is but a fragment of what I intend to report and reveal to you. But contrary to what you might suppose, this story, now legendary and known in all realms of the world, does not begin with great warriors, not with golden imposing trumpets and the pride of arrogant nobility, not with the coronation ceremonies of kings or the veils of princesses... Oh no, it springs from a more modest beginning, rooted in the simple earth trodden by the feet of a little boy, whose spirit brims with playfulness and an explorer's drive, as untamed as the first song of the larch bird in spring, leaving its nest for the first time to whip the air with its downy-feathered wings.

The curiosity and love of adventure in him were so great that he fluttered about with his wings in impatience and euphoria, clumsily stumbling over the forest floor. No fall could cloud his cheerfulness; on the contrary, with each tumble and rise, his heart and his laughter grew only louder, his joy a veritable song that broke the silence and often grave earnestness and daily discipline of the dark elves, lightening their hearts.

His name was Vandhur.

⚔ Design, Poem & Artwork for the Dark Fantasy Novel Book Story: .:: Valtyr™ - Legend of the Dark Elf ::.

© 2024 @valtyr_official - All rights reserved. https://darkelf.com

[copperhawkthoughts]

I love stories about love.

So much of what made the Mighty Nein compelling to me was really watching “it’s love that makes people” play out - watching those characters grow and heal and be shaped by receiving love but also through the act of giving love. By allowing themselves to be loved.

Calamity is getting me in the gut because one of the themes showing up is “love is not enough”, in big, world-ending ways and in small, everyday ones

- it’s not enough to keep a marriage together

- it’s not enough to keep a child happy

- it’s not enough to save someone’s life

- it’s not enough to save the world

[diepower]

THE MEGA RP PLOTTING SHEET / MEME.

First and foremost, recall that no one is perfect, we all had witnessed some plotting once which did not went too well, be it because of us or our partner. So here have this, which may help for future plotting. It’s a lot! Yes, but perhaps give your partners some insight? Anyway BOLD what fully applies, italicize if only somewhat.

MUN NAME: Kaiman     AGE: 27       CONTACT: IM, ask, discord

CHARACTER(S): Meninas McAllon, Orihime Inoue, Retsu Unohana, Mashiro Kuna, Tier Harribel, Charlotte Chuuhlhourne

CURRENT FANDOM(S): That I write in? It’s gonna be Bleach, OVW (super selectively im just here for one person), ASOIAF (barely- literally when the mood strikes and that one is private also). I have a lot of current interests in general though.

BLEACH FANDOM(S) YOU HAVE AN AU FOR: While I don’t have anything fully established... I’ve been working with an ASOIAF au (for Harribel & Unohana specifically, though I’m considering it with other characters too), A Dorohedoro AU (for Unohana and Orihime), as well as a Persona AU (more specifically 2&3) for Orihime. I’ve also got a number of post-canon AUs or continuities for all my characters as well!

MY LANGUAGE(S): English, super basic Spanish, barest ASL, fairly good French

THEMES I’M INTERESTED IN FOR RP: FANTASY / SCIENCE FICTION / HORROR / WESTERN / ROMANCE / THRILLER / MYSTERY / DYSTOPIA / ADVENTURE / MODERN / EROTIC / CRIME / MYTHOLOGY / CLASSIC / HISTORY / RENAISSANCE / MEDIEVAL / ANCIENT / WAR / FAMILY / POLITICS / RELIGION / SCHOOL / ADULTHOOD / CHILDHOOD / APOCALYPTIC / GODS / SPORT / MUSIC / SCIENCE / FIGHTS / ANGST / SMUT / DRAMA

PREFERRED THREAD LENGTH: ONE-LINER / 1 PARA / 2 PARA / 3+ / NOVELLA (2para is a sweet spot but it really doesn’t matter to me)

ASKS CAN BE SEND BY: MUTUALS / NON-MUTUALS / PERSONALS / ANONS.

CAN ASKS BE CONTINUED?:   YES / NO    ONLY BY MUTUALS?:  YES / NO

PREFERRED THREAD TYPE: CRACK / CASUAL NOTHING TOO DEEP / SERIOUS / DEEP AS HECK.

IS REALISM / RESEARCH IMPORTANT FOR YOU IN CERTAIN THEMES?:   YES / NO.

ARE YOU ATM OPEN FOR NEW PLOTS?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS.

DO YOU HANDLE YOUR DRAFT / ASK - COUNT WELL?:  YES / NO / SOMEWHAT. (i let them build up too often but some of yall are too quick to reply jkglfjdgsd)

HOW LONG DO YOU USUALLY TAKE TO REPLY?: 24H / 1 WEEK / 2 WEEKS / 3+ / MONTHS / YEARS / DEPENDS ON MOOD AND INSPIRATION, AND IF I’M BUSY

I’M OKAY WITH INTERACTING: ORIGINAL CHARACTERS / A RELATIVE OF MY CHARACTER (AN OC) / DUPLICATES / MY FANDOM / CROSSOVERS / MULTI-MUSES / SELF-INSERTS / PEOPLE WITH NO AU VERSE FOR MY FANDOM / CANON-DIVERGENT PORTRAYALS / AU-VERSIONS (italicized are okay, but under really specific circumstances)

DO YOU POST MORE IC OR OOC?: IC / OOC.

ARE YOU SELECTIVE WITH FOLLOWING OTHERS?: YES / NO / DEPENDS  

BEST WAYS TO APPROACH YOU FOR RP/PLOTTING:  I’m pretty anal about plotting in that I often refuse to RP unless it’s been plotted or I liked a starter call. And in the case of the latter, I’ll still hop into DMs to plot further depending on where the thread takes us. That said, the best way to reach me is through IMs or Discord (available on request). The only time I turn down plots is if I feel like it would put my character in an OOC situation, and I especially dislike my character being one-sidedly used as a tool to further another character’s development without anything being reciprocated (this happens often especially wrt my healer characters)

WHAT EXPECTATIONS DO YOU HOLD TOWARDS YOUR PLOTTING PARTNER: Communication is really important to me, especially with regards to comfort regarding certain plot elements, and approaching other in-character situations that might have multiple different solutions. I think it’s important that both characters involved get the same amount of development out of writing a thread, and I really hate the idea of being imbalanced as far as that goes (more on that below). That said, I’m always perfectly down to spitball plot ideas and tweak/refine other concepts because I really do enjoy plotting, it’s just super important to me that things are communicated clearly. I get extremely distressed and frustrated IRL if people just kinda throw stuff at me, and it often kills my muse.

WHEN YOU NOTICE THE PLOTTING IS RATHER ONE-SIDED, WHAT DO YOU DO?: I make an active effort to come up with plots that are engaging and beneficial fairly equally to both parties. I mentioned this above, but especially in the case of writing my healer characters, I have a huge disdain for characters being used as tools to further development while getting nothing substantial in return. That said, I try to be very aware of this in terms of a potential writing partner being on the receiving end. IMO it feels like shit, but I definitely don’t want to make someone else feel that way either. That said, so long as stuff is plotted out clearly and me and the writer are both okay with it, then it’s fine. COMMUNICATION IS KEY, BASICALLY.

HOW DO YOU USUALLY PLOT WITH OTHERS, DO YOU GIVE INPUT OR LEAVE MOST WORK TOWARDS YOUR PARTNER?:  I kinda just like to throw spaghetti at the wall and whatever sticks, I’m down to fly with. I have a lot of ideas, but again, I like to give my partners the option of doing whatever they’re comfortable with, and h aving equal contribution opportunities.

WHEN A PARTNER DROPS THE THREAD, DO YOU WISH TO KNOW?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS.

- AND WHY?: Everyone has their own circumstances, I really don’t mind. If it’s one I’ve been especially looking forward to, I might be bummed, but it’s no skin off my nose really.

WHAT COULD POSSIBLY LEAD YOU TO DROP A THREAD?: I don’t typically drop threads or abandon them during their writing. The only thing that would make me do so is offensive content, or huge plot elements being introduced that makes my character ooc and wasn’t previously discussed during plotting.

WILL YOU TELL YOUR PARTNER?:   YES / NO / DEPENDS.

IS COMMUNICATION IN THE RPC IMPORTANT TO YOU? YES / NO.

-AND WHY?: I already feel like I need to take a lot of extra steps to understand others and be understood, and that isn’t something often reciprocated. In my experience, just honest communication is the quickest solution to issues that crop up during writing. For those who HAVE actually had me reach out to them in this way, I really do try to be polite and respectful while being straightforward so the situation can be resolved without any hurt feelings.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH ABSOLUTE HONESTY, EVEN IF IT MAY MEANS HEARING SOMETHING NEGATIVE ABOUT YOU AND/OR PORTRAYAL?: As long as it’s constructive, and not merely negativity, I welcome it. After all, I can’t fix a huge flaw in my writing without having an alternative solution. I’m open to accepting feedback and critique, especially wrt Meninas since my portrayal is quite a large departure from popular fanon perception (from those who choose to pay attention to her, lol), but I also thrive on suggested remedies and solutions to issues in my writing.

DO YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE SUCH SITUATION IN A MATURE WAY? YES / NO.

WHY DO YOU RP AGAIN, IS THERE A GOAL?: I like to tell stories, and I like to tell narratives that take root in emotional expression and how those feelings can act as a vehicle to the storytelling. I want to move people through feeling, because it can be a powerful experience. I use a lot of inspiration from themes in my other favorite series, as well as inspiration from my own personal experiences as well. I tend to pick characters who have one or two traits in common with myself, whether those be negative or positive. I’m very excited to share all the things I have planned for Meninas, as she’s certainly my most ambitious project to date.

WISHLIST, BE IT PLOTS OR SCENARIOS:  For Meninas specifically, I want to interact with Squad 11 and Squad 9 during the CFYOW verse I have planned. Hisagi specifically would be interesting because of the clash of ideals, in addition to being the only other living person to be able to relate to the horror of being under Pepe’s thrall. I’d also like to steal Ikkaku’s bankai, and have more fight scenes. Lastly, Meninas doesn’t do much of anything in CFYOW, so more interactions with Mayuri and Squad 12 would be cool.

THEMES I WON’T EVER RP / EXPLORE: I don’t mind briefly referencing darker themes in my writing, especially wrt my own personal experiences, but I want to be very clear that I refuse to write at length or romanticize these themes. I refuse to write anything involving rape, homophobia, transphobia, racism, pedophilia, etc, with this in mind.

WHAT TYPE OF STARTERS DO YOU PREFER / DISLIKE, CAN’T WORK WITH?: Unless previously discussed, I struggle with starters that have a character pushing mine away. If the situation is super OOC for my character to be in, or frankly too mundane. In Meninas’ case, most domestic stuff is a snoozefest for me (but I LOVE this for other characters).

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE MOST?:  *saoirse ronan voice* Women. UHHH but no, for real... I like fleshing out female characters quite a bit. Personality types are varied, but I like characters who have some level of nuance to their emotional expression whether it’s an internal or external struggle. I like powerful women too, and the exploration of “strength” as a theme (esp at the intersection of the theme of “femininity” and its expressions) whether this is external strength or internal fortitude. I think I play a wide variety of characters who have vastly different thoughts, beliefs, and forms of expression, but I try to find something in common with who I portray to act as a touch stone. I also like characters who have themes of “justice” and nuanced morality.

WHAT TYPE OF CHARACTERS CATCH YOUR INTEREST THE LEAST?: 99% of male characters. And I also hate tsunderes gjklsdjfd

WHAT ARE YOUR STRONG ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: I really like my writing style especially wrt using emotion to set a cinematic scene and overall tone. I think I’m really strong with conveying emotion, especially with things that are often unspoken. I try to communicate with partners clearly and establish rapports. I love writing headcanons and have a TON of plot ideas as well.

WHAT ARE YOUR WEAK ASPECTS AS RP PARTNER?: Oh I’m the slowest replier on the planet and I’m apparently intimidating lol

DO YOU RP SMUT?:  YES / NO / DEPENDS.

DO YOU PREFER TO GO INTO DETAIL?: YES / NO / DEPENDS (i prefer to go into detail about sensations, rather than the actual acts as it comes off stifled and weirdly technical)

ARE YOU OKAY WITH BLACK CURTAIN?: YES / NO

- WHEN DO YOU RP SMUT? MORE OUT OF FUN OR CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT?: Honestly I just do what Meninas tells me.

- ANYTHING YOU WOULD NOT WANT TO RP THERE?: Kink stuff is weird territory for me, absolutely gotta be discussed in private and comfort levels clearly established.

ARE SHIPS IMPORTANT TO YOU?: YES / NO. Relationships in general rule, and while I do have a romantic ship that plays a large part in Meninas’ plot, the romance comes secondary to the plot itself. I really enjoy writing and developing romances, but more than that I like establishing connections. I love the relationships I’ve got planned with Giselle, Candice, Liltotto, and Bambietta because there are going to be a LOT of drastically different things that inform my portrayal of Meninas coming from these relationships (both positive and negative, but ultimately places of growth).

WOULD YOU SAY YOUR BLOG IS SHIP-FOCUSED?: YES / NO. Like I said, plot comes first. And especially in the case of Meninas, she has a lot of self exploration and reflection to do before she can engage in a healthy relationship or address any feelings of romance. I do place a large focus on the formation of her relationships and how they shape the way she relates to other people and grows as a person, but I am extremely sensitive to making sure I’m not writing a female character who’s entire development is dependent on a romance with a male character- perish the thought lol.

DO YOU USE READ MORE?:  YES / NO / SOMETIMES WHEN I WRITE LONG STUFF.

ARE YOU:  MULTI-SHIP / SINGLE-SHIP / DUAL-SHIP  —  MULTIVERSE / Singleverse.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EXPLORE THE MOST IN YOUR SHIPS?: For Meninas, it’s a matter of her acknowledging, understanding, and accepting that she can be worth more than how useful she is to others. She had a series of traumatizing and character defining experiences regarding love, romance, and personal worth that strongly shaped the way she perceives her relationships to others and her emotional expression. Trust is another huge factor for me, Meninas needs to be around someone she believes in. Strength is another aspect. She likes someone who challenges her, keeps her on her toes, and is sturdy like physically. Because she’ll break you. THAT SAID- Meninas tends to be open wrt her body, but closed off when it comes to her heart. Hate to see it, love to write it.

ARE YOU OKAY WITH PRE-ESTABLISHED RELATIONSHIPS?: YES / NO. As long as the premise makes sense. I like relationships to have some matter of significance and planning, especially because of how I’ve written the way Meninas picks and chooses who to get close to in Silbern depending on what suits her interests. Genuine friendship is a weird thing for Meninas, as most of her relationships are formed out of convenience. If you aren’t useful to Meninas’ schemeing, then she has no interest in dealing with you beyond platitudes and keeping up appearances and will interact with you as such.

► SECTION ABOUT YOUR MUSE.

- WHAT COULD POSSIBLY MAKE YOUR MUSE INTERESTING TOWARDS OTHERS, WHY SHOULD THEY RP WITH THIS PARTICULAR CHARACTER OF YOURS NOW, WHAT POSSIBLE PLOTS DO THEY OFFER?: WE LOVE DUPLICITOUS WOMEN! No, but at the core of my Meninas characterization, the sentiment is “Everything is not as it appears” even down to the relationships she has with others. Meninas’ entire personality is constructed as a survival tactic from an early age (in addition to being a way to make herself more useful as a tool to others, and thus seen as having more worth in general), and as a result, she hasn’t really allowed herself to live life as a fully realized person. Her plots generally offer silent rebellion, playing a role in regards to her self presentation, chaotic mean girl level bullshit, and cool fights/training. Also you get to interact with a big buff lady. That said about her personality, it depends on the verse. CFYOW Meninas will be more unhinged, while post-CFYOW Meninas will be more honest and rowdy.

- WITH WHAT TYPE OF MUSES DO YOU USUALLY STRUGGLE TO RP WITH?:  Muses who are standoffish or disengage right at the start. Meninas doesn’t interact with people without a certain purpose, so if they aren’t interested, she’s not going to be either.

- WHAT DO THEY DESIRE, IS THEIR GOAL?:  Revenge, strength, redefining what “power” means in terms of how the world works. She wants to see the Shinigami dead for their role in her parents deaths, and feels the same about Yhwach.

- WHAT CATCHES THEIR INTEREST FIRST WHEN MEETING SOMEONE NEW?:  Ability, potential threat, perceived strength, where loyalty lies; how potentially useful you can be to her.

- WHAT DO THEY VALUE IN A PERSON?:  Strength both in a physical sense, but also in belief and convictions. Honesty, and understanding the flaws of the world they live in.

- WHAT THEMES DO THEY LIKE TALKING ABOUT?:  Fighting, beauty, freedom, abolishing Quincy classism based on blood purity, music, fashion, blacksmithing.

- WHICH THEMES BORE THEM?: Blind loyalty to Yhwach, talking about the horrors of war as if it doesn’t concern them, Bambietta, Quincy supremacy,

- DID THEY EVER WENT THROUGH SOMETHING TRAUMATIC?:  Her parents were killed in the first Quincy war and she was left abandoned and grew up literally fighting for her life and living on the streets. She often likens fighting pits to the bowels of Hell (and I often play with the ironic theme of crawling out of hell to appear as an angel or something divine). She is consumed by a quest for revenge, and strongly believes her ends will justify the means taken to fulfill her ideal. As a direct result of these experiences, her emotional health and maturity is severely affected, and she doesn’t view herself as a person worthy or capable of feeling as much as a tool who, in the right hands, can be utilized to bring about the revenge she craves.

- WHAT COULD LEAD TO AN INSTANT KILL?:  (1) Men who feel non-consensually entitled to her body. That said, she’s done a fairly excellent job at maintaining control and an unassuming threatening nature despite the widely known understanding of her Schrift ability and how it augments. (2) Someone touching her Quincy cross, as it’s her most precious and private item. (3) Anyone who dares get in the way of her plans that can’t be manipulated in some other useful aspect.

- IS THERE SOMEONE /-THING THEY HATE?:  Meninas hates Yhwach, and the Shinigami most predominately, but she also harbors disgust for Hollows as an instinct. That said, her young life was spent detached from Quincy culture (in addition to being a Gemischt and the inherent isolation that comes with that status), so despite her early induction into the Wandenreich ranks, Meninas does not harbor the same Quincy nationalism and loyalty that others of her race do. They’re a means to an end, and just happen to help her become stronger.

IS YOUR MUSE EASY TO APPROACH?: YES / NO. - Best ways to approach them?: She comes off as easy to approach, but if you want genuine Meninas I’m sorry the number you’re trying to reach has been disconnected. Goodbye!

SOMETHING YOU MAY STILL WANT TO POINT OUT ABOUT YOUR MUSE?: Everything I’ve written about her is based in headcanon! I’ve got both a lengthy biography as well as headcanons gathered in the sidebar links on my blog.

CONGRATS!!! You managed it, now tag your mutuals! ♥

TAGGED BY: @bazzardburner​ TAGGING: i think this has made its rounds so steal it!

[parallel-awhite]

Statement / Reading & Being in Times of Pandemic

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Amy White. I am reporting to you from what is at this point a decades-spanning inquiry, what I think of as a ‘matrix of thought’ surrounding questions of earth-based and/or mineral existence [the scope of which extends toward the cosmic and/or interplanetary]. Here, ‘earth’ serves as a metonym for literal physical dirt, rock, soil, and/or crystalline forms employed within this continuum of exploration that percolates [i.e., toward a diffusion of ideas through the above-noted paradigmatic matrix of thought that serves as a kind of sieve through which a sluice of particulate content passes toward a state of ever-greater complexity and refinement] within a context that I conceive of as the ‘Realm of the Static and the Vital’ – of which we are materially and/or otherwise a part. The overarching [working aka functional] title for this project is Minerality & Desire [Darwin, DNA & Dishes], all aspects of which occur under the auspices of The Association of Elemental Aspects – an ephemeral order over which I preside and of which I am the sole acolyte. Suffice to say that reading is a practice that occurs under such auspices to serve this ongoing and ever-expanding project.

Thus, you might imagine the perplexity I experienced when invited to offer a review of a [single] book for this communique. Suffice to say, I really do not read books one-at-a-time. Instead, I tend to amass clusters and stacks of texts that mutually interface and reinforce one another. In that spirit, I will provide a brief configuration of a recent relevant textual cluster. We start with an epigram that appears in Christopher Benfey’s culturally, historically and geographically [geologically] expansive memoir, Red Brick, Black Mountain, White Clay: Reflections of Art, Family and Survival (2012):

And is there any reason, we ask as we shut the book, why the perspective that a plain earthenware pot exacts should not satisfy us as completely, once we grasp it, as man himself in all his sublimity standing against a background of broken mountains and tumbling oceans with stars flaming in the sky?

The above quote is from a vital and enduring author, none other than Virginia Woolf, which turned out to be from a 1926 essay on Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe (1719), which I was then compelled to read and which I would [briefly] describe as a colonialistic fantasy of rebuilding [reinscribing, reifying] ‘civilization’ [white, male, Christian, capitalist] from whole cloth when shipwrecked on a desert island and otherwise as a how-to manual for same covering everything from shelter building to farming – the most salient activity from my perspective having to do with Crusoe’s pottery production.  

I was then led to Michel Tournier’s 1967 Robinson Crusoe redux, Friday, an experimental rewriting of the novel that begins with an imagined Tarot reading aboard a ship in the middle of a raging storm at sea. My first clue that the book paid homage to Woolf was the ship’s name: ‘The Virginia’ – and later in Robinson’s memories of his former life [as crafted by Tournier] along the banks of the River Ouse. Neither of these details appear in Defoe’s original, and my intuition was confirmed when, with a bit of cursory research, I learned that the Ouse was the river in which Woolf took her own life by throwing herself in after filling her pockets with stones.

Friday ventures into Crusoe’s erotic interiorities, which evolve in direct relation to the island itself (christened ‘Speranza’ by the castaway) as an erogenous zone, culminating in earthly congress within a deep humid cave in which Robinson’s (and, later, Friday’s) masturbatory acts magically impregnate the island, giving rise to an efflorescence, literal floral emergence, from human seed. The site also provides the locus at which Robinson, outraged by the agency demonstrated by ‘his slave’s’ audacity in performing an act of unsanctioned, self-empowered sexual athleticism, exacts violence upon him in a fit of complex erotic jealousy and transparent white supremacist rage: He stood thunderstruck, contemplating the infamy taking place beneath his eyes. Speranza sullied, outraged by a Negro!

This brings me to a juncture [verging on fracture] at which I might wish to further share with you works such as Adelene Buckland’s Novel Science: Fiction and the Invention of Ninteenth-Century Geology (2013), which traces the evolution of literary styles employed in geological treatises and their seismic impacts on broader writing and thinking practices of the time – or John McPhee’s epic Annals of the Former World (1981), a doorstopper of a book that I read a few pages at a time each night as a means of placing myself in a mindset of geologic time, held in thrall both by the qualitative magnitude of McPhee’s prose and the expansive reframe:

The new mountains – the mountains of the Basin and Range – are packages variously containing rock that formed at one time or another during some five hundred and fifty million years, or an eighth of the earth’s total time.

Said juncture/fracture also thus impels me toward Kathryn Yussoff’s 2018 A Billion Black Anthropocenes or None, which identifies the erasure inherent in the discourse on the so-called Anthropocene, a construct that posits a new geologic era based on the narrative that ‘man’s’ imposition on the planet has obtained critical mass such that ‘our’ impact now registers on the mineral level – a downshift toward [‘self’-]annihilation. Yussoff exposes blindspots in that narrative:

If this project seems like a counterhistory of geological relations that is other to current articulation as a linear narrative of accumulation, then mine is certainly an attempt to open an investigation into that history and to the languages that carry the work of geology in the world (as resource, extraction, inhuman, chattel). The birth of a geologic subject in the Anthropocene made without an examination of this history is a deadly erasure, rebirth without responsibility.

Hanging in the balance, then, are the following texts, which are so searingly potent and timely that I can read them only in minimal chunks; psychic saturation is achieved after abosorbing the briefest of passages: Frank B. Wilderson III’s Afropessimism (2020); Sylvia Wynter’s (2003) essay “Unsettling the Coloniality of Being/Power/Truth/Freedom: Towards the Human, After Man, Its Overrepresentation— An Argument’ [these latter texts brought to my attention by the brilliant scholar Kim Bobier]; Ibram X. Kendi’s (2019) How to Be An Antiracist; and Timothy Snyder’s (2017) On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century.

Thus, our days here at the Association of Elemental Aspects are divided into categories of activity, beginning with the ritual of morning coffee w/ last night’s DVR’d news & diligent postcard writing [via postcardstovoters.org]; skeletal activation while communining with the tall trees out my back door [sentient embodiment practice]; editing academic papers (aka day job); and, as time and health allow, the above-asserted reading [along with ongoing making and writing practices, phone coversations, drinking water, and sustaining life as well as can be achieved at any given moment] – recognizing the need for active citizenship and understanding same as a mode not at odds with philosophical and/or aesthetic pursuits but rather one that must be cultivated, shared, amplified, harnessed, harmonized - during pandemic as we count down to the election in November – doing what we can to expose and counter authoritarian aspirations.

Carrboro, NC / July 2020

[pinkhairdoesntdance]

@legendaryquill

|| Saw your anon complaining about you shipping Ego and Meredith, and I just had some unsolicited thoughts. They’re about them specifically vaguely but also about shipping unhealthy relationships in general. I’ll readmore just in case people don’t care.

I know that we, on tumblr, learned the term “problematic” for a reason, but I think that the tendency to assume that one cannot enjoy unhealthy dynamics as a means of thought experiment and catharsis is... a misunderstanding of one of the reasons we have conflict in fiction. GotG2′s narrative does not absolve Ego for his actions. In fact, he quite literally dies from them at the hands of his own son who did, in whatever twisted way, turn out to be the child he did want. He is not presented in some way as having simply been misunderstood or that we’re supposed to feel bad that he got his comeuppance.

However, stories about people and stories about love aren’t necessarily supposed to be instructional manuals for how to conduct a healthy relationship. Especially in entertainment meant for young adults and up, it is supposed to be a reasonable expectation of the audience that they should be able to think critically about a piece of fiction enough to realize that bad things can be sympathetic does not mean bad is good.

And I think we, as audiences, tend to understand this when the unhealthy relationship is mutually understood. We get into stories about star-crossed lovers who might be star-crossed for reasons even more stupid than Romeo and Juliet. We like the “just can’t get enough” dynamic sometimes, more freely, when it’s both people who realize that this is the forbidden fruit.

With regard to Ego and Meredith, I think the problem is more that Meredith’s informed consent was violated and then that she was literally murdered. So, can you ship a murderer and his victim? Probably not in most cases, unless you figure that’s particularly cathartic, in which case I’m worried. But this is a kind of fantasy in which Ego is a creature who has literally deluded himself into believing that his ends justified his means and that he is above paltry mortal sentiment even while he feels it. And that should rightly piss you off as a mortal person with feelings. However, the reason Peter goes back to kill Ego is not specifically to get revenge over this presumption on his mother and therefore literally his entire life as well. Instead, it’s because Ego wants to end life as we know it, and Peter knows he’s the only one in a position to stop him.

And yeah, in the end, he says “You shouldn’t have killed my mother or smushed my Walkman,” but you’ll notice that is rather late in the game and in the final stages of “Please listen to me and reconsider,” pleas on Ego’s part. That part was personal but the whole motivation for stopping Ego was not, on peter’s part or on the Guardians’ part.

So back to Ego and Meredith, if we assume that Ego is not just lying to absolve himself of guilt and that he legitimately does believe that his ends justify the means, your degree of comfort with and sympathy for this viewpoint is hopefully... a thought exercise rather than an idealization of what you want your future relationship to resemble.

And then there’s the thing where a watcher might... appreciate the relationship without doing what we call “shipping” it? I don’t presume to speak for another user, but for me, I appreciate the thinking about their relationship to the extent that I do not because I wish they could somehow work things out or because I have a deep investment in their dynamic like I do with things I actually ship. Instead, I just think that it’s a fascinating commentary that love... isn’t always good. Love isn’t always right. Terrible forms of love... can exist.

And if you ship Humbert and Lolita, I toally am judging you, but what comes to mind is Humbert’s lamentation in Nabokov’s Lolita about his own complicity:

I loved you. I was a pentapod monster, but I loved you. I was despicable and brutal, and turpid, and everything, mais je t’aimais, je t’aimais! And there were times when I knew how you felt, and it was hell to know it, my little one.

And does that mean that we’re supposed to feel bad that, in the end, Lolita could not in any informed way whatsoever return what he is calling love here? Hell no. And yet, it is a kind of love. It is a dangerous, destructive kin of love that posits ownership before care. But it is, definitionally, a kind of “love” that exists and is a complication of life. You are both supposed to hate and despise Humbert and sympathize with him... so as to see that you are capable, like all human beings, of being caught up in the beauty and thrall of tragedy and wickedness and evil with the right lens cast upon it. But this kind of literature or story dos not exist to encourage you to act upon those capacities, feelings, or thoughts. Instead, it asks you to pity them in others and to guard against them in yourself and the lives of those you love.

[benxsamuel]

A lecture by Warren Ellis

My job is just sitting in a room making shit up all day. I’m not complaining.  But the best part is that I get to meet people, all kinds of people, in probably dozens of different fields.  Because I hate silos.  The idea that you find your specialty and stay in it.  I mentioned that I never went on to higher education.  I’m one of those terrifying random auto-didacts you read about, usually in news stories about sudden unexpected axe attacks or bombing campaigns against vending machines.  I’m not even one of those freakish deep-thinking uncontained comprehensivists like Buckminster Fuller, whom some of you will probably have to look up afterwards.  He once taught at MIT, where I spoke just a couple of weeks ago, and his course was called Comprehensive Anticipatory Design Science. Which is probably another way of saying Arts, Design and Computer Science.

Fuller also taught at Black Mountain College, a weird experimental school in North Carolina – it’s near a place called Asheville, close to where I visited on book tour last winter, and we should maybe talk about Asheville one day – it used to be tobacco country, but when other pressures caused the government to remove a crucial financial crutch, the area collapsed back from 1400 acres of tobacco ground to a hundred, killing the local economy and emptying lots and lots of buildings that artists and musicians moved into for pennies – but, Black Mountain College – the point of the place from the start was that it was interdisciplinary. All the departments cross-pollinated each other. 

And that’s kind of how I work and move around the place.  All the time, I talk to directors, musicians of all kinds, artists, designers, coders, security threat modellers, genetic engineers, space doctors, philosophers, actors, writers, actual mad scientists.  I met Ev Williams at dinner when he was still building out Blogger and I was just a bloody comics writer – but I was in the Bay Area to speak onstage at a “future of the web” conference next to a musician called Thomas Dolby and a software engineer called Grady Booch.  Not because I am brilliant or special but because when the opportunity to step outside my perceived silo comes up, I grab it. 

Specialisation worked out pretty interestingly for arts, science and the humanities in the 20th Century, sure.  I mean, unless you were into philosophy, which was completely subsumed by academia and strangled in the dark.  I should apologise to my philosopher friends for that, but they’re aware of it  -- Peter Sjostedt publishes through Psychedelic Press to get his ideas out of the silo.  The 21st Century is going to work a little differently.  Nobody was ready for Bucky Fuller and his comprehensivist geodesic dome bullshit in 1950, and Black Mountain College didn’t last twenty five years, but, this year, if we don’t pay attention to everything and learn from everybody, then we’re probably all screwed. The best bit of my life is that I get to talk to everybody, about everything, and put people from a bunch of different disciplines in the same room, and I get to listen and learn and apply that to whatever I do next.  It’s a full speed life, and it’s riddled with challenges large and small, and I might still go down with arrows in my back, as Bruce Sterling said about me – but it’s entertaining as all hell. 

And the point to this is – this is what the future is going to look like.  Probably needs to look like.  And that’s going to be where you’re living.

But let me start this next bit with something else. 

If I were giving this talk a few years ago, I’d be talking about atemporality, the appearance of a long pause in the culture, the idea of Manufactured Normalcy that gives everything that grey JG Ballard pallor of banality, and Marshall McLuhan’s warnings about seeing everything through the rear view mirror.  But I imagine most if not all of you have the feeling that everything’s gone a bit Mad Max Fury Road.  I know people just a generation or two older than you who are off to learn permaculture farming or buying houseboats that can survive a trip across the North Sea. 

From here, the Nineties look like the bloody Enlightenment.  Back then, we were just a hungover post-imperial nation that was expected only to fuck, take drugs, make art and dance really badly.  Now, the fight for the future is on.  The fight for diverse and conscious voices, the fight for privacy and secure communication and home automation that makes sense, the fight for news and the fight for art that gets to say what it wants and design that looks forward and anything that isn’t just there to please the reactionary forces of xenophobic chinless ex-bankers and the racist daughter of a vicar from Little England and an angry orange pensioner in the thrall of actual fucking Nazis. 

On Sunday night I read a headline including the term “weaponized artificial lifeforms.”  Shit’s gotten weird.  There are people at Brandeis inventing an actual new form of matter called a self-propelling liquid. Dogs can detect cancer by sniffing a bandage.  In the last couple of months, we’ve discovered evidence of two mass extinction events we previously didn’t know about.  As of a week ago, NASA are tracking a star that orbits a black hole every thirty minutes. It’s all strange, and it’s all getting faster and faster, but it’s all also the stories of where we are right now. 

And the cave paintings of Chauvet Pont D’Arc have just turned out to be older than anyone though.  The cave art – the first narrative visual media in the world – is some thirty five thousand years old.  The stories of where we were right then. That’s how long we’ve been doing this. 

I have two great loves.  History and the future.  And I use them both as tools to try and see where I am right now, and to try and describe what I think it looks like.  Which is also the work of journalism.  Reportage and narrative.  See how I connect everything together and make it look like I’m smart, while also clearly making shit up.  I’ve been doing this a long time.  One day you too will be able to bullshit like me. 

But the future is where we’re all living tomorrow, and it’s down to us both to summon it and to look ahead to see what shape it may arrive in. 

Speculative fiction and new forms of art and storytelling and innovations in technology and computing are engaged in the work of mad scientists: testing future ways of living and seeing before they actually arrive.  We are the early warning system for the culture.  We see the future as a weatherfront, a vast mass of possibilities across the horizon, and since we’re not idiots and therefore will not claim to be able to predict exactly where lightning will strike – we take one or more of those possibilities and play them out in our work, to see what might happen.  Imagining them as real things and testing them in the laboratory of our practice – informed by our careful cross-contamination by many and various fields other than our own -- to see what these things do. 

To work with the nature of the future, in media and in tech and in language, is to embrace being mad scientists, and we might as well get good at it. 

—From his opening lecture at York St John University this year. I’m in awe of this man. 

[writingguide003-blog]

Top writers choose their perfect crime

New Post has been published on https://writingguideto.com/must-see/top-writers-choose-their-perfect-crime/

Top writers choose their perfect crime

Crime fiction is now the UKs bestselling genre. So which crime novels should everyone read? We asked the writers who know …

On Beulah Height by Reginald Hill Val McDermid

This is the perfect crime novel. Its beautifully written elegiac, emotionally intelligent, evocative of the landscape and history that holds its characters in thrall and its clever plotting delivers a genuine shock. Theres intellectual satisfaction in working out a plot involving disappearing children, whose counterpoint is Mahlers Kindertotenlieder. Theres darkness and light, fear and relief. And then theres the cross-grained pairing of Dalziel and Pascoe. Everything about this book is spot on.

Although Hills roots were firmly in the traditional English detective novel, he brought to it an ambivalence and ambiguity that allowed him to display the complexities of contemporary life. He created characters who changed and developed in response to their experiences. I urge you to read this with a glass of Andy Dalziels favourite Highland Park whisky.

Insidious Intent by Val McDermid is published by Sphere.

The Damned and the Destroyed by Kenneth Orvis Lee Child

My formative reading was before the internet, before fanzines, before also-boughts, so for me the best ever is inevitably influenced by the gloriously chanced-upon lucky finds, the greatest of which was a 60 cent Belmont US paperback, bought in an import record shop on a back street in Birmingham in 1969. It had a lurid purple cover, and an irresistible strapline: She was beautiful, young, blonde, and a junkie I had to help her! It turned out to be Canadian, set in Montreal. The hero was a solid stiff named Maxwell Dent. The villain was a dealer named The Back Man. The blonde had an older sister. Dents sidekicks were jazz pianists. The story was patient, suspenseful, educational and utterly superb. In many ways its the target I still aim at.

The Midnight Line by Lee Child is published by Bantam.

Bleak House by Charles Dickens Ian Rankin

Does this count as a crime novel? I think so. Dickens presents us with a mazey mystery, a shocking murder, a charismatic police detective, a slippery lawyer and a plethora of other memorable characters many of whom are suspects. The story has pace and humour, is bitingly satirical about the English legal process, and also touches on large moral and political themes. As in all great crime novels, the central mystery is a driver for a broad and deep investigation of society and culture. And theres a vibrant sense of place, too in this case, London, a city built on secret connections, a location Dickens knows right down to its dark, beating heart.

Rather Be the Devil by Ian Rankin is published by Orion. Siege Mentality by Chris Brookmyre is published by Little, Brown.

The Hollow by Agatha Christie Sophie Hannah

This is my current favourite, in its own way just as good as Murder on the Orient Express. As well as being a perfectly constructed mystery, its a gripping, acutely observed story about a group of people, their ambitions, loves and regrets. The characters are vividly alive, even the more minor ones, and the pace is expertly handled. The outdoor swimming pool scene in which Poirot discovers the murder is, I think, the most memorable discovery-of-the-body scene in all of crime fiction. Interestingly, Christie is said to have believed that the novel would have been better without Poirot. His presence here is handled differently he feels at one remove from the action for much of the time but it works brilliantly, since he is the stranger who must decipher the baffling goings on in the Angkatell family. The murderers reaction to being confronted by Poirot is pure genius. It would have been so easy to give that character, once exposed, the most obvious motivation, but the contents of this killers mind turn out to be much more interesting

Did You See Melody by Sophie Hannah is published by Hodder.

Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier SJ Watson

SJ Watsno

I first came to Rebecca, published in 1938, with one of the most recognisable first lines in literature, not knowing exactly what to expect. That it was a classic I was in no doubt, but a classic what? I suspected a drama, possibly a romance, a book heavy on character but light on plot and one Id read and then forget. How wrong I was.

It is a dark, brooding psychological thriller, hauntingly beautiful, literature yes, but with a killer plot. I loved everything about it. The way Du Maurier slowly twists the screw until we have no idea who to trust, the fact that the title character never appears and exists only as an absence at the heart of the book, the fact that the narrator herself is unnamed throughout. But, more importantly, this thriller is an exploration of power, of the men who have it and the women who dont, and the secrets told to preserve it.

Second Life by SJ Watson is published by Black Swan.

Mystic River by Dennis Lehane James Lee Burke

To my mind this is the best crime novel written in the English language. Lehane describes horrible events with poetic lines that somehow heal the injury that his subject matter involves, not unlike Shakespeare or the creators of the King James Old Testament. Thats not a hyper-bolic statement. His use of metaphysical imagery is obviously influenced by Gerard Manley Hopkins. Mystic River is one for the ages.

Robicheaux by James Lee Burke is published by Orion.

The Expendable Man by Dorothy B Hughes Sara Paretsky

Author Sara Paretsky for Arts. Photo by Linda Nylind. 15/7/2015.

Today, Hughes is remembered for In a Lonely Place (1947) Bogart starred in the 1950 film version. My personal favourite is The Expendable Man (1963). Hughes lived in New Mexico and her love of its bleak landscape comes through in carefully painted details. She knows how to use the land sparingly, so it creates mood. The narrative shifts from the sandscape to the doctor, who reluctantly picks up a teen hitchhiker. When shes found dead a day later, hes the chief suspect, and the secrets we know hes harbouring from the first page are slowly revealed.

Hughess novels crackle with menace. Like a Bauhaus devotee, she understood that in creating suspense, less is more. Insinuation, not graphic detail, gives her books an edge of true terror. Shes the master we all could learn from.

Fallout by Sara Paretsky is published by Hodder.

Killing Floor by Lee Child Dreda Say Mitchell

What is it about any particular novel that means youre so engrossed that you miss your bus stop or stay up way past your bedtime? A spare, concise style that doesnt waste a word. A striking lead character who manages to be both traditional and original. A plot thats put together like a Swiss watch. Childs debut has all these things, but like all great crime novels it has the x-factor.

In the case of Killing Floor that factor is a righteous anger, rooted in personal experience, that makes the book shake in your hands. Its the story of a military policeman who loses his job and gets kicked to the kerb. Jack Reacher becomes a Clint Eastwood-style loner who rides into town and makes it his business to dish out justice and protect the underdog, but without the usual props of cynicism or alcohol. We can all identify with that anger and with that thirst for justice. We dont see much of the latter in real life. At least in Killing Floor we do.

Blood Daughter by Dreda Say Mitchell is published by Hodder.

The Long Goodbye by Raymond Chandler Benjamin Black (John Banville)

The Long Goodbye is not the most polished, and certainly not the most convincingly plotted, of Chandlers novels, but it is the most heartfelt. This may seem an odd epithet to apply to one of the great practitioners of hard-boiled crime fiction. The fact is, Chandler was not hard-boiled at all, but a late romantic artist exquisitely attuned to the bittersweet melancholy of post-Depression America. His closest literary cousin is F Scott Fitzgerald.

Philip Marlowes love and surely it is nothing less than love for the disreputable Terry Lennox is the core of the book, the rhapsodic theme that transcends and redeems the creaky storyline and the somewhat cliched characterisation. And if Lennox is a variant of Jay Gatsby, and Marlowe a stand in for Nick Carraway, Fitzgeralds self-effacing but ever-present narrator, then Roger Wade, the drink-soaked churner-out of potboilers that he despises, is an all too recognisable portrait of Chandler himself, and a vengefully caricatured one at that. However, be assured that any pot The Long Goodbye might boil is fashioned from hammered bronze.

Prague Nights by Benjamin Black is published by Viking.

Love in Amsterdam by Nicolas Freeling Ann Cleeves

Although Nicolas Freeling wrote in English he was a European by choice an itinerant chef who roamed between postwar France, Belgium and Holland, and who instilled in me a passion for crime set in foreign places. He detested the rules of the traditional British detective novel: stories in which plot seemed to be paramount. Love in Amsterdam (1962) is Freelings first novel and it breaks those rules both in terms of structure and of theme.

It is a tale of sexual obsession and much of the book is a conversation between the suspect, Martin, whos been accused of killing his former lover, and the cop. Van der Valk, Freelings detective, is a rule-breaker too, curious and compassionate, and although we see his investigative skills in later books, here his interrogation is almost that of a psychologist, teasing the truth from Martin, forcing him to confront his destructive relationship with the victim.

The Seagullby Ann Cleeves is published by Pan.

Laidlaw by William McIlvanney Chris Brookmyre

I first read Laidlaw in 1990, shortly after moving to London, when I was aching for something with the flavour of home, and what a gamey, pungent flavour McIlvanneys novel served up. A sense of place is crucial to crime fiction, and Laidlaw brought Glasgow to life more viscerally than any book I had read before: the good and the bad, the language and the humour, the violence and the drinking.

Laidlaws turf is a male hierarchy ruled by unwritten codes of honour, a milieu of pubs and hard men rendered so convincingly by McIlvanneys taut prose. His face looked like an argument you couldnt win, he writes of one character, encapsulating not only the mans appearance but his entire biography in a mere nine words.

This book made me realise that pacey, streetwise thrillers didnt have to be American: we had mean streets enough of our own. It emboldened me to write about the places I knew and in my own accent.

Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Laura Lippman

Im going to claim Lolita for crime fiction, something I never used to do. But it has kidnapping, murder and its important to use this term rape. It also has multiple allusions to Edgar Allan Poe and even hides an important clue well, not exactly in plain sight, but in the text of, yes, a purloined letter. And now we know, thanks to the dogged scholarship of Sarah Weinman, that it was based on a real case in the United States. (Weinmans book, The Real Lolita, will be published later this year.)

Dorothy Parker meant well when she said Lolita was a book about love, but, no its about the rape of a child by a solipsistic paedophile who rationalises his actions, another crime that is too often hidden in plain sight. Some think that calling Lolita a crime novel cheapens it, but I think it elevates the book, reminds us of the pedestrian ugliness that is always there, thrumming beneath the beautiful language.

Sunburn by Laura Lippman is published by Faber.

The Moving Target by Ross Macdonald Donna Leon

Ross Macdonald, an American who wrote in the 60s and 70s, has enchanted me since then with the beauty of his writing and the decency of his protagonist, Lew Archer. I envy him his prose: easy, elegant, at times poetically beautiful. I also admire the absence of violence in the novels, for he usually follows Aristotles admonition that gore be kept out of the view of the audience. When Archer discovers the various wicked things one person has done to another, he does not linger in describing it but makes it clear how his protagonist mourns not only the loss of human life but also the loss of humanity that leads to it.

Macdonalds plotting is elegant: often, as Archer searches for the motive for todays crime, he unearths a past injustice that has returned to haunt the present and provoke its violence. His sympathy for the victims is endless, as is his empathy for some of the killers.

The Temptation of Forgiveness by Donna Leon is published by William Heinemann.

The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins Nicci French

http://www.theguardian.com/us

[moriganstrongheart]

World of Warcraft Chronicle: Volume 1 – Review

by Blizzard Entertainment 2016, Dark Horse Books Hardcover, 184 pages, $39.99 USD

Rating: ★★★★☆

Good: Good presentation, well written Bad: Inaccurate maps, outdated or missing lore

​I was rather ambivalent when the first World of Warcraft Chronicle volume was release two years ago. I had wanted for so long for Blizzard to codify their Warcraft lore in a way that brought order and sense to the sprawling story they’d built over twenty five years. However, it was released as I was leaving the game and I didn’t have the spending money to purchase it. Now that I’m playing again and I have some spending money, I decided to buy all three volumes currently available. As of writing this review, I have not read the second or third volume; I wanted my opinion to be restricted to this volume for the time being. The first volume in the Chronicle does a good job at what it sets out to do: it tells the lore of Warcraft in a storybook-esque format, allowing fans of the universe to experience Warcraft lore from beginning to end as a narrative. However, there are few issues with it that I can’t ignore. Most of these issues I can attribute to a lack of quality control as they could have been easily resolved with rigourous revisions, or at least with some more solid decision making from the creative team in charge of Warcraft lore.

The most obvious failings in the volume are its maps. I can forgive that they have already become outdated as of me writing this review. Blizzard will inevitable release new locations in upcoming expansions that will change the layout of the world map. What I can’t excuse is how confusing some are and how some maps are missing from key moments in the lore. If the purpose of these maps is to give a visual representation of the world, then it misses some steps. Most readers will be familiar with the current World of Warcraft world map (pictured below). The pangea-esque pre-Sundering Kalimdor included in the books is just too different from the modern map for it to be recognizable as a map of Azeroth (also pictured below). I would have preferred that each iteration of the map pre-Sundering had lines drawn to mirror the modern Azerothian world map to allow the reader a point of reference. Legends would have also helped to properly identify elements on the map, instead of relying on labels and color-coded territories. I would have also liked to see more maps; Warcraft lore relies a lot on visualizing peoples and armies travelling the world. And considering that Azeroth itself has been touted as a character in the story of Warcraft, I think more maps would have helped to drive home how important the world is to the lore.

Map of Ordered Azeroth, pre-Sundering

World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth world map

As I’m currently world-building my own world, I know how difficult it can be. When world-building, you are trying to explain a fictional world as if it were real, using academic terminology to describe something that is meant to be enjoyed fantastically. World of Warcraft Chronicle: Volume 1 unfortunately falls into the trap I’ve fallen for repeatedly in which they use the literary trope “no one really knows” when describing ambiguous moments in history. Sometimes it’s not as obvious, such as when an important turning point in lore is treated as inevitable and not worth explaining. My gut reaction when I encounter this trope is to respond: “Well, you should know. You’re the writers.” I consider this kind of writing lazy, a way to avoid explaining what could be construed as boring or controversial. In my opinion, these kinds of shortcuts should be avoided. Figure out a way to explain it, or don’t include the information at all. The fact that the writers resorted to this literary trope adds to my confusion as to what the Chronicle is supposed to be–the lack of detail in its maps being another factor. The volume is structured like a history textbook, with events told in chronological order and even has annotations in certain sections. However, the majority of the volume is also written like a storybook; each section is its own distinct narrative told as if it were a mythological legend. The alternating tone can be jarring at times, especially when it occurs within the confines of a single narrative. One moment the author is giving detailed descriptions of the actors in the narrative and provides insights that the persons living the events could not know, followed by a “no one really knows why” passage as if the story is being told from an actor’s perspective in the world. And so I can only assume that either the writers were aware of this flipping tone and were okay with it, or their quality control is lacking. Either way, I can’t excuse the misstep on Blizzard’s part.

It’s a shame, because I did enjoy how the volume is written. I don’t know how much involvement Chris Metzen actually had in the writing of this particular volume, though I know he wrote many of the original stories that would eventually be adapted here and his style of writing shines through in certain stories. I read the whole volume in one sitting, feeling rushes of memory as I remembered events from the books, short stories, comics and in-game events that the Chronicle makes reference to. It’s obvious that the volume is a labour of love as it shines with descriptions of people and places that have never existed, but somehow make it feel real. The size of the book is also nice, making it feel like a textbook rather than a work of fiction. The art is amazing as always, though I wish they would have used exclusively original art as I recognized some of it from short stories from previous products. I have debated with myself whether the World of Warcraft Chronicle could have easily been available online, similar to the existing WoWpedia and WoWWiki fansites. In the end, I don’t think that the intent of the Chronicle is to make a lore database or a textbook, but to provide fans with a hardcopy of the story they’ve grown to love over twenty five years; something to share with others, to read to their kids, or to revisit their time fighting alongside Thrall or saving the world with Varian by their side.

So far, the World of Warcraft Chronicle is worth adding to your collection if you have an interest in either Warcraft lore or world-building. It allows fans of the series to experience the narrative of Warcraft in a sensible, chronological order. Long-time fans invested in the story will also be able to reminisce about their time in Azeroth or their first time reading Warcraft lore in secondary media. For world-builders, Chronicle is a learning opportunity on how to build a vibrant, breathing world with history and interesting characters; there are some hiccups along the way, but none so damaging that we can’t learn from Blizzard’s twenty-five years of experience. I’m excited to read the following two volumes in the Chronicle, and would even be interested in revised versions as new lore is added to the World of Warcraft.

Personal Rant

The following includes my own personal observations based on my experience with Warcraft lore. These observations don’t impact the quality of World of Warcraft Chronicle: Volume 1, but as I have a long history with World of Warcraft, I want to spend some time discussing them. If interested in purchasing the Chronicle, reading this section is not necessary. Also, there are some mild spoilers for the Chronicle and for events not mentioned in the Chronicle.

I was happy to read the forewords from Chris Metzen and Christie Golden. Metzen is the closest thing I have to a hero within the game development industry, and his words to the reader is made all the more potent following his retirement later the same year. I can almost hear his deep, gravelly “I voice every other male character in Warcraft” voice as I remember how invested and influential Metzen has been to Warcraft. As for Golden’s foreword, I’m always happy to hear from her as she is my favorite Warcraft author, penning such stories as Rise of the Horde and Jaina: Tides of War, and has even been helping the World of Warcraft writing team with Battle for Azeroth. She reminds us that we are as much a part of the world as its characters. Also included in the foreword is Knaak. I have never been a fan of Knaak’s contributions to the universe–I consider Stormrage the worst World of Warcraft novel, Rhonin is my most disliked character (I was happy to see him removed in Jaina: Tides of War), the dragon aspects lore (which he helped to construct) is the most boring element in Warcraft lore and he always came off as a self-absorbed writer who constantly had to show how good he was. His foreword only reinforces his vanity as he boasts his writing credits from other book series I have no interest in, and he barely shows any interest in Warcraft itself. I can only hope we don’t see another writing credit from him in the near future. I was also happy to see that his time-travelling additions to the War of the Ancients weren’t so much as hinted throughout the Chronicle.

I ended up accepting most of the changes Blizzard inevitably had to make for the Chronicle. After twenty-five years of world-building and narrative, retcons and re-imaginings are bound to happen. I was never really interested in Titan lore, seeing them more as scientists than gods. The Chronicle still does not identify them as gods, though they have heavily reinforced the inspiration the Titans take from Norse mythology with new lore added in the recent Legion expansion. Because of my disinterest in the Titans, I am equally apathetic about the reveal that Azeroth itself is an undeveloped Titan. However, I am interested to see what will happen if the world-soul awakens or gets destroyed, as I imagine it would spell the end of the world either way. A diagram showing how each elemental, magical force and concept interacts is a nice addition, and it’s nice to see certain concepts like necromancy and the Void given concrete definitions. Legion seemed to give the Void a larger role, but it wasn’t until this volume that everything is given a tangible place within the universe. I’m not a fan of Blizzard shifting the big baddy to the Void now that Sargeras is gone, but I can understand the need. It makes sense given the changes they’ve made to Titan lore within the Chronicle, though I almost think it would have been better if they had never explained the Old Gods, the Void, the Light and so on. Mystery can improve the experience more than a detailed explanation. One thing I wish they would explain is Elune; apart from some conversations between Tyrande and Velen, there has been no concrete explanation as to what Elune is. Is she a titan? A naaru? A wild god? A “light lord”? To use a familiar expression, no one seems to know.

Finally, I wish they had spent more time on the titan-forged and the curse of flesh, as this was always one of the most interesting parts of the Old God-Titan lore. However, they spend more time on the contrived Loken narrative, which I felt was put together to force events to go down a specific path. In fact, a lot of the lore midway through World of Warcraft Chronicle: Volume 1 feels forced, as entities act out of character in an apparent effort to move the plot forward. Thankfully, the latter portion of the ​Chronicle makes up for it by detailing early to mid Eastern Kingdoms history, which I have more interest in.

Official Book Website

[wayneooverton]

Our Favorite Classic Dive Reads

Classic dive reads should stand the test of time. Any of the books on this list weaves a tale of timeless undersea adventures, and will instantly transport readers into the dive dreams of our forefathers. All the below works remain available today in one format or another. Nevertheless, please keep in mind that these older books include some things nowadays considered unsavory or outdated.

“20,000 Leagues Under the Seas” (Written by Jules Verne in 1870)

That last “s” in the title isn’t a misprint. Though too late now, if the English title were correctly translated from Jules Verne’s French title, “Vingt Mille Lieues Sous les Mers,” it would end with the plural “seas.”

And that’s the problem. Lewis Mercier’s common translation limps along poorly, and also cuts 100 pages out of Verne’s writing. When I read this novel years ago, it bored me. But the novel accurately translated by Walter James Miller and F. P. Walter commissioned by the U.S. Naval Institute reads like a dream. The version recently illustrated by John Patrick, and released by the Paradrome Press, held me in thrall of Verne’s undersea world. Downloaded onto my black and white Kindle, I switched briefly to my phone when the richly colorful renderings of the paintings appeared.

Eminently readable, the novel describes a fantastical submarine voyage with extraordinary walks in diving suits on the bottom of the ocean. Published when electricity existed only as a carnival curiosity and electric submarines had yet to be invented, Verne’s future predictions are even more wondrous for their accuracy.

Considered one of the all-time best science fiction novels, it’s not surprising that “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” has remained in print for 147 years. However, it’s Verne’s beautiful marine-life descriptions that will remind you of the exquisite underwater world from your best dive.

“Secret Sea” (Written by Robb White in 1947)

This adventure novel will thrill the wide-eyed kid in you with its hunt for sunken treasure, bad guys and an underwater battle with a monster octopus. Did I forget to mention there’s a brash ragamuffin crewing the boat?

You’ll be surprised by how quickly the fun story engages you even as you realize everything will turn out fine in the end. At 325 pages, it’s still a fast read and a physically small book, so perfect for travel.

The author published 27 novels and many Hollywood scripts, including a few recently remade movies. The diving by hardhat and a “self-contained outfit with an oxygen bottle and caustic soda regenerator” is a means to an end, but makes this novel an entertaining dive read.

“Silent World” (Written by Jacques Cousteau in 1953)

Divers and non-divers alike worldwide know of Jacques Cousteau, the famous father of underwater exploration. “Silent World” solidified his place in the public eye, becoming an international bestseller. It was the first popular read revealing the undersea world to the public.

Though composed in English, his narrative occasionally makes it clear that English was not Cousteau’s native tongue. However, the quirks add to the otherworldly quality of the book.

Cousteau’s dive descriptions echo some of the best and worst of modern diving, from sun-filled underwater reefs to the darkness of oxygen toxicity. However, the surprising and sometimes ugly treatment of marine life clanks as a jarring note, albeit one more common in days’ past. Regardless, this book is practically required reading for divers, with Cousteau briefly touching on dive principles, marine-life behavior, his co-invention of scuba diving and tales of his exploration as a “manfish.”

“Ordeal by Water” (Written by Peter Keeble in 1957)

Containing vivid descriptions of ponderous diving dress and almost insurmountable marine salvage, this book illustrates the hair-raising experience of a British Navy salvage diver in World War II.

Though biographical in nature, the paperback features an easy writing style that’s honest and sometimes funny. The jerry-rigged innovations which surprisingly succeed inspire awe.

Skip the book’s forward because it contains a number of spoilers. Instead, jump straight into the action in the Eastern Mediterranean. The book predominantly features diving with dangerous excursions as the norm. A few of the dive experiences remain true to this day, but you’ll shudder through the brutal realities of old-school hardhat diving.

Honorable Mentions 

Worth including on this list are these last two books. They’re unique in their own way, though they feature far less diving than the ones above.

  “Under the Waves Diving in Deep Waters” (Written by R.M. Ballantyne in 1886)

Harkening back to a simpler time, this swashbuckling adventure written for teens contains pirates, treasure and love. It also happens to include hard-hat diving as the hero’s job. Ballantyne has written a nice vacation read that still works for adults and it’s free on a Kindle.

“Beneath Tropic Seas” (Written by William Beebe in 1928)

Written by the director of tropical research for the New York Zoological Society, this large, floppy paperback details Beebe’s expedition exploring the coral reefs of Haiti. While Beebe experienced more fame for his co-invention of the bathysphere, his books endured as best sellers.

While the cover looks modern, the printing remains old fashioned. The book survives only as a reproduction, with the original imperfections included. Nevertheless, it remains pleasant and sometimes waxes poetic. While Beebe took a scientific focus, he lovingly detailed the underwater world although the diving comprises only a small part of the book.

      By guest author Beth McCrea

The post Our Favorite Classic Dive Reads appeared first on Scuba Diver Life.

from Scuba Diver Life http://ift.tt/2omKVgK

[mrbobgove]

Our Favorite Classic Dive Reads

Classic dive reads should stand the test of time. Any of the books on this list weaves a tale of timeless undersea adventures, and will instantly transport readers into the dive dreams of our forefathers. All the below works remain available today in one format or another. Nevertheless, please keep in mind that these older books include some things nowadays considered unsavory or outdated.

“20,000 Leagues Under the Seas” (Written by Jules Verne in 1870)

That last “s” in the title isn’t a misprint. Though too late now, if the English title were correctly translated from Jules Verne’s French title, “Vingt Mille Lieues Sous les Mers,” it would end with the plural “seas.”

And that’s the problem. Lewis Mercier’s common translation limps along poorly, and also cuts 100 pages out of Verne’s writing. When I read this novel years ago, it bored me. But the novel accurately translated by Walter James Miller and F. P. Walter commissioned by the U.S. Naval Institute reads like a dream. The version recently illustrated by John Patrick, and released by the Paradrome Press, held me in thrall of Verne’s undersea world. Downloaded onto my black and white Kindle, I switched briefly to my phone when the richly colorful renderings of the paintings appeared.

Eminently readable, the novel describes a fantastical submarine voyage with extraordinary walks in diving suits on the bottom of the ocean. Published when electricity existed only as a carnival curiosity and electric submarines had yet to be invented, Verne’s future predictions are even more wondrous for their accuracy.

Considered one of the all-time best science fiction novels, it’s not surprising that “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” has remained in print for 147 years. However, it’s Verne’s beautiful marine-life descriptions that will remind you of the exquisite underwater world from your best dive.

“Secret Sea” (Written by Robb White in 1947)

This adventure novel will thrill the wide-eyed kid in you with its hunt for sunken treasure, bad guys and an underwater battle with a monster octopus. Did I forget to mention there’s a brash ragamuffin crewing the boat?

You’ll be surprised by how quickly the fun story engages you even as you realize everything will turn out fine in the end. At 325 pages, it’s still a fast read and a physically small book, so perfect for travel.

The author published 27 novels and many Hollywood scripts, including a few recently remade movies. The diving by hardhat and a “self-contained outfit with an oxygen bottle and caustic soda regenerator” is a means to an end, but makes this novel an entertaining dive read.

“Silent World” (Written by Jacques Cousteau in 1953)

Divers and non-divers alike worldwide know of Jacques Cousteau, the famous father of underwater exploration. “Silent World” solidified his place in the public eye, becoming an international bestseller. It was the first popular read revealing the undersea world to the public.

Though composed in English, his narrative occasionally makes it clear that English was not Cousteau’s native tongue. However, the quirks add to the otherworldly quality of the book.

Cousteau’s dive descriptions echo some of the best and worst of modern diving, from sun-filled underwater reefs to the darkness of oxygen toxicity. However, the surprising and sometimes ugly treatment of marine life clanks as a jarring note, albeit one more common in days’ past. Regardless, this book is practically required reading for divers, with Cousteau briefly touching on dive principles, marine-life behavior, his co-invention of scuba diving and tales of his exploration as a “manfish.”

“Ordeal by Water” (Written by Peter Keeble in 1957)

Containing vivid descriptions of ponderous diving dress and almost insurmountable marine salvage, this book illustrates the hair-raising experience of a British Navy salvage diver in World War II.

Though biographical in nature, the paperback features an easy writing style that’s honest and sometimes funny. The jerry-rigged innovations which surprisingly succeed inspire awe.

Skip the book’s forward because it contains a number of spoilers. Instead, jump straight into the action in the Eastern Mediterranean. The book predominantly features diving with dangerous excursions as the norm. A few of the dive experiences remain true to this day, but you’ll shudder through the brutal realities of old-school hardhat diving.

Honorable Mentions 

Worth including on this list are these last two books. They’re unique in their own way, though they feature far less diving than the ones above.

  “Under the Waves Diving in Deep Waters” (Written by R.M. Ballantyne in 1886)

Harkening back to a simpler time, this swashbuckling adventure written for teens contains pirates, treasure and love. It also happens to include hard-hat diving as the hero’s job. Ballantyne has written a nice vacation read that still works for adults and it’s free on a Kindle.

“Beneath Tropic Seas” (Written by William Beebe in 1928)

Written by the director of tropical research for the New York Zoological Society, this large, floppy paperback details Beebe’s expedition exploring the coral reefs of Haiti. While Beebe experienced more fame for his co-invention of the bathysphere, his books endured as best sellers.

While the cover looks modern, the printing remains old fashioned. The book survives only as a reproduction, with the original imperfections included. Nevertheless, it remains pleasant and sometimes waxes poetic. While Beebe took a scientific focus, he lovingly detailed the underwater world although the diving comprises only a small part of the book.

      By guest author Beth McCrea

The post Our Favorite Classic Dive Reads appeared first on Scuba Diver Life.

from Scuba Diver Life http://ift.tt/2omKVgK