#e learning script | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

komaedalovemail · 6 months ago

Note

komaedas have you tried straw.page?

(i hope you don't mind if i make a big ollllle webdev post off this!)

i have never tried straw.page but it looks similar to carrd and other WYSIWYG editors (which is unappealing to me, since i know html/css/js and want full control of the code. and can't hide secrets in code comments.....)

my 2 cents as a web designer is if you're looking to learn web design or host long-term web projects, WYSIWYG editors suck doodooass. you don't learn the basics of coding, someone else does it for you! however, if you're just looking to quickly host images, links to your other social medias, write text entries/blogposts, WYSIWYG can be nice.

toyhouse, tumblr, deviantart, a lot of sites implement WYSIWYG for their post editors as well, but then you can run into issues relying on their main site features for things like the search system, user profiles, comments, etc. but it can be nice to just login to your account and host your information in one place, especially on a platform that's geared towards that specific type of information. (toyhouse is a better example of this, since you have a lot of control of how your profile/character pages look, even without a premium account) carrd can be nice if you just want to say "here's where to find me on other sites," for example. but sometimes you want a full website!

---------------------------------------

neocities hosting

currently, i host my website on neocities, but i would say the web2.0sphere has sucked some doodooass right now and i'm fiending for something better than it. it's a static web host, e.g. you can upload text, image, audio, and client-side (mostly javascript and css) files, and html pages. for the past few years, neocities' servers have gotten slower and slower and had total blackouts with no notices about why it's happening... and i'm realizing they host a lot of crypto sites that have crypto miners that eat up a ton of server resources. i don't think they're doing anything to limit bot or crypto mining activity and regular users are taking a hit.

↑ page 1 on neocitie's most viewed sites we find this site. this site has a crypto miner on it, just so i'm not making up claims without proof here. there is also a very populated #crypto tag on neocities (has porn in it tho so be warned...).

---------------------------------------

dynamic/server-side web hosting

$5/mo for neocities premium seems cheap until you realize... The Beautiful World of Server-side Web Hosting!

client-side AKA static web hosting (neocities, geocities) means you can upload images, audio, video, and other files that do not interact with the server where the website is hosted, like html, css, and javascript. the user reading your webpage does not send any information to the server like a username, password, their favourite colour, etc. - any variables handled by scripts like javascript will be forgotten when the page is reloaded, since there's no way to save it to the web server. server-side AKA dynamic web hosting can utilize any script like php, ruby, python, or perl, and has an SQL database to store variables like the aforementioned that would have previously had nowhere to be stored.

there are many places in 2024 you can host a website for free, including: infinityfree (i use this for my test websites :B has tons of subdomains to choose from) [unlimited sites, 5gb/unlimited storage], googiehost [1 site, 1gb/1mb storage], freehostia [5 sites/1 database, 250mb storage], freehosting [1 site, 10gb/unlimited storage]

if you want more features like extra websites, more storage, a dedicated e-mail, PHP configuration, etc, you can look into paying a lil shmoney for web hosting: there's hostinger (this is my promocode so i get. shmoney. if you. um. 🗿🗿🗿) [$2.40-3.99+/mo, 100 sites/300 databases, 100gb storage, 25k visits/mo], a2hosting [$1.75-12.99+/mo, 1 site/5 databases, 10gb/1gb storage], and cloudways [$10-11+/mo, 25gb/1gb]. i'm seeing people say to stay away from godaddy and hostgator. before you purchase a plan, look up coupons, too! (i usually renew my plan ahead of time when hostinger runs good sales/coupons LOL)

here's a big webhost comparison chart from r/HostingHostel circa jan 2024.

---------------------------------------

domain names

most of the free website hosts will give you a subdomain like yoursite.has-a-cool-website-69.org, and usually paid hosts expect you to bring your own domain name. i got my domain on namecheap (enticing registration prices, mid renewal prices), there's also porkbun, cloudflare, namesilo, and amazon route 53. don't use godaddy or squarespace. make sure you double check the promo price vs. the actual renewal price and don't get charged $120/mo when you thought it was $4/mo during a promo, certain TLDs (endings like .com, .org, .cool, etc) cost more and have a base price (.car costs $2,300?!?). look up coupons before you purchase these as well!

namecheap and porkbun offer something called "handshake domains," DO NOT BUY THESE. 🤣🤣🤣 they're usually cheaper and offer more appealing, hyper-specific endings like .iloveu, .8888, .catgirl, .dookie, .gethigh, .♥, .❣, and .✟. I WISH WE COULD HAVE THEM but they're literally unusable. in order to access a page using a handshake domain, you need to download a handshake resolver. every time the user connects to the site, they have to provide proof of work. aside from it being incredibly wasteful, you LITERALLY cannot just type in the URL and go to your own website, you need to download a handshake resolver, meaning everyday internet users cannot access your site.

---------------------------------------

hosting a static site on a dynamic webhost

you can host a static (html/css/js only) website on a dynamic web server without having to learn PHP and SQL! if you're coming from somewhere like neocities, the only thing you need to do is configure your website's properties. your hosting service will probably have tutorials to follow for this, and possibly already did some steps for you. you need to point the nameserver to your domain, install an SSL certificate, and connect to your site using FTP for future uploads. FTP is a faster, alternative way to upload files to your website instead of your webhost's file upload system; programs like WinSCP or FileZilla can upload using FTP for you.

if you wanna learn PHP and SQL and really get into webdev, i wrote a forum post at Mysidia Adoptables here, tho it's sorted geared at the mysidia script library itself (Mysidia Adoptables is a free virtual pet site script, tiny community. go check it out!)

---------------------------------------

file storage & backups

a problem i have run into a lot in my past like, 20 years of internet usage (/OLD) is that a site that is free, has a small community, and maybe sounds too good/cheap to be true, has a higher chance of going under. sometimes this happens to bigger sites like tinypic, photobucket, and imageshack, but for every site like that, there's like a million of baby sites that died with people's files. host your files/websites on a well-known site, or at least back it up and expect it to go under!

i used to host my images on something called "imgjoe" during the tinypic/imageshack era, it lasted about 3 years, and i lost everything hosted on there. more recently, komaedalovemail had its webpages hosted here on tumblr, and tumblr changed its UI so custom pages don't allow javascript, which prevented any new pages from being edited/added. another test site i made a couple years ago on hostinger's site called 000webhost went under/became a part of hostinger's paid-only plans, so i had to look very quickly for a new host or i'd lose my test site.

if you're broke like me, looking into physical file storage can be expensive. anything related to computers has gone through baaaaad inflation due to crypto, which again, I Freaquing Hate, and is killing mother nature. STOP MINING CRYPTO this is gonna be you in 1 year

...um i digress. ANYWAYS, you can archive your websites, which'll save your static assets on The Internet Archive (which could use your lovely donations right now btw), and/or archive.today (also taking donations). having a webhost service with lots of storage and automatic backups can be nice if you're worried about file loss or corruption, or just don't have enough storage on your computer at home!

if you're buying physical storage, be it hard drive, solid state drive, USB stick, whatever... get an actual brand like Western Digital or Seagate and don't fall for those cheap ones on Amazon that claim to have 8,000GB for $40 or you're going to spend 13 days in windows command prompt trying to repair the disk and thenthe power is gong to go out in your shit ass neighvborhood and you have to run it tagain and then Windows 10 tryes to update and itresets the /chkdsk agin while you're awayfrom town nad you're goig to start crytypting and kts just hnot going tot br the same aever agai nikt jus not ggiog to be the saeme

---------------------------------------

further webhosting options

there are other Advanced options when it comes to web hosting. for example, you can physically own and run your own webserver, e.g. with a computer or a raspberry pi. r/selfhosted might be a good place if you're looking into that!

if you know or are learning PHP, SQL, and other server-side languages, you can host a webserver on your computer using something like XAMPP (Apache, MariaDB, PHP, & Perl) with minimal storage space (the latest version takes up a little under 1gb on my computer rn). then, you can test your website without needing an internet connection or worrying about finding a hosting plan that can support your project until you've set everything up!

there's also many PHP frameworks which can be useful for beginners and wizards of the web alike. WordPress is one which you're no doubt familiar with for creating blog posts, and Bluehost is a decent hosting service tailored to WordPress specifically. there's full frameworks like Laravel, CakePHP, and Slim, which will usually handle security, user authentication, web routing, and database interactions that you can build off of. Laravel in particular is noob-friendly imo, and is used by a large populace, and it has many tutorials, example sites built with it, and specific app frameworks.

---------------------------------------

addendum: storing sensitive data

if you decide to host a server-side website, you'll most likely have a login/out functionality (user authentication), and have to store things like usernames, passwords, and e-mails. PLEASE don't launch your website until you're sure your site security is up to snuff!

when trying to check if your data is hackable... It's time to get into the Mind of a Hacker. OWASP has some good cheat sheets that list some of the bigger security concerns and how to mitigate them as a site owner, and you can look up filtered security issues on the Exploit Database.

this is kind of its own topic if you're coding a PHP website from scratch; most frameworks securely store sensitive data for you already. if you're writing your own PHP framework, refer to php.net's security articles and this guide on writing an .htaccess file.

---------------------------------------

but. i be on that phone... :(

ok one thing i see about straw.page that seems nice is that it advertises the ability to make webpages from your phone. WYSIWYG editors in general are more capable of this. i only started looking into this yesterday, but there ARE source code editor apps for mobile devices! if you have a webhosting plan, you can download/upload assets/code from your phone and whatnot and code on the go. i downloaded Runecode for iphone. it might suck ass to keep typing those brackets.... we'll see..... but sometimes you're stuck in the car and you're like damn i wanna code my site GRRRR I WANNA CODE MY SITE!!!

↑ code written in Runecode, then uploaded to Hostinger. Runecode didn't tell me i forgot a semicolon but Hostinger did... i guess you can code from your webhost's file uploader on mobile but i don't trust them since they tend not to autosave or prompt you before closing, and if the wifi dies idk what happens to your code.

---------------------------------------

ANYWAYS! HAPPY WEBSITE BUILDING~! HOPE THIS HELPS~!~!~!

-Mod 12 @eeyes

#ask #Anonymous #neocities #web development #long post #mod 12

190 notes · View notes

north-kieren · 4 months ago

Note

What are some safety precautions you recommend scripting for mha drs? or anything you recommend scripting for mha/any dr in general

Us this was the first shifting question I've gotten on this account (I do not use Tumblr like I should.)

Anyway!!! Safety is sooo important for any Dr of yours! Mha specifically is a reality where you'll likely end up encountering some choppy waters more than often (cough villainy cough) or just be a part of/witness some gnarly shit.

Obviously, you probably know this which is why you're asking what are some things to script to make your shift a bit more comfortable in terms of safety. I think you all know that I'm definitely not the safestttt person in my Dr, getting into fights and leaving the country, doing shit that a kid still in first year highschool shouldn't. However! That just means I know PERSONALLY (oh no🙁) what things you should avoid and WHY.

1. I wanna say that whatever your Dr is like, vs. how YOU want to experience it? These safety precautions could differ. So, take these a sort through them as you think about your Dr with these in mind and take what you deem useful, and leave the rest.

2. If you're a pro hero/ teacher at UA. Mainly class 1A, but this goes for all classes. You absolutely will have to take responsibility when it's time to look after your kids. This goes for any situation, INCLUDING being an actual teacher you guys. Don't slack off when teaching these kids just because nothing life threatening and attention capturing is happening at that moment. What would happen if there were to be an emergency and your kids wouldn't know what to do because you lacked the sense to build a bond with those kids to know how they'd react to a situation like that? Or them not knowing how to proceed and possibly hurting themselves or others in the process, INCLUDING YOU!!! whatever class u teach or look after, please keep in mind that these are real children, there to learn from YOU.

3. Student at UA! You're probably well aware about your activity with quirks during the school days and with each other throughout the years. Class 1A,1B, General Studies, no matter. You'll probably end up doing SOMETHING that revolves around quirk usage or something of the sort. This is dangerous how? Itself isn't dangerous no, but sometimes (especially since all of y'all's Drs are so personal and unique = unpredictable) you will likely know personally that the metahuman society is

I N T E N S E. UA does an OUTSTANDING job at giving the students (and teachers. Rip aizawa's elbow.) a taste of that intensity. And get this!!! That's only a small bit of the ONE category (hero life) OUT OF HUNDREDS!!! ISN'T THAT HILARIOUS 😂😂🥲🥲. When I say intense, I don't mean like fighting for ur life everyday (except for the times that u do, indeed fight for ur life 🌚) I mean it in a sense that you'll face certain things in your Dr that you would've never given thought towards before. You'll experience life there and deal with society's mess just like you do in your Cr. SO ! The safety precaution I think you should keep in mind is to just be prepared. Script that before anything super big/impactful happens - you're given time and resources to properly address the upcoming issues that way you have everything you might need to make it out as unscathed as possible. Whatever form that may take, both physical and mental.

4. Be prepared to have a life outside of your class (assuming again that you're a student at UA). Take me for example, 99% of my content/storytime and main shifting experiences shared are almost ALWAYS outside of UA workings and my relationship with my friends and family. If you're not a student, STILL. Specifically for people who intend to be independent or even a part of something big like a villain organization for example. Anything really, you will need to understand that you have your own life to pay attention to-take care of.

5. Your actions/decisions hold value. They WILL have consequences you guys. This is the reality pretty much everywhere, you make a choice and things happen because of that choice. This isn't bad, nor is it good - it's just the way things work. You script that your body doesn't react to poisonous quirks? Cool. Expect some kind of condition or something SPECIFIC that allows this to happen. You choose to become a teacher? Amazing! Now you have the responsibility of teaching and guiding your children. You're a villain? Fine! You will learn fairly quickly what a villain's life would look like and learn to accept it (or decide it's not for you, of course that's always a possibility). This could go on forever, the point is that you will always find that there are things that you probably didn't account for while shifting to a place such as MHA, and that's OK! just keep it in mind is all, this helps with keeping your Dr on a realistic and very real place in your mind.

This is wayyyyy too long whoops. Anyway!!! I'll be posting my Tik Toks on here starting today, probably later so sorry for the incoming spam🥲.

117 notes · View notes

atleastpleasetelephone · 6 months ago

Note

You are my absolute favorite Elvis writer. I have a request...😏🙏🏻. Could you doooo smut with either 1964 E ike Frankie and Johnny ...or bde.. I'm torn between the two. Can you doooo like the reader gets really mad at Elvis for some reason and she tries to dominate him but he puts her in her place?

Hot 'n' Cold

A/N: Thank you so much anon, that's so sweet! I went for 1964 E as I feel he doesn't get quite so much love on here. This turned out a little... mean? Perhaps the closest to a yandere Elvis I have ever written (but still not that close!)

Pairing: 1964!Elvis x reader

Word count: 1.6K

TWs: Slapping (reader slaps E), infidelity, rough sex, possessive kink, breeding kink, reader cries, mood swings, p in v sex.

“Don’t be silly, baby. I have to kiss her. It’s in the script.”

Elvis has just returned from filming Viva Las Vegas and he’s already a little frustrated with your lack of enthusiastic welcome home. He knew you’d be annoyed with all the stories in the papers, but he wasn’t expecting to be ambushed with questions the minute he walked through the door. He’s trying to play it cool though, hands thrust in his pockets, a neutral expression on his face.

You draw yourself up to your full height (all five foot two of it) and shake your head determinedly.

“It’s not just kissing, El, and you know it.”

“Baby. Come on,” he wheedles, closing the distance between you and putting his hand on your cheek. This sort of thing usually does the trick when you’ve heard something about some other woman.

You push him away, angrily. “No. You can’t charm your way out of this one, Mr Presley.”

He sighs loudly, letting his hand fall back down next to his hip. “Whaddya want from me, then?”

He’s basically pouting at you now, and you don’t think that’s fair. He doesn’t get to pout, when he’s the one who’s been fooling around. You’ve seen the papers, you know the story, but this time it seems more serious than usual. What do you want from him? Marriage, commitment, babies… the whole fairytale. But right now? Right now you want to get even.

“I want you to learn your lesson.”

Elvis cocks an eyebrow. “What lesson, honey?” You’ve never spoken to him like this before and he’s not sure he likes it.

You huff now. “That you can’t mess around with other girls, El.”

He shakes his head. “I’ve told you, I’m not messing…”

You stare at him, angrily, trying to think of the sorts of things he usually says to you and how you can turn them back on him. But you’re too worked up, so you can’t think of anything other than slapping him across the face.

“Ow!”

He stares back at you in complete disbelief, his hand moving to rub his stinging cheek. You’ve definitely never done that before and he’s sure he doesn’t like it.

“You deserved that!”

You kind of enjoyed slapping him, the rush of adrenalin through your body and the look on his face afterwards… In fact you enjoyed it so much you’re about to do it again, but he anticipates it, grabbing your wrist roughly.

“Uh-uh, no you don’t.”

You try to wriggle out of his grasp but it just gets firmer and he catches your other hand now too, since it’s flying around dangerously close to his face in a way he doesn’t care for at all.

“Elvis!” You just about shriek, as he spins you around and walks you backwards until you collide with the wall.

“Shush.”

He’s never known you to be like this, but then he’s never had a relationship go quite so public. He certainly didn’t want it all over the papers, it was embarrassing for God’s sake and he’d told Ann as much. But you can’t slap him. Whatever he might’ve done.

He stands, pressing you against the wall with his body, holding your hands out to either side of your head for just a moment. Your head swims, wondering what he’s going to do next, your body reacting embarrassingly quickly to him being so close and so dominant. You’re supposed to be pissed with him but your panties are already soaked. His lips collide with yours in a bruising kiss and you can’t help yourself, moaning into his mouth. His hand is under your dress and pulling down your panties and then you hear him undoing his belt. He grabs your leg and forces it up as high as it will go (which is pretty high, you used to be a gymnast), stopping kissing you to watch your reaction as he thrusts inside you in one quick movement. Your eyes roll back in your head and you groan.

“Whose pussy is this?” He growls, lips and teeth finding the skin below your ear.

“Y-yours, El…” you moan.

He’s let your wrists go since you’re impaled on his dick now, trapped between him and the wall, and your fingers find the hair on the back of his head and knit themselves into it.

“Good.”

He starts to move, short little thrusts, trying to drive himself somehow even deeper inside you. You whimper, fingertips pressing into his scalp, feeling almost uncomfortably full.

“I decide when I want it,” he continues, his voice low and dangerous. “You make sure it’s always ready for me. Y’hear?”

His eyes are staring into yours now and it’s all you can do to nod and tell him yes. He starts to thrust a little more now, drawing out slowly and then slamming back into you full force. Your body rocks and you cry out.

“No tellin’ me who I can see and who I can’t.”

You look down at him through tear-filled eyes as he keeps up the torturous rhythm.

“I’m Elvis Fucking Presley and I’ll fuck whoever I want.”

You’re still whimpering, so he stops moving, grabbing your cheeks with one hand and squeezing them, forcing you to look at him. A tear runs down your face.

“Did you fucking hear me?”

“Y-yes. Yes. I’m sorry. I sh-shouldn’t expect you to j-just want one girl.”

He lets go of your face, suddenly seeing the tears there and gently wiping them away with his thumb.

“Good girl,” he says, softly, picking up a much gentler pace now. “Takin’ me so well.”

You try to steady your breathing but you feel all over the place, he’s being so gentle now it makes you want to cry more, somehow.

“I love this pussy, baby,” he murmurs, sensually. “It’s so good to me.”

You still can’t speak so you just sniff in response. He starts to kiss your neck, rolling his hips into you in a way he knows is guaranteed to make you cum. Your sniffs turn to soft moans.

“You gonna cum for me, baby?”

“Mmmm. Yes.” You bite your lip, trying to control the tears. His mood swings can be so difficult to deal with.

You can feel the edges of your orgasm as he keeps rolling into you, his heavy breath hot on your ear, little moans falling from his lips as he feels your walls start to flutter in anticipation.

“C’mon baby. You can do it.”

The words of encouragement push you over the edge and you squeeze him, your orgasm ripping through your body and making you moan. He moans too, feeling you and hearing you, and he knows it won’t take much for him now either. He starts to pick up the pace, quick thrusts that slam your body into the wall repeatedly.

“You want me to make ya a mama?” He pants.

Your eyes go wide like saucers and you nod quickly. “Yes, y-yes please.”

“I’m gonna fill ya up… make ya mine…”

You can’t believe what you’re hearing. He’s never spoken to you like this, he always pulls out and cums somewhere else, so worried about accidentally getting you pregnant, so sure about it not being the right time for a baby yet.

“Please… please El…” you can’t believe you’re begging him right now, when you’ve already cum, but you want a baby so much.

“Can’t wait ta see ya growing that baby inside ya…” he continues, thrusting even faster. “Knowing yer gonna be mine forever…”

“Yes. Yes. Fuck, yes.” It’s like his words alone are pushing you to another orgasm.

“That what you want?”

“More than anything, El.”

There’s a wicked glint in his eye as he pushes your leg somehow even higher and hits somewhere deep inside you. You cry out in ecstasy and another orgasm hits you, almost as strong as the first, and you find yourself hanging on to him desperately as your legs turn to jelly and he pounds you through it.

“Fuck!”

He cries out, shooting his release into you, your walls squeezing it out of him for what seems like minutes. When he’s finally done he staggers backwards and pulls you with him.

“Lie down on your back and put your feet up in the air.”

You stumble over to the bed and do as you’re told, your brain foggy and confused and unable to fathom why you’re doing what you’re doing. Eventually you ask.

“What’s this for, El?”

He’s lying next to you, holding your hand kind of sweetly.

“It’s the best thing to do to make it take.”

You look at him, baffled.

“To make a baby, honey.”

Your eyes go wide again. “You meant it?”

“Of course I meant it, honey. Imagine a little Presley runnin’ around the place. Can’t think of anything better.”

“So… you… are we gonna get married?”

He nods. “When the time is right. You’ll see. For now you just concentrate on eating right and growing that little baby inside you. And if this one doesn’t take, there’s plenty more chances to practice…”

You smile and let him kiss you, enjoying the feeling of his lips against yours, but you can’t help wondering when exactly the time will be right. As you curl up in bed with him later that night, and he rubs your belly and tells you he can’t wait for it to be full, you wonder if this will mean he’ll stop wanting to be with other girls. Surely if you’re married and you give him the baby you both want so much, he’ll be happy? And surely you will too?

***

Taglist:

@vintagepresley @arg-xoxo @from-memphis-with-love @msamarican @blursedblegh @returntopresley @eapep @everythingelvispresley @i-r-i-n-a-a @sissylittlefeather @arrolyn1114 @jhoneybees @cattcb @polksaladava @lookingforrainbows @jkdaddy01 @ccab @epthedream69 @lustnhim @elvisslut @pomtherine @that-hotdog @ladelinee @angschrof @fairybloodsucker @deltafalax @makethemorning @elviswhore69 @ilovequeen978 @wildhorseinkansas

#elvis #elvis presley #elvis fanfiction #elvis fic #elvis presley fanfiction #elvis presley fic #elvis smut #elvis fanfic #elvis presely smut #elvis imagine #elvis presley fanfic #elvis presley x reader #elvis presley x y/n #elvis presley x you #elvis x reader #elvis x y/n #elvis x you

138 notes · View notes

helps-the-writing-brain-go · 2 months ago

Text

Divine Intervention (Stop Meddling Marvel!) (2)

Krak-Pow!

The scent of ozone is a familiar friend, as is (unfortunately) the much less welcome stench of still water and rotting garbage.

Billy opens his eyes to a crumbling brick face, liberally graffitied in faded gang signs and teeming street art, all competing for room. Billy can recognise a couple of influences from nooks and crannies around the city, but nothing actually dangerous in the way that meant he'd have to get out of dodge yesterday, which meant Cap actually was learning when Billy left him note scraps on what to look out for in the city.

In actual fact...Billy tilts his head, scrutinizing the painted wall with more focus. The niggling details that looked surprisingly like Greek script floated in his mind's eye and a message begins to take shape.

Something wonderful happened today. I can't wait for you to see it.

Which could mean anything.

Kudos to Cap for not leaving something terribly obvious like their Patrons and/or previous hosts' influence would have wanted (ignoring the flaming Monument-That-Will-Be-Forgotten he'd created exactly (1) once and never again to Billy's relief) but the subtlety isn't helping matters this time.

A means to improve his circumstances again, perhaps? Billy likes being an official Cub Reporter thanks to Cap's capture of Dr.Sivanna that one time.

Or petty revenge on his bullies or Uncle E again?

Flying feathers and newly bald bipeds, frantic clucking mingled with boisterous laughter see-sawing between baritone chuckles and the bright notes of childish giggles.

"Behold! Men!" Someone had proclaimed, and the day had become one of the brightest spots in their short, shared memory.

Billy was supposed to be a good influence on the Living Lightning, but in his defense, Marvel's greek influenced proportional revenge was very funny sometimes.

#billy batson #captain marvel #shazam #dc comics #dc #dc captain marvel #BillyxJason #DISMM

109 notes · View notes

eddis-not-eeddis · 8 months ago

Text

How To Stop Killing Conversations

Talking is hard. People are confusing. Making friends is difficult, and interacting with coworkers is tortuous.

You want to make friends, you want to reach out, but it's hard and every time you start a conversation it dies, or limps along until both you and the person you're talking to are looking for excuses to kill it and put it out of it's misery so you can both escape the increasingly awkward situation.

As an introvert who has suffered a lot of social anxiety in my time, let me share a few tricks I've learned over the years going through hundreds and thousands of excruciatingly painful conversations until I found something that works. I've kind of distilled the process.

ALWAYS ASK A QUESTION!!!

The first thing is to always leave your partner an opening. You need to let each other talk for a conversation to get off the ground, but it's more than that, really. You need to actively encourage each other to talk. The best way to do that is to ask questions.

Here are two examples of an introduction: Example A

You: Hello.

Them: Hello.

You: Nice to meet you.

Them: Nice to meet you too.

Example B

Y: Hello, nice to meet you, how are you? T: I’m doing well, yourself?

Y: I've been really well. How are you liking the weather?

T: I'm so happy the weather's finally getting cooler, I'm looking forward to pumpkin spice season. Do you like lattes?

Do you see how in Example A the conversation wasn’t going anywhere? It just kinda died, because there weren’t any openings for new topics, whereas in Example B, there were openings to keep the conversation going.

But what do you do if your conversation partner is as socially inept as you were two minutes ago and doesn't play along? All is not lost.

Example C

Y: Hello, so nice to meet you, how have you been doing?

T: I'm doing well.

Y: That's great, are you enjoying the nice weather, then?

T: Yeah. I'm glad it's finally fall, I'm looking forward to pumpkin spice lattes.

Y: I love pumpkin spice lattes! Pumpkin spice anything, really. I recently got the best pumpkin spice candle at the shop down the road, have you been there?

Even if they don't leave you an opening, you can usually make one. It may be difficult, especially when they don't give you much to work with. This is where having a go-to script is a life-saver--me, I always default to talking about the weather, so when in doubt, you can do that.* The important thing right now is to keep fostering the conversation, so once you bring up the weather, segue into a question. When they answer the question, make a brief comment or observation from your own experience and build off of that comment or observation to ask another question.

"But I don't want to make it about me. Doing that's bad, right?"

This is why that questions are important. If you haven't been asked a question, you kinda have to make it about you, you don't have a choice. But to keep from being an attention hog, follow up your shared experience or anecdote with another question.

Example D

T: I love pumpkin spice lattes

Y: Me too. I had the best pumpkin spice latte the other day at the cafe down the road, have you ever been there?

Now you've circled the conversation back around to them again, and you aren't taking the limelight. Sharing an experience is so important, you're trying to show that you understand, that you sympathize, that you relate.**

This really is the most important element of being a good conversationalist. You have to keep asking questions.

The one other thing I will touch on is introductions. DO NOT get into turn based combat.

Example E

Y: Hello

T: Hello

Y: Nice to meet you

T: Nice to meet you too.

Y: How are you doing?

T: I'm fine. You?

Y: Me too.

This will kill any possibility of continuing a conversation. Instead, get it all out of the way all at once, if at all possible.

Example F

Y: Hi, it's nice to meet you, how are you doing?

This is good, but this is better

Example G

Y: Hi, nice to meet you, how are you liking the weather?

Don't ask how they are doing, or if you do, before they can answer, follow it up with your placeholder (weather etc.) so they have to say some thing like

Example H

T: I'm fine, and I'm really liking the weather.

T: Not so great, the weather sucks.

Either of those options are much easier to work with than your basic "I'm fine."

Usually, if you can get past the introduction, you can get a conversation going. And then, even if you don't end up hitting it off with the person you're talking with, you at least don't leave the conversation feeling like you've died a thousand tiny deaths.

In fact, if you get past that introduction, you may have just made yourself a friend.

Remember folks, basically everyone around you is more afraid of you than you are of them, and in this benighted age no one has been taught conversation skills, so we are all pretty much in the same boat. (Unless you were born an extrovert, in which case we are all deeply envious and would probably kill you if we didn't need you in our sad and lonely lives so much.)

Have grace for one another, and for yourselves because talking with people is difficult.

Go forth, and stop killing conversations.

*If you are one of those awful people who likes to brag about how you hate small talk and only want to talk about important and meaningful things, I have one question: Do you ever have a conversation that lasts long enough to become meaningful? I thought not. Small talk is an important skill. Develop it.

**This is how you deal with sad or difficult situations too. When you want to show you sympathize with someone going through a hard time.

Example:

Y: How are you doing?

T: Not very well. My dog died last week.

Y: Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that. My own dog died last year and I still miss her a lot. How are you handling it?

Now you've circled the conversation back around to them again. You aren't making it about you.

If y'all want, next time I can share how to extricate yourself from a conversation.

#formatting is hard sorry #but this is something i've picked up from chatting with THOUSANDS of people on language exchange apps over the last few years #and it's something i taught to some family members recently and i've seen marked improvement in their social skills since then #so i figured maybe it would be helpful to others #i had to learn it all by myself and it was so painful #if i'd had a cheat sheet life would have been better #also lately i have had to be the only one keeping conversations going WITH PEOPLE WHO TALKED TO ME FIRST #because they have no clue how to converse with other people #and it's not their fault #this isn't really taught to us #but its also a lot of work #if you're going to start a conversation you should make some effort to keep it going unless you are going to walk away

161 notes · View notes

wutheringhestia · 1 year ago

Text

An "I'm in Australia, what can I do for Palestine?" masterpost

Petitions:

Petition EN5847 - Provide Consular Support to Palestinian Australian Families (this one closes at 11:59 on the Thursday 15th of February. Please sign before then if you can, and make sure you confirm your email!)

Ask your super fund to divest from companies that support apartheid conditions (Australian Palestinian Action Network)

https://www.aph.gov.au/e-petitions/petition/EN5847

Australia: stop sending arms to Israel (Amnesty International)

Urge Australian Government to Save Local Doctor's Family Trapped in Gaza (petition by family members)

Australia: Reverse decision to suspend UNRWA funding (Amnesty International)

Reinstate UNRWA Funding (Australian Palestinian Action Network)

Grant Palestinians fleeing the conflict in Gaza access to humanitarian support! (Australian Social Workers for Palestine)

Contact your representatives:

Start by finding your MP here

Call or email to ask that Australia push for an immediate ceasefire, provide consular support to family members to leave Gaza, and reinstate UNRWA funding. If that's too much, pick one point to start with! I like to write myself a script before calling, as it removes some of the anxiety. Calling is preferable to emailing, but whatever you have the capacity for is so much better than nothing

Once you've contacted your MP, you can also contact Penny Wong on (08) 8313 8272 or [email protected]

If you can contribute financially:

Donate an eSIM to help Gazans stay connected

Donate to help the most medically vulnerable evacuate Rafah (I completely understand that many people are wary of donating via GoFundMe, but the people involved in this effort do an excellent job at documenting their efforts + keeping records for accountability purposes. Have a look at @raindovemodel @merryfet on instagram for more details

Help El Rahman Inc buy Cairo -> Melbourne tickets for stranded families. They're a Melbourne-based organisation that does amazing work

If you only feel comfortable donating to NGOs, consider the Palestinian Children's Relief Fund, Anera, UNRWA, or the Red Crescent

And, finally:

Come to your local action on Sunday. Even better, bring a friend

If you're a university student, alumni, or prospective student, check whether the institution in question partners with any companies on the BDS list. A disappointingly high number of unis partner with weapons manufacturing companies. If yes, urge them to divest.

Learn the BDS list. Do not purchase anything from companies on the list.

#beloveds if ur coming across this in april it’s very out of date #(the call ur reps + come to a march + buy some esims part doesn’t change though)#hoping to make an updated one in the next few days #auspol #palestine #australia #free palestine #gaza #current events

544 notes · View notes

pro-depresanti · 5 months ago

Note

In case you take request? Val x female reader on e shot who acts a bit childlike clingy when he gets off out of bed the next Morning Not wanted him to leave for work?

The way I was actually thinking of writing something like that already lol

Tags: really soft, clingy!reader, vaguely implied nsfw

Requests are open :))

___

Contrary to popular belief, Hell isn't a burning pit of fire, with the average temperature breaking the thermometers, especially with an AC on, and especially in the mornings.

You're tugged in bed with a thick comforter covering you up to the chin, Valentino's fluffy wings splayed out underneath you. You're using his chest as a pillow, your arms wrapped around him like he's the biggest plushie ever made. Honestly, you're lucky he's a clingy bitch as well, and that he likes you so much, otherwise such freedoms would never fly. He's got his arms around you too, one by the shoulders and one around your waist.

He wakes up first, because being an Overlord isn't just bossing everyone around and throwing money as carelessly as cigarette butts, said money has to be made somehow. Valentino sighs under his breath, mentally going through the list of things that needs to get done - supervising two big projects, going through some scripts, a meeting with Vox in the afternoon for scheduling and setting the budget for the upcoming quarter, a quick visit to Velvette for a photoshoot–

It's too early for this shit, but time doesn't bend even for Overlords. He takes notice of your position, and gets to unraveling himself away from you as carefully as possible. Your job is to look pretty, and to warm his bed and cock, not to run a whole industry, might as well one of you take it easy.

But, as soon as your 'pillow' moves, you're awake and very much not in the mood to lose your personal heater. You grumble something unintelligible, wrapping yourself tighter around Val, throwing a leg around his stomach for good measure.

"Baby, come on–"

"Mmm, five more minutes." Both of you are well aware your 'five minutes' are as long as Vox's five minutes to finish up paperwork, which is closer to five hours.

Valentino weighs his opinions, wondering whether having you share his bed is worth having that conversation more often than not. It is, but still.

You lift up your head, putting up your best cute face, staring him through your lashes with puppy eyes. "Pretty please?"

He throws you a nasty look. "And what happens when those idiots run the industry into the ground?" As if he doesn't want to have a lazy morning more than once in a blue moon.

"They will be fine," you pout, laying back. "Just a bit more, you're warm."

Valentino rolls his eyes. "Little manipulator," he says, then leans in to kiss the top of your head.

You giggle. "Learning from the best."

He reaches over the nightstand, despite your protests, to get a cigarette and a lighter. Fine, he can have his 'breakfast' in bed, Valentino without his morning smoke is a nightmare for everyone that comes in his vicinity. "You have until I finish this."

You sigh. "Fine." One battle at a time. Still, you call that a win when he starts tracing a shapeless pattern onto your back. Yeah, you can play the big scary Overlord like a fiddle, he can never tell you a stern 'no' without a compromise, you've gotten as much under his skin as he has under yours.

"You know, you're a pain in the ass sometimes," he says with a scoff.

You hum in agreement. "Yep." Then tangle your fingers into his neck fluff. Mmm, warm and fuzzy. Sometimes you can even forget what a nasty piece of shit Val is. He's just a fluff ball with attitude and anger issues.

You're sure Val must have really rushed his smoking because before you know it he flicks the butt into the ashtray and you get ready for round two. Valentino tries to get up again, less careful this time, but you don't budge, just wrapping yourself tighter around him. "Five more minutes."

He glares at you, saying your name with a tone that would make any other sinner freeze in place.

You scoff.

"I'll be late."

You hum, "'don't care."

"You're really pushing your luck."

No shit, but Val loves it as much as you do.

"Just five more minutes," you reason again, nuzzling into him.

"Move."

You pout. "Five minutes, ple-eeease?"

"I'm serious."

"And I'm cosy." Maybe you'll get a good disciplinary fucking out of this too. Kill two birds with one stone.

But luck isn't on your side today. Valentino gets up suddenly, most likely thinking he would be able to shake you off. Jokes on him, you wrap your hands around his neck and your legs around his waist and hold on for dear afterlife.

He stands up straight, his arms out, which, rude! What if you fall?! Asshole. You wiggle a bit, resting your thighs on his lower set of shoulders for some extra support, interlocking your fingers behind his head. "You can't be serious."

"Come on, Val. No one will care if you're a bit late." If anything, his workers would be happy, but you don't say that out loud.

He clicks his tongue and grabs your chin, lifting your head up to look at him. "You. Are. An. Insufferable, little, bitch."

You smile. "Love you too," then rest your head back on his chest, closing your eyes.

You expect him to wrestle you away and throw you either on the bed or straight on the floor, but no. Instead, he starts walking, still not holding you. Blessed be your strength you have built up after so long being Val's favorite plaything, you stay firm in place. "What are you–"

He gets to his closet and picks the nearest skirt within reach. "Getting ready."

You groan in annoyance. He can't be serious. But he is, bending down to slip on the skirt, then his heels. Ugh, your limbs will ache for the wrong reasons tomorrow, this is a whole workout on your part.

He walks up to the mirror and fixes up his neck fluff as best as he can. No time for make-up today, it seems, not like he needs it to look good.

You hear the front door open, and you finally open your eyes. "Um, Val?"

He doesn't even look at you as he locks the door behind himself. "What? You want to be clingy, be clingy then, but I have shit to do."

"But–"

He grabs you by the hair and pulls your head back. "One more word and you lose your bed privileges."

That shuts you up. Well, hopefully you've worn something decent to bed now that the entire building will see you out and about. Considering Val is just trying to be extra mean and take the stairs instead of the elevator to see whether your strength is as big as your stubbornness, everyone in his section of the Tower will get a glimpse.

#hazbin hotel #valentino #valentino hazbin hotel #valentino x reader #valentino x you #drabble #soft and sweet

91 notes · View notes

apoloadonisandnarcissus · 2 months ago

Text

Robert Eggers Count Orlok Backstory: An Overview

Robert Eggers doesn’t want us to know his Orlok’s backstory but I’m a Art History and Heritage researcher and I said challenge accepted. Who was Count Orlok before raising from the grave as a strigoi? And what clues do we have about 16th century Ellen?

[How much research into the period did you do when you were writing the script?] Massive amounts of research. There’s no way for me to fully invest in the world and be able to communicate it to an audience without understanding it to the fullest of my ability. So I did tons of research on my own, and that was put into the script, the dialogue and the style of the language. […] I like building worlds; I enjoy the act of doing it, and I like learning about other eras. I get enough of today today.”

Exclusive Interview: Robert Eggers Re-Visualizes A Classic Vampire in “Nosferatu”

Castle Orlok: all exterior scenes were filmed at Corvin Castle (Hunyadi Castle or Hunedoara Castle) in Romania. This architectural wonder was build Gothic-Renaissance aesthetic, and is one of the largest castles in Europe. The courtyard scenes were filmed inside the castle walls of Pernštejn Castle in the Czech Republic.

“And the overall look was to establish Orlok as a once-real person with a life, with money, with wealth, with entitlement, with attitude.”; “But with Orlok, Robert was always very, very clear that he is a Transylvanian Count from around 1580 […] at the time that Orlok would have been a young, vital, you know, “I’m a sexy, handsome, gorgeous, rich beyond belief man.” Linda Muir, costume designer; “How Robert Eggers Added Rockstar Mystique to “Nosferatu”; “Nosferatu - Interview with Costume Designer Linda Muir

Casting [Bill] Skarsgård as the hideously ancient, mustached, layered-with-prosthetics Count Orlok was about keeping the demon sexy. “It was important to have a young, beautiful person underneath that,” said Eggers, “maybe that’s a good thing for Lily-Rose [Depp] but there is something seductive in this powerful figure. Bill’s a good actor. But Orlok, before he was dead, was probably a handsome guy, a harsh face, but a beautiful face, too.”; “To have the attraction to this figure… I think he was probably a beautiful man at some point, but now he’s covered in maggots,” the director said. “That’s interesting to me.” ‘Nosferatu’: How to Make a Robert Eggers Movie, with Help from Mel Brooks and Chris Columbus; Nosferatu director needed Bill Skarsgård’s vampire to look like a creepy corpse

In my in-depth analysis of this topic on my blog, I mention this; I’m perfectly aware Robert Eggers said his Orlok was 55-years old at the time of his death, but, I’m taking that information with a grain of salt, actually. That was definitely his first idea back in 2016, but casting an actor in his 30s and the costume design tells me he changed his mind. He’s also being very secretive about his Orlok backstory, and he's very invested in historical accuracy. A 55-year old man in the 16th century wasn’t “young” in any way, shape or form. He would be an elderly man, living past European life expectancy rates (30-40s). Him having white hair in his current state isn’t an indication of his age, either, because decomposition removes pigment from hair.

This is most likely how Count Orlok would have looked like at the time of his death, when the dawn begins to remove the decay from him (symbolizing the curse of Nosferatu is being lifted).

With the analysis of Count Orlok’s iconography (sigil; coat of arms; appearance), historical context and set design (world building), the conclusion is that Robert Eggers really took “Renaissance man” to the next level with this character. Orlok being a “16th century warlord occultist” is a very simplistic way to put it. He was a sorcerer-warrior, a Solomonar enchanter, an alchemist, a occult scholar, and a count with feudal and military responsibilities.

Robert Eggers has revealed his Orlok is an old soul, predating the Roman Empire, he’s of Dacian origin (ancient people of nowadays Romania and parts of nearby countries); has known reincarnation throughout the centuries (at least two we know of: ancient times and 16th century);

He’s of Székely ethnicity (Hungarian), and his castle/county is located in the Eastern Carpathian Mountains. The independence of the Székelys lords was granted in exchange for military service to the Hungarian kings;

Somewhere in his life he studied at the Solomonărie school (germanization Scholomance), an underground school in the Carpathian Mountains, to become a Solomonar. Eggers is using a academic thesis which links the folkloric Solomonari with Zalmoxis cult. In this story, Orlok learned from a reincarnation of Zalmoxis the secrets of life and death, and immortality, alongside magic, mysteries of nature, the language of all living things, control the weather and “ride dragons” (Solomonari weathermaker or Dacian cloud traveler). As his final assignment to become a Solomonar he had to copy his entire knowledge into a “Solomonar book”, which would become the source of his power (the Solomonari codex of secrets we see in the film);

Why he became a Solomonar is one of two options; either he was attracted to them because of his Dacian origin (Zalmoxis was the main deity of the Dacians) or he was chosen (in some legends, a old Solomonar chooses boys to become Solomonari and be trained at the school);

His occult interests involved Solomonar-Zalmoxis cult, Sex Magick and Enochian magic (angels and daemons);

He lived during the Ottoman rule of the Balkans, and since Transylvanian nobility has led some rebellions against the Ottomans he probably was involved in some of these wars;

His historical Slavic hairstyle, might indicate some sort of affiliation between Orlok and the Ukrainian Cossacks. He might have made contact with them during war time, since they were involved in many conflicts against the Turkish and Tatar invaders in Moldavian territory (Eastern Carpathians), during the 16th and 17th centuries;

He was involved, in some way, in the religious turmoil of Protestants vs. Catholics in Transylvania in the late 16th century. Probably used a Protestant facade to practice his true “religion” (Paganism);

He was “demonized” as a “Devil worshipper” (unclear if during his lifetime or after his death);

Did he got caught up in the witchcraft accusations and executions paranoia in Transylvania in the 1580s? The rats symbolism might indicate he did;

Died somewhere in the 1580s or 1590s. Most likely cause of death was by suffocation; hanging, drowning or strangling.

In the script, we have two of Count Orlok’s contemporaries mentioned: Henry Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim (one of the most famous occultists in Europe in the 16th century) and Dr. John Dee (Enochian magic; the incantation Professor Von Franz performs to compel Ellen to speak, as he conjures both angels and demons). Both who got into legal trouble because of their occult pursuits. As did many figures across the 16th century; which saw the birth, imprisonment and execution of scientists, scholars and occultists who defied the supremacy of the Church.

The Countess: Orlok and His Wife

He was married and had a family; both present in the set design: multiple sarcophagi in the castle crypt and the bedroom he attacks Thomas (which he selected for him in advance).

What happened to Orlok’s family? His entire castle seems to be “frozen” in time. The furniture present all belongs to the Medieval period and early Modern era, which seems to indicate no “modern” occupation. While many noblemen kept family heirlooms, rich nobility families did “updated” their castle furnishings to symbolize wealth and social status. This castle is the center of a county, which is not only fully deserted by the 19th century (when Thomas gets there), but appears to have been for a very long, long time. Thomas did not hallucinate the furniture, which tells us the castle was left as it was since the late 16th century. Orlok’s family either died around the same time or pack up and left.

At the prologue (based on the novella Robert Eggers wrote about his characters backstories), we have sexual pleasure (masturbation), and Ellen and Orlok associated with a garden of lilacs. It was confirmed by Linda Muir, the costume designer, that lilacs remind Orlok of his human life, and also connect both these characters (visual storytelling). This establishes Orlok as symbolic of nature in Ellen’s character arc (while Thomas represents society). But we have Orlok’s top secret backstory inspiring the prologue; and they also symbolically return to their garden of lilacs at the end; which indicates Orlok and 16th century Ellen had a connection with a garden of lilacs somewhere, with implications of sexual encounters involved. Since 19th century Ellen swears herself to Orlok in this garden, maybe he proposed to her (marriage) in a similar setting in the 16th century, too?

Most 16th century nobility marriages were arranged, and made with the purpose of political alliances. A minority of noblemen did marry out of love, but this was extremely rare and not the common practice. Marriage was considered to be about companionship, but many arranged noble marriages eventually turned out to be successful and evolved into love. Either way, this last option was Orlok’s and 16th century Ellen’s case. Orlok will hold on to her heart-silver locket and treasure the lilac scent on it (Olfactory memory), in association to romantic and sexual memories (as he bitterly says to Thomas he’s fortunate in his love; and he asks Ellen to remember how they once were after she accused him of not being able to love).

Then we have Ellen mixing up her 16th century incarnation with her current 19th century one. She’s absolutely certain Orlok took her as his lover “then” (even though he was no more than a shadow at her window during her teenage years), including some sort of sex dreams (which Orlok, being a strigoi, could never compell her to have, he can only create nightmares, terror and fear in his victims). We also don’t know for how long have these dreams have been “plaguing” Ellen because the first time she actually saw Orlok (his physical appearance) was the night before this scene, at the Harding household.

Ellen labeling her and Orlok as “lovers” can indicate these two were romantically and sexually involved before any talk of marriage, in the 16th century. While this was highly scandalous and frowned upon throughout History, it wasn’t so rare as one might think. Many brides were already pregnant by the time of their weddings.

Then we have the "possession scene", where Orlok possesses Thomas when Ellen is starting to "remember", which gives us more clues to what sort of couple they were: "You could never please me as he could."

Then we also have the “public” and “getting caught” theme going on between these two. Ellen’s father caught her masturbating, and she has a “hysterical fit” in public after seeing Friedrich and Anna Harding (the mirror pair to Ellen and Orlok) displaying sexual desire in public (“Friedrich, in public?” / “I cannot resist you, my love”). During this scene Ellen has her hand on her hat mimicking Friedrich’s, and the pattern on Anna’s dress is also the same as Orlok’s mente cloak coat; to really drive home this connection.

Now, this will be wild speculation from my part, but since Robert Eggers did tons of historical research, I might have discovered his inspiration for these “public” or outdoors rendezvous, and it’s a 1545 court case in Transylvania; between a father who claimed a man sexually assaulted his daughter (pregnant out of wedlock); while the man claimed they were lovers for five years at that point; with several witnesses to this fact. From the woman’s part, after the graphic details of her sexual encounters with this man in a grain field (which also involved masturbation) were described to the jury, her only remark was that she did nothing wrong. From a historical perspective, these things are not easy to analyze and that’s the conclusion the author of the paper comes to, and I won’t waste time here explaining the complexities of this. If was truly a sexual assault case or if they were lovers and the father opposed to the union.

If Orlok and 16th century Ellen were going at it in a garden of lilacs, and someone saw them (like a servant, for instance), no one would say anything about it, even if they weren’t married. Which was apparently the case between the two “lovers” in the trial, until she became pregnant and the father took the case to court. It was unlikely a wealthy count would be taken to court for this kind of thing, especially if it happen during courtship/betrothal period. Either way, Orlok and 16th century Ellen got married, and within marriage every passion was allowed during this time period.

Some historical sex facts about the Renaissance (since this story is so rooted in sex and death):

While 19th century doctors believed women had no sexual desire whatsoever, in the 16th century women were seen as more sexual than men. This was also motivated by patriarchal views, of course, with women being seen as sexual wantons who exhausted their husbands with sexual activity (especially by the church);

While the 19th century declared war on “female sexual pleasure” and “passion” in general (viewing it as the opposite to “love”); in the early Modern era, midwives believed both male and female orgasms were necessary to produce a child;

The Protestant Reformation (16th century) brought some changes in how sex was perceived within marriage. While Catholics saw sex as a sin and a necessary evil to have children, Protestants saw marriage as salvation from sexual sin. The Reformation encouraged ideas of marital love, mutual pleasure and desire, and sex as an enhancement of marriage. Although moderation was still advised, and premarital sex was condemned, sex became a key element of the emerging “romantic love” concept, where marriage was based on romance rather than on family interests. This sex-positive attitude started to change during the 17th century;

Wild historical fact: anal sex was common between heterosexual married couples as a way to prevent unwanted pregnancies, and the Church even had to intervene to put a stop to this practice (especially in Catholic countries). Folk medicine (herbs, etc.) was also used to prevent pregnancies.

This cabinet saw things no cabinet should ever see, I bet.

“Memento mori” detail; who skull is this? This also gives me “Hamlet” vibes (Eggers’ father is a Shakespeare scholar and his “Northman” was loosely based on this play). Interestingly enough, we also got a father opposing Hamlet and Ophelia’s courtship.

From her part, 16th century Ellen could still be of "German" ancestry, since the Saxons were one of the main ethnic groups in Transylvania at the time. Which would mean she came from a Lutheran family; establishing another parallel with Anna Harding, who, according to Emma Corrin, comes from a conservative Lutheran background: “Yeah, mine [character novella] was detailed in a way that you weren’t ever going to use that information explicitly in the film. But they were just these sorts of amazing facts. I remember mine saying that she was Lutheran from a conservative household. And there was a whole bit about how Anna meets Friedrich at a ball, and how their eyes meet across the room to this particular piece of music. And Robert put a link to the song in there, and I listened to it a few times and that suggested quite a bit about, I guess, my characters sensibilities. But it was very detailed, and I think that was a nice little flourish.”

Female presence in Count Orlok’s castle:

Photo source: “Putting “authenticity into a legendary vampiric folktale” (SDSA - Set Decorators)

Four-poster canopy bed: this type of furniture was a favorite among European aristocracy in the 16th century, a symbol of wealth and status. Only the highest ranking members of a castle (the lord and the lady) had the luxury to retire to a bed behind curtains, while the staff (servants, knights, etc.) usually slept in common areas. Canopies were used to provide the lord and the lady with warmth during cold months and privacy, and because it was customary for one or two servants to sleep in the room with them. Drapes were rich, heavy and made from luxurious materials, like velvet or brocade. The canopy was often more elaborate and expensive that the wood bed itself. Bed were more than “places to sleep” during medieval and early modern age; marriages were consummated, children were born, postpartum mothers recovered and people die in bed.

Then we have this hand mirror ("looking glass"). Historically, mirrors have always been associated with women. From the 12th century forward, it was fashionable for respectful ladies to use small mirrors as jewelry, around their neck or waist. Which makes a connection to Ellen's heart-shaped silver locket from the 19th century.

During the early Modern era, mirrors were small in size (enough to reflect the owner's face), typically handheld, and portable and convenient for personal use. These mirrors were often encased in ornate and intricate carved frames (made of wood, metal, precious stone, etc.); these frames were meant to reflect the wealth and social status of the owner of the mirror.

Mirrors were essential grooming tools, to help with personal care before social interactions. Symbolically, mirrors were also connected with spiritual proprieties like divination and the supernatural, and were often used in religious ceremonies and rituals, as portals to communicate with the spiritual realm

Renaissance mirrors

This particular mirror is meant to be used in this setting (chambers), obviously. With this lighting is hard to make out the figures in the gold frame: it was two dragons on the top alongside what seems to be human-like figures, and some decorative flora around the frame.

That's seven years bad luck, mate.

19th century Ellen is associated with mirrors, as we see her standing in front of a mirror, twice:

What kind of couple?

The Protestant Reformation also changed as women were seen, socially: Luther primarily saw women as potential marriage mates and sexual partners, but Calvin defended that women could be indispensable companions and helpmates to the husband. Since 19th century Ellen doesn’t want to be trapped in the domestic sphere, and has a connection to nature, everything seems to suggest her 16th century incarnation shared the same views. Especially when we have “Wuthering Heights” by Emily Brontë as the main inspiration in this story, as Ellen’s 19th century childhood being so similar to Cathy’s.

Make no mistake, women in the Modern era still didn’t had the same rights as we do today, and their lives were controlled by patriarchal authorities (fathers and husbands) as they did in the 19th century. We do have several examples of women who were able to pursue their aspirations due to the support of their fathers and husbands (which they otherwise couldn’t). For his part, Orlok declares love/Thomas/Victorian society is inferior to Ellen because she’s an enchantress, and a medium (“not of human kind”). Him being a enchanter himself, indicates they most likely shared their occult pursuits.

Now I want to bring back the Dr. John Dee inspiration. He had a “work” partner for his spiritual endeavors, a medium called Edward Kelly. Together, they performed several conjuring sessions of angels, spirits and even demons, and developed the Enochian magic system and language (“language of angels”). They were both accused of being necromancers; dabbling in black magic to resurrect the dead.

Which is what we see Ellen doing at the prologue of the film. She also displays tremendous spiritual power, being able to conjure Orlok using words and sexual energy (her “hysteric fits”), while Herr Knock has to assemble an entire ritual room. Professor Von Franz also tells Ellen she could have been a great Pagan priestess, which indicates she probably was. If we go with the Enochian theme here; Orlok could have been a sort of Dr. John Dee, while 16th century Ellen was his Edward Kelly, the medium with the gift to actually communicate with the spiritual realm.

Since Orlok had military duties to fulfill, it was probably his wife who managed the county in his absence; which wasn’t uncommon during this time period. In Transylvania, women sometimes took possession of the family estate in the eventuality of their fathers and husbands’ deaths, too.

What’s the “dark trauma” between Orlok and 16th century Ellen?

I’ve analyzed that topic in other posts:

#Nosferatu 2024 #Nosferatu #Robert Eggers #count Orlok 2024 #count Orlok 2024 backstory #count Orlok #ellen Hutter 2024 #ellen x orlok #orlok x ellen #lilac fang #lilac fangs #romanian history #transylvanian history #early modern history #early modern period #bill skarsgård #lily rose depp

70 notes · View notes

lurkingteapot · 2 years ago

Text

Free Thai language learning resources

I’ve been learning Thai for the past 20 months. This list is by no means complete or comprehensive, what works for me doesn’t have to work for you, etc etc. That said: I’ve used most of these and found them useful, I thought you might, too. Have fun!

Youtube channels with free video lessons:

There are tons of wonderful teachers on youtube; this is by no means an exhaustive list. The three channels listed here are comprehensive, long-running, and updated regularly; if you have other favourites, please reblog and append!

Comprehensible Thai is a channel that teaches Thai in Thai, from zero, via the comprehensible input method. They have videos from total beginner through upper intermediate/lower advanced levels available.

Learn Thai with Mod – Mod runs a language school that offers good, structured group classes; she and her co-teachers often upload short videos about specific aspects of Thai. The channel has been around for a long time and they cover a lot of topics, including grammar points.

Thai Lessons by New (Learn Thai one Word one Sentence) – lots of good vocabulary and situational phrases

Other channels I like:

Advanced Thai with Kruu Momm -- one of my favourites, Momm’s a star. Not included in the upper list only because this is definitely more of an intermediate-advanced resource.

Thai with Grace -- I knew of Grace via her polyglot channel and travel vlogs before I realised she also teaches Thai. Fun stuff.

Kat talks Thai -- I believe Kat is more active on instagram (@kattalksthai), but these are still really neat.

Perth Nakhun’s Basic Thai playlist

Honourable mentions because they’re interesting and can be nice supplements (yes, the video titles on these channels tend to be clickbaity, the content is useful, though):

Stu Jay Raj: Stu is a polyglot based in Thailand. His channel is a bit of a mixed bag, but he has a very interesting approach to languages and sometimes does foreign accent reduction / accent analysis sessions on his channel (with consent and participation of those whose speech he dissects).

Thai Talk with Paddy: Paddy is an Australian who learned Thai when he was a volunteer in Thailand, he’s kept it up. Fun things about language learning and culture

Listening comprehension

I’m assuming many folks on here who are interested in Thai already watch some Thai shows (yes I’m stereotyping but also this is tumblr), which means you’re spending time listening to Thai.

If you’re not:

Netflix, Youtube, WeTV, and Viki all have several Thai shows with English subtitles available. The Youtube channel of Thai broadcasting giant GMMTV has English subtitles on nearly all of their uploaded series, some series are also subtitled in languages other than English. one31 is another huge channel; they have English subtitles on some series and some series also have subtitles in Thai. There’s tons more – find a rec list and a Thai show that sounds like you’d enjoy it, chances are you’ll be able to watch it for free, legally, on youtube. You can use the youtube controls (or the ones on netflix) to turn the speed down to 75% —this can make it a lot easier to catch what’s being said. 50% gets so draggy that I personally find it almost harder to understand, but ymmv—give it a shot!

https://lingopolo.org/thai/ has real-life recordings for listening practice; sign-up is required but it’s literally just an e-mail-address, user name and password. Using the site is free.

https://www.activethai.com/ has a section dedicated to learning the tones (under “Overview of Thai Tones”) including a self-test for listening that I found very useful.

Learning to read

I will always, always, ALWAYS recommend learning to read the Thai script. All available romanisations for Thai have drawbacks, and besides, you learned to read English with its “though through thorough tough thought”, you can damn well learn to read Thai. I promise it will help you improve your pronunciation (yes, really) and overall understanding of how the language works.

Learn-to-Read-Thai resources that seem comprehensive and like they should do everything in one:

Anki decks “Read Thai PHASE 1 - The Consonants“, “Read Thai PHASE 2 - Thai Vowels“, “Read Thai PHASE 3 - Consonant Classes” and “Read Thai PHASE 4 - Tone Rules” by Khruu Gaan (ครูกานต์). Anki is probably the most powerful spaced repetition software I have ever used. It’s free on all desktops and android. These decks have sound.

Memrise course “Read Thai: A Complete Guide to Reading Thai“

Other resources I used (In hindsight, I feel like I should’ve picked one resource to learn to read from and stuck with it; I think I was rushing and made things more complicated than need be for myself with my hodgepodge mix-and-match approach. But hey, I can read now.)

https://www.activethai.com/ – the site I started with. Teaches the consonants separated by class and with sound. The only reason this is no longer my top recommendation is that I ended up using this alongside a resource that helped me memorise what the words used to represent the letters actually mean because the site itself didn’t tell me, and I wanted that easy way to have 44 vocabulary words ready as soon as you’re done learning your consonants, and it gives you access to neat mnemonics such as ไก่จิกเด็กตาย(เฎ็กฏาย)บนปากโอ่ง.

The chart on Wikipedia’s English article on the Thai Script

the reference section of Thai-Language.com

In order to better learn to read Thai written in different fonts (modern and handwriting fonts can be tough at first), the Thai Script typographical styles overview on Thai-language.com was a huge help, as was throwing simple phrases things into gdocs and messing around to see how different fonts made them look. This chart from sanukmaak.com also helped.

Speaking and pronunciation

The hardest one for any new language for most folks. For me personally, finding someone who speaks the language and is willing to correct me was an absolute necessity, but I know that’s not always an option. If you’re going it on your own, make sure you check out the resources above for learning to hear the tones and those sounds and sound clusters not present in your own language correctly first.

Things to try on your own:

shadowing: Whenever someone on a show utters a sentence you think might be useful, or provide a useful pattern, or something just sounds cool, rewind and try to speak along as they say it, trying to make it sound as close to their pronunciation as you can.

try to record yourself and listen back -- yes, it’s cringe af but it will HELP.

memorising short sentences and phrases: tying back to the section above, there's a ton of youtube videos that is "phrases to use in [situation]" that are great for targeted learning if you're up for it

self talk (cautiously! don't want to cement bad pronunciation habits)

if you’re linguistically inclined: looking up descriptions on how to make a sound correctly sometimes helps, as does watching videos of folks who’ve successfully learned the language.

once you’ve learned to read: find sentences to read somewhere (twitter, a textbook, whatever) and read them into your phone’s dictation engine. See if the software understands you correctly. Adjust as needed until it does.

Websites and apps to find language partners or (paid) tutors

Like any other app where you ‘meet people’, please exercise caution on these.

italki (mainly for finding tutors and teachers, but you can find language partners on the forums)

Preply (web/app) (for finding tutors/teachers)

hellotalk (app only, iOS/android) for finding language partners -- free to use basic features like messaging, voice rooms, etc; has annoying ads

tandem (app only, iOS/android) for finding language partners -- free to use basic features, has ads

any other app or website that’ll let you meet people, like local facebook groups (yes really), instagram, etc

(note: Neither hellotalk nor tandem allow users to sign up without selecting a binary gender. it sucks. I’ve seen people who managed to circumvent this on Hellotalk by signing up via apple ID (? I think), but it’s hearsay and I have not managed to do so myself.)

Books (a book) that are (is) worth spending money on imo

Higbie & Thinsan: Thai Reference Grammar. The Structure of Spoken Thai. Orchid Press: Bangkok, 2002. Yes, it’s ancient in textbook terms. It’s not perfect, but it’s still the best reference grammar for Thai I’ve come across so far, and I use it frequently.

Random bits and bobs

Stu Jay Raj has two videos in particular that I, as a phonetics-and-phonology-loving person, loved and found extremely useful and wished I’d watched before I started to try and learn the script: Thai Vowels for Dummies in 5 Min v2 - A System Impossible to Forget and Thai Bites Extended Edition - Transliterating Thai using IPA. I realise these may be overwhelming and less helpful for people with no prior phonetics or phonology training, but they helped me so much it’d feel amiss not to include them.

Resources I recommend AGAINST using when starting out

drops/hello words -- seems like their Thai courses have been created using machine translation that wasn’t sufficiently proofread. They will assign you nouns in places of the corresponding verb or false cognates, and that’s within the first 10 or so lessons. Might be useful once the level where a learner can tell “ah, yeah, that’s … not right” has been reached? idk.

transcription as generated by google translate: BURN IT WITH FIRE. it’s a transliteration, i.e. 1-to-1 representation of 1 Thai letter = 1 Latin letter (extended), it’s not phonemic, it’s not going to help ANYONE (and those who can make sense of it presumably already read Thai and would be better off with just Thai script). Just. Stop.

Google translate as a dictionary: still shitty but not AS bad as the transcription function. Still, for the love of all that you hold dear, please, save yourself the pain and confusion and just use thai2english or thai-language.com instead.

---

And that’s that from me, friends. Yeeting this into the void before I second-guess myself more. Please append additional resources!

Edited to fix a couple of typos and errors on 2023-06-15

#thai language #learning thai #ภาษาไทย #เ��ียนภาษาไทย #Thai from English #language learning #language resource #language learning resource #idk what the hell else to tag this #free education #don't get me started on 'creative' 'free-form' 'by-ear' romanisations; we'll be here all day #my nonsense

1K notes · View notes

dangermousie · 1 year ago

Text

A danmei lover's biased and incomplete het web novel rec list

@mercipourleslivres thanks for inspiring me!

When it comes to Chinese web novels, I mainly read danmei. I tend not to care too much for OP heroine with a hero who dotes on her for no reason as she fights with 14 year olds narratives, nor inner courtyard fights. BUT!!! There are some het web novels I like and so here is my biased and incomplete rec list. Most of these don't have OP heroines, and very little to none courtyard fights.

Before I start, my favorite het web novel authors are: Gong Xinwen, Mo Shu Bai, Peng Lai Ke, and Jiu Lu Fei Xiang. I have yet to read anything bad by them.

Anyway, rec list:

1000 Miles of Bright Moonlight - one of my ultimate favorites, this would make such an epic drama! A smart as hell heroine, a hero who is a monk and a warrior (but also terminally?) ill and such a vivid world and amazing secondary characters (heroine’s brother is possibly my favorite supporting character of all time) and so much angst and happy ending. This has an amazing romance but it’s not romance-centric if it makes sense - ML doesn’t appear for a while. But once he does, it’s worth it!

Accompanying the Phoenix - the one that just got adapted into The Legend of Shen Li, this is high adventure and cottage core and funny and tragic and powerful ML being putty in the hands of capable FL and just EVERYTHING.

Apocalypse Arrival - Gong Xinwen’s novels are made just for me. Her heroines are always powerful as fuck and rescue abused MLs. In this novel, our heroine who lives in the post-apocalyptic world, wakes up right before that apocalypse happens. She forms a survival crew and also rescues ML who has miraculous blood and has been drained of it and is now hunted after the rescue for it. SO GOOD!!!

Black Moonlight Holds the BE Script - so fucked up, so good, with monster hero who learns to love and be human and heroine who learns to love and be human (but from the other side, her tower of perfection.) Much better than the drama which I did enjoy.

The Blue Whisper - the drama was so-so, but the novel is a bona fide angst masterpiece, which really delves into what it feels like to be imprisoned or to love.

Counterattack of the Cannon Fodder Chambermaid - I remember starting this and loving the realistic feel and the heroine and wanting to stab the hero and @mercipourleslivres telling me to be patient. She was right, by the end I was on board with both the hero (who was abused and is rather autistic-coded) and the OTP. Anyway, heroine is a servant who was a concubine in the last life and got killed as part of a rich family’s harem intrigues. In this life, she just wants to keep her head down but her life gets derailed anyway. She gets sold away and eventually made a servant in the household of an exiled prince who takes a fancy to her and she endures it because what choice does she have? All she wanted was to serve out her term and become a small time merchant. This is quite realistic about lack of options for women, especially lower class women or upper class male attitudes (ML is never vicious or mean to FL but it does not initially occur to him to wonder if she fancies him or enjoys being his concubine or w/e.) It is a DELIGHTFUL slow burn tho as they grow to love each other and grow together and become one of the most wholesome cnovel couples out there.

Dandere General and His Lord - hi there, Gong Xinwen! God, I love this one. Heroine transmigrates from modern world into a brutal slave-holding world at war (think something like Warring States era.) Our heroine transmigrates into the body of a noblewoman who just hung herself. When she comes to, she discovers that woman’s twin brother was the ruler of a city poisoned by a rival claimant and the besieging army of said claimant is about to take the city and original occupant of the body and the rest of the family chose suicide as a way to avoid dishonor. Our heroine refuses, schemes with advisors to pass as the brother and rally the troops. Once the invaders are defeated, she keeps on the masquerade and rides off to one of the never-ending wars “she” is summoned to. Our hero couldn’t be farther from this. A slave and a son of a slave, he’s escaped a horrific, starving childhood during which he narrowly avoided being murdered or raped, and ended up in the army. When the story opens, he distinguished himself in battle and as a reward, he and a few of his fellow slave warriors are invited to a banquet, where they are given some alcohol and to be playthings of any nobles who want them. One of them does not survive this but ML is lucky - heroine feels terrible and so “claims” him for herself. Instead she just tends to his wounds and sends him back. She does not fancy him or anything, she is just a human being with a conscience. And the story goes from there.

Demon King's Repayment - another delicious Gong Xinwen tale with a powerful ML dedicated to capable FL. This one is a great fantasy plot (I keep imagining it as an animated series) and a sprawling cast of amazing secondaries (and secondary OTPs - there is, I swear, an OTP that is Dong Hua x Feng Jiu done thru GXW lens) to boot.

Doomed to Be Cannon Fodder - I hesitated to put this one on the list because by the end I was not keen on how misogynistic novel got to original female lead but it was one of my earliest novels and I loved it for 90% and it’s fucking hilarious at times. Heroine transmigrates as bit villainess into a novel, all she wants is not to die, but her new attitude of “pls stay away” catches the attention of her terrifying general husband. Honestly, imo still worth it.

Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir - my n1 novel on this list, smart and fierce and don’t really read this for romance because it does not start until really late, but ice cold heroine x ice cold hero both of equal brains and ruthlessness is everything. I went from loathing the ML to finding him fascinating to adoring him (and yet he softened around the edges only for FL, he never became “nice”) and loved FL throughout; secondaries are epic. If you read only one non-danmei web novel, make it this one.

The Emperor’s Beloved Ugly Girl - my n2 novel on this list. Our heroine is the unlucky laundry maid A’Chou. She is a di daughter of an upperclass family but her family got destroyed in one of the political upheavals of the time and A’Chou, only a small child at the time, was the only survivor and was made an enslaved laundry maid. Due to various events, at the start of the novel she is a laundry maid in a minister’s household and the minister’s beloved daughter is having a fit because she’s supposed to marry the former Crown Prince which may have been great a few years back but Crown Prince had since been deposed, tortured, imprisoned and now is living in the middle of nowhere under conditions that are too meager to be called house arrest. And he’s seriously crippled too. Understandably, the young lady doesn’t want to marry him! She’d rather kill herself and so she does. And so, a desperate plan is hatched - why don’t we pretend the laundry maid is the di daughter of the minister’s household and send her off? And so A’Chu is sent as the bride. She arrives to discover a broke, seriously injured man on the verge of death…and we go from there. This is so gorgeous and tender and slow in just the right way and like AAAAAA! Secondary OTPs (one of which is MM) are also epic.

Futu Tower - the drama (Unchained Love) was a mess but the novel is such a lovely, dark exploration of coming back to life, for the ML from his dark revenge-strewn path and for heroine from not being allowed wishes of her own. She is a tribute bride, he’s a (fake) eunuch, they are both servants who use themselves to achieve goals and find peace and happiness together.

The Grand Princess - a tale where both members of the OTP reincarnate as their younger selves after killing each other in their 50s, and get a new start, this is smart and slow and so good in portraying old souls in young bodies. Their rediscovery of not just each other but themselves and their passion for living is just AAAAAA!

Heroine Saves Gentleman - Gong Xinwen novel so we have a tough martial artist lady saving a very upper class scholar and it goes from there. If elegant gorgeous ML being saved and protected (and lovingly dommed) by awesome FL is your bag, pls come right in.

Husband Be a Gentleman - schemer meet schemer. He’s an idle prince she’s perfect daughter, in reality both are wolves out for blood. Mmmm. Very OTP gets together early and is us against the world.

I’ll Be the Male Lead’s Sister in Law - one of my all time favorite novels. Heroine is made to marry a disabled nephew of the emperor. He used to be a victorious god of war but went mad and now is basically locked away and kept as a beast. GOD I LOVE THIS NOVEL SO MUCHHHHH! So much hurt/comfort and awesome OTP and after he eventually recovers, all he wants to do is to fight and murder things and dote on wifey. MMM. He’s honestly one of my fave MLs.

I Married a Disabled Tyrant After Transmigrating - if you have a Florence Nightingale complex, this is for you. Heroine wakes up as tribute bride to an almost dead dragon lord and slowly nurses him back to life as his rivals try to murder him. They are both utter adorable babies!

Let the Villain Go - another Gong Xinwen novel, this and Apocalypse Arrivals are AUs of each other. Heroine is surviving in the apocalypse, ML is the “bugbear” of the world but in reality just reacting to all abuse and torture and after she accidentally saves him, devotes himself. Fun fun fun!

Long Wind Crossing - Amazing ML and FL who grow together, clever plot, arranged marriage to love etc etc. Oh, and one point he feeds her his blood to keep her alive, what’s not to love? (Adapted into Chang Feng Du/Destined)

Lost You Forever - this is a short but delicately wistful tale of trauma and loss and love, wrapped in a high fantasy setting but so relatable despite it.

Love In Another Life: My Gentle Tyrant - so so fucked up in the best way! ML cannot live with OR without heroine. It opens on them banging in jail night before her execution (ordered by him) with corpses of men he killed for trying to defile her cooling nearby. If you want healthy relationships with respectful boundaries, gentle and considerate male leads who are modern men in period clothes, OP heroines who have everyone help them and are OP to the max, fluff and wholesomeness, that is about the worst book for you.If you want complexity, dysfunction, darkness, pain and an absolutely lyrical even if fucked up story, come right IN!!!!I am so fucking in love with the melancholy heroine, with ruthless psycho hero and the endless regret and devotion and paaaaain!

The Marquis Is Innocent - our heroine is a beautiful woman married to a warlord who hates her family. (Yes, this was gonna be The Prisoner of Beauty until SZE tax scandal.) Except she's a transmigrator from the future who knows how it ended last time around and has no interest to end up this tragically. This is in my top 5 - FL is smart but believably so (and doesn't have super battle powers) and ML is a believable period warlord. The way their relationship develops so gradually and the way his character changes so gradually as well (and the way they slowly fall in love, her slower than him) is just amazing. It is such a smart, nuanced, gorgeous slow burn. With some gonzo sex scenes :P

Mulberry Song - you like tragic endings? Come right IN! This is short and heartbreaking and wistful and very what-if.

Nightfall (Ever Night) - so long but also so smart and unusual and bloody and tho it’s not primarily a romance, you will never see another ML who loves his FL as much as Ning Que does his Sang Sang.

Offering Salted Fish to Master - in some ways, this novel is a mess, but I am recommending it because this is a rare example of "nope he's 100% a villain and murderdude and odd, but he does love the heroine" that the author commits to.

Pihanjin - yet another awesome PLK novel, this is once again, like with Marquis, a ruthless man and a beautiful woman getting a second chance on a second go-around. FL is a lot more wounded this time around though. If you LOVE watching ML grovel and slowly, gradually win FL over, this one is for you.

Princess Agents - a dark tale with an incredibly competent and militarily powerful/ruthless heroine and two terrifying men who love her (but neither is as terrifying as she is.) There is an OTP switch halfway through that shockingly makes sense and it's just SO SO GOOOOOOOD

Rebirth of the Malicious Empress of Military Lineage - this is probably the one “typical” novel on this list, heroine is reborn as her youngest self and gets revenge on those who wronged her last time around. It is really really well-written and heroine is competent, hero is doting and powerful etc. It’s not a trope I tend to love but I do when it’s done THIS well.

Rebirth of the Tyrant’s Pet: Regent Prince is Too Fierce: Borgias cnovel style! Our heroine was empress in last life and put her husband on the throne tho he did not love her. However, he had her executed and had his half-brother carry out the orders and heroine died horrifically. She opens her eyes and she’s a little girl again. The OTP this time around is heroine and half-brother executioner. Why do I love it? Heroine is smart and tough but also this is a rare rebirth novel where heroine does NOT decide to seek revenge for past life wrongs because they haven’t happened yet! In fact, she sees ML abused and stands up for him because he’s a kid and no kid should be mistreated and this go around he hasn’t done anything wrong. She also gets and likes her former life husband. Anyway, this is fakecest galore because she’s supposed to be their half-sister and while she knows (from past life) she is not, they do not and fall for her anyway. ML is especially gonzo, at one point carving chunks of his flesh to save her. He’s feral and unhinged and she’s the one person he worships because she protected him and like - it’s all awesome. (I love secondary ML too.)

Reborn to Love Lord Qiansui - yes, this is a eunuch novel! If you like gender tropes reversals, this one is for you. Heroine is a tough martial artist, hero is a smart as hell and powerful eunuch. A real eunuch. Heroine finds out she owes him her life and decides to protect him. This is a total delight and an awesome love story between two really scarred people. And yes, there is sex - heroine literally reads manuals on pegging :P

Return of the Swallow - so freaking long! But really good. Heroine is neither transmigrator nor reincarnator, just a smart period woman. She is a lost family daughter taken back in. Her father is a minister in a dying empire (father-daughter relationship is one of the best things in this novel), her OTP is enemy general, and the smartness and the awesomeness of this all knows no bounds.

Seven Unfortunate Lifetimes - probably the wackiest JLFX novel I read, this is quite different from Love You Seven Times drama that was adapted from it. Our deity protagonists go through a bunch of lives figuring out they fancy each other. It's light like a souffle but just as delicious.

To Be a Virtuous Wife - some people prefer 8 treasures trousseau but I never warmed up to that one. This one is so good, with smart people (who actually enjoy sex, a ratity) and a perfect mix of plot and romance.

Transmigrator Meets Reincarnator - my very first web novel. A lot lighter than a lot of the ones on this list but a total delight. Heroine transmigrates into a novel as the heroine; she has no interest in drama or chasing true love, she just wants to live a nice life with her nice husband. Too bad for her, her husband has reincarnated into his younger self and remembers how she betrayed him, so is not interested. This one is funny and light and romance doesn’t start till late on but a total delight!

Wishing You Eternal Happiness - this is tied with Dreamer as my favorite het web novel ever though it couldn’t be more different from Dreamer, with its hard-edged and hard-souled protagonists ruthlessly cleaving their way to the world and, eventually, each other, its smart cynical air. Except in one thing - the world of Wishing is just as bloody and dark. Its two protagonists are gentle, deeply wounded souls who may find salvation in each other but even something as basic as safety almost seems out of reach.

Jliafu, our heroine, is neither a modern-day transmigrator, nor some exotic princess or demoness. She is very much a period woman of her time, from a weathy merchant clan, whose beauty is her curse. You can tell the novel’s tone from that utterly bleak opening chapter where she, a favorite concubine of a capricious dying emperor, is ordered to be buried alive with him and is not even given the “grace” of white silk but slowly suffocates in the coffin, scrabbling at the lid. There is no grand threats of vengeance on her part, not dramatic opera events. Just despair and death. The whole introductory chapter is haunted by emotional ghosts - the empress’ unrequited love for the monster on the imperial bed (turning into desire for Jiafu’s suffering after he dies), the emperor slowly dying in his prime after waging too many wars, and his fear of being haunted by Pei Youan, a brilliant if sickly minister who died of illness long ago on one of imperial campaigns. There is no triumph for anyone, only loss.

When she wakes up as still a young woman, all she wants is to escape the same fate. There are no plans for power or revenge, only a desire for survival. And so she latches on asking for help from Pei Youan, the only man in her past go-around who showed any consideration and desire and ability to protect her, though he barely knew her. Pei Youan is probably my favorite het web novel ML. Despite his brains and ability, he drifts through life. In modern terms, he clearly has depression. One of the biggest, best joys of the novel is watching these two very good, very quiet, very wounded people discover happiness and love with each other. I sort of want to cry just thinking about it, tbh.

The Yandere Came During the Night - a bit of fluff that’s oddly delightful. Heroine is reborn as a (fake) sister of ML, she hurts her legs saving him and the “siblings” form a bond that ends up in fakecest delight. They are both smart and efficient and he becomes a sexy marquis etc.

395 notes · View notes

muddiedfoxglove · 7 days ago

Text

redd's fic rec list

I'm always sending my friends good fic recs, so I thought I'd do that here for once! Under the cut are some of the fics I have really liked over the last month or so, in no particular order.

crossed the borderline of weightless by dykeries e | 4.2k | oneshot

“Buck,” he says cautiously, and Buck is about to say sorry, about to sprint out of Eddie’s house and drive his Jeep into the Pacific, but instead Eddie speaks before he can do anything. “Tell me if I’m reading this wrong,” he says, and Eddie digs his fingers more deeply into Buck’s hair and pulls. __________________________ Buck needs to clear his head. It turns out Eddie is willing to help with that.

on my last strength against you by markofalover e | 9k | oneshot

Buck has self-control. He hasn’t always used it, but he likes to think he’s gotten a lot better at it, throughout the years. Evidence: He’s clenching his jaw to the point of pain and very pointedly looking at the TV, like the local weatherman spouting off about a heat wave is capable of holding this much of his attention. If this were—before, they would not be watching the news. - ...or, Eddie could just use his words, but where’s the fun in that?

slide into homebase by sybilsleaves e | 5k | oneshot

Eddie's the star pitcher of the 118's intramural softball team. Buck is the assistant coach who has a few pointers for him.

Flash Mobs and Jumbo Trons by glorious_spoon e | 10k | part 3 of a series

"Sorry," Buck says, with an exaggerated wince. "Sorry, sorry, that's not—that's not a proposal, for the record, don't freak out. I was just wondering." Something about the way he says it makes Eddie wonder if maybe it would be a proposal, if he'd reacted differently just now. He dismisses the thought immediately. Buck is a grand romantic gestures kind of guy. He wouldn't ask Eddie to marry him out of the blue, on the couch, halfway through a Lakers game. Eddie is sure of it. Mostly sure of it. - Or: Buck asks a question. Eddie dithers.

symbiosis by mandolare e | 8k | oneshot

When Buck turns to the side to step into the shower he freezes, suddenly and shockingly wide-awake, because there’s something very, very abnormal in his periphery, so out of place he almost can’t make himself look straight at it in the mirror. But then he does, and for a moment forgets how to work his lungs. Because there’s the blue-black shadow of fresh ink under his skin, ugly cursive script, about three inches wide right on his ass. Eddie, it says, high on the curve of his right cheek. - Buck and Eddie get blackout drunk, and then learn something new about themselves. And each other.

lover, be good to me by midnights e | 7k | oneshot

in which oranges are picked, muffins are made, and lazy morning sex is had.

i know you need it by midnights e | 12k | oneshot

to say Buck is pent up would be an understatement. so Eddie gives him what he needs.

been lost for a while by trysetmeonfire m | 17k | oneshote (....for now?)

Eddie's wife has been dead for two weeks. There's a firefighter in bed five. These are not necessarily related facts, but Eddie will have a hard time separating them out, later. — A story, in many ways, about holding hands

drown in good intentions (never quench the fire) by windmillsofmymind e | 87k | 7/7 chapters

“I thought you were ready to start dating,” Bobby says, which. Eddie doesn’t think that’s remotely close to the point. “Yeah, Eddie,” Buck echoes, all narrowed eyes and petulance, aggressively attempting to spear a tomato on his plate while maintaining eye contact. “I…I don’t think the blind dates were really working out.” “So you’re trying to get out of your aunt’s setups, again. And this is what you’re going with?” Hen says, eyebrows raised. “I did not say that. I hadn’t even thought about telling Pepa I’m seeing Felisa, to be honest.” But isn’t that a thought. “I just thought a break would be nice, you know? I can find someone at my own pace, organically.” A chorus of protests and objections, to the tune of “how are you going to meet someone organically when everybody thinks you’re dating someone else”, breaks out across the table. “Oh, he’s gonna find someone organically, alright,” Chimney interrupts. “Obviously, he’s gonna fall in love with Felisa.” Buck promptly begins to choke on his salad. - Or: Eddie pretends to date Felisa Valdez, a normal thing to do, for normal reasons. Buck acts normal about it.

king of the castle by organyx e | 12k | oneshot

Buck scoffs. “You really think you could go longer than I could without--” Eddie shakes his head in amusement. “Making a ‘deposit’?” he teases sarcastically, finishing Buck’s sentence when he awkwardly clams up. “Yes, with one hundred percent certainty.” Buck’s eyebrows raise, his bright grin showing off a row of perfectly white teeth. “Oh, you wanna bet? Since you’re so confident.” ----- Buck and Eddie challenge each other to see who can go the longest without an orgasm. Eddie’s pretty confident he can win.

forever in a day by organyx e | 29k | oneshot

“Eddie, you’re scaring me,” Buck says in the quiet of the room. “Do you-- do you know what day it is?” “Friday,” Eddie answers, tongue thick like his throat is stuffed with cotton. “Yeah,” Buck confirms. “And-- do you know my full name?” Eddie swallows. “Evan Buckley,” he says definitively, but-- He finally turns to look at Buck’s face, and it’s like he’s waiting for Eddie to keep going. Like Eddie had gotten it wrong. Buck’s face melts, his brows pinched together, and Eddie-- He doesn’t know what the hell is going on. ----- Eddie loves every version of Buck. And Buck? Well, he’s starting to realize every version of Buck loves him right back. If only Eddie could get back home to tell him that.

tangled in the willows by organyx e | 9k | oneshot

“Eddie,” Buck whines, hips squirming off the seat as far as his seatbelt will allow, pumping into the air with a grunt. He needs friction, needs a hole to fuck into, needs to fill and claim and satisfy a wet, shivering body below him. He sucks in a trembling breath, but all he can smell is Eddie. His distressed scent is coming off of him in waves, sharp and acidic, chemical in nature. It should be disgusting, should have Buck wrinkling his nose and backing away as far as he can, but he finds it intoxicating, instead. Buck lets go of the safety handle to fumble with his belt buckle. ----- Buck knows he's the jealous type. He just never thought it could affect him like this.

good things come for those who wait by ithilien22 e | 2k | oneshot

Turns out, Buck likes when Eddie makes him wait for it. (And they're embarrassingly in love about it.)

i wanna be tied tied tied to your apron strings by sybilsleaves e | 3k | oneshot

He’s chosen his attire fittingly: the light pink Kiss the Cook apron Eddie had gotten him last Christmas. And nothing else. Buck knows, okay. He doesn’t quite understand it, but he knows. Something about him in an apron turns Eddie into some kind of crazed sex fiend, desperate for Buck’s attention the way Buck usually feels desperate for his. Usually, it’s kind of a problem. Like when Buck’s trying to cook dinner at the station and Eddie keeps trying to convince him to sneak up to the roof. Or when Buck has thirty-six cupcakes to bake for the Robotics Club spring fundraiser and Eddie starts tugging at his apron strings and kissing his neck until Buck is forced to banish him from the kitchen until he can behave. or, the Apron Buck fic

honey, you're familiar by cranberrymoons e | 1k | oneshot

Seeing him like this: Buck on top of him, mile-long legs splayed out over his lap. Straddling him with his hands planted on Eddie’s shoulders, sweat shining on his face, sheets bunching up around both of them. At some point in the watching, sitting up, hand pressed low on Buck’s back to keep him held close, mesmerized.

call it fate, call it karma by sungodlou e | 6k | oneshot

He honestly can’t tell if Buck is doing it on purpose, anymore. He’s thwarted all of Eddie’s attempts at flirtation—and most of his attempts at fun—and Eddie’s eye is honestly starting to twitch; he somehow always manages to forget how quickly this type of thing goes from endearing to irritating. In the last half hour, Buck has dialled the brat factor up to about a ten, like he knows he can only get away with being this exacting for so much longer before Eddie snaps and puts him in his place a little. And Eddie is officially done resisting the urge to bend him over and do just that. or; Someone has got to get Buck away from that damn clipboard

#buddie #buddie fic #buddie fic rec #evan buckley #eddie diaz #my fic recs #redds fic recs

37 notes · View notes