#literary impact

[joncronshawauthor]

The Impact of The Prince of Thorns on Fantasy Literature

When Mark Lawrence unleashed “The Prince of Thorns” upon the unsuspecting world, it was like dropping a ravenous wolf into a pen of fluffy sheep. Fantasy literature would never be the same. In a genre often adorned with noble quests and honourable heroes, Lawrence’s grimdark tale stormed in with blood, vengeance, and a protagonist who makes Joffrey Baratheon look like a choirboy. Let’s take a…

[mylittleredgirl]

even if you're not a supernatural fan, if you've been on tumblr long enough you are, like, culturally. like cultural christianity in america except it's the cw's supernatural. you may never have watched an episode or set foot inside the tag but your regular life shuts down on their holidays and all of your world news is delivered through that point of view. something to think about

[lnk-and-lnspiration]

The Power of Diverse Voices in Literature: Why It Matters

As storytellers, we are constantly striving to create engaging and impactful stories that resonate with readers. We pour our hearts and souls into crafting well-rounded characters, compelling plotlines, and thought-provoking themes. But have you ever stopped to think about the importance of diverse voices in literature? In today’s world, where diversity and representation are crucial topics of…

[valiancenodel]

Now, I've seen some people angry about Tartaglia's role in the 4.X Archon Quest, and I think that the problem is that we misunderstood the role itself. I think it is completely normal because our last real interaction with him was in his Character Quest where he is the main character. So we expected him to be a character in this one too. But he wasn't a character.

He was the MacGuffin.

Tartaglia is there as a plot device. He needs to be the "item" that the Traveler follows to unravel all the secrets around the profecy. He needs to be condemened in trial in 4.0 for two reasons: 1) to show that Furina doesn't have control over anything, thus giving us the first clues of what she really is, and 2) to give a reason for the Traveler to go to Fortress Meropide, setting the stage for the next act.

In 4.1 he needs to "disappear", so to speak. It is a way to introduce you to the final boss and give you the idea of how massive and dangerous this creature is, but also allows Arlecchino to take the stage as someone comfronting Furina's authority. All the actions of the characters are revolving around Childe even if Childe isn't even there.

When it comes to 4.2, the only reason he is there is for you to meet his master, Skirk. Once this is done, his usefullness as a MacGuffin is over, and thus he gets yeeted.

Now, I would argue that it would have been better to just leave him there so the Traveler could bring him with them, but I suppose that someone with such a out-of-the-world morality as Skirk would just deal with him that way.

But that's it. He was not a character in this Archon Quest. He was MOTIVATION.

(On the other hand, I would also argue that there are very few characters that could have acted as the McGuffin as good as he did)

[phoenix-is-the-hottest-thing]

Some people need to understand queer coding opens character identities and relationships up to a solid queer interpretation, but that doesn’t equal “this character 100% fits my headcanon and if you disagree you’re a [REDACTED]”

From a literary analysis perspective, as long as your interpretation is reasonably evidence-based it’s valid. As this is fandom, I’d add “sincere” to that since unlike an academic setting we get bad faith actors but that’s it.

So, to have a valid “interpretation” you have to do the work in good faith, and you have to be able point at the text to support your interpretation. If you can’t, or don’t want to, that’s a headcanon, and it’s totally fine.

“But this character is a lesbian she likes a girl!” There’s more to queerness than straight and gay. You could reasonably interpret a girl who likes another girl as plenty of different things:

Lesbian

Bi

Ace/aro and something else

Straight and closeted trans

Straight and lover is closeted trans

And so on.

So when you have an interpretation, someone might tell you, “I think this other thing.” The polite way to handle this if you don’t like it is to say “that’s so cool we can see different things in the ambiguity of art”. Maybe blocking each other if you dislike their interpretation that much.

That’s of course unless you both want a debate to further refine your understanding of the text or just like to argue or whatever. Which is fine! As long as it’s not overly bitter or whatever, it’s fun to discuss.

“So how do I know which interpretation is more canon than another?”

See, that’s the thing, you can’t. Canon is kind of shaky in the first place. The canon is just what’s written that’s recognized as true/correct text, not the way to understand it (and not what the author says is true, some people take Word of God as canon because it allows the following of one concrete interpretation instead of acknowledging multiple, but strictly speaking it is not). You can only interpret the canon.

For example, 4-komas bonuses of serialized manga are usually non-canon because they are jokes and not meant to be taken seriously as a part of the story’s text. That’s what canon actually is for, originally it’s to talk about which books are genuinely part of the Bible and which are to be deemed offshoots that shouldn’t be taken as a Catholic Church-endorsed religious text.

I guess that’s what gets people confused? That there’s no actual truth to imagined worlds, only what happens in the eyes of the beholder when they interact with art?

Because that’s what it means, canon often has nothing to do with who’s “actually a lesbian” short of them saying it directly. An onscreen wedding is said to “make a couple canon” precisely because there’s only so many ways you can interpret a wedding, but all that means is that the text says they’re together at a point in time. One way I can think of having a canon sexuality would be a canonical character sheet, or an omniscient narrator saying so, but everything less is basically an interpretation.

Note that interpretation obviousness can go from “that’s a stretch but I like it”, to “you only need eyes to see it”, they’re both still interpreting. Even a character talking sexuality technically only makes canon that they’re willing to say so, but that’s when critical thinking comes in.

If you hear a character say “I’m a married lesbian” and think “they’re just confused” with no evidence, you look like an idiot. You absolutely can argue which interpretation is more valid or likely by pointing out inconsistencies, stretched evidence, or that one interpretation has a higher volume of evidence/etc. This is how you avoid relativism and “nothing the text says matters” trolls.

Occam’s Razor is another way you might be tempted to try and determine whose thesis is stronger. This technique works through figuring out which interpretation requires the least amount of assumptions (saying something arbitrary is true as a basis) but it doesn’t make anything canon, or more interesting, it’s not a concrete sign of superiority. Just means it has stronger fondations.

However… your interpretation being stronger, more popular, better worded etc. or you thinking someone else’s is immoral, stupid, etc. doesn’t give you license to be a bully, to call people names, to dox them, dig up dirt to make them look worse, and so on and so forth. Thinking you’re right and they’re wrong does not make you above basic respect, politeness, or consequences. You’re not better than everyone else.

As a child, I used to think I was always right because I was logical, and I clearly made logical sense so there was no way for there to be a logical reasoning that arrived at a different conclusion. (Newsflash: Child me was very wrong! Sometimes multiple things can be equally valid! And even if they were not equal, that didn’t give me license to deride people publicly!)

Queer coding is by its nature interpretative. Coding is the author leaving hints about their characters by using a “code”. Some hints, almost everyone in your section of fandom might have the exact same interpretation about. Some hints might be dead obvious. Some hints might leave you overjoyed. Some hints you might ignore because they make you uncomfortable.

Some people will disagree with you about how they interpret the coding, or might even just state that they believe people have a right to interpret the canon however they want, even in ways you don’t like. That is normal. That is not a threat to your interpretation.

Don’t be a petty cunt about it.

Essentially,

[cometrose]

how do you feel about the eyes being a window to the soul and Zhongli's eyes not being shown in flashback?

oh now we are getting into videogame analysis.

The first it could represent his "unchanging expression" during the Archon War. It is was rumored that during the war, Morax did not show emotion and was rather "cold and unfeeling" and his judgements were "rational and dispassionate". He wore an emotionless mask and his stone-cold expression did not change until the war ended and not seeing his eyes is a simple representation of Morax's behavior. There are no eyes, because there is no emotion, there is barely a face (he is blank as stone) so its just very clever visual symbolism.

On the other hand, it could suggest there is more to Zhongli than meets the eye. As you said eyes are windows to the soul, and from a narrative point eye symbolism is powerful tool in literature. The most common usage for eye symbolism is to represent wisdom, knowledge, truth, perception or control.

Not seeing Zhongli's eyes means there is something the writer's are deliberately hiding. It could mean his true nature, has not been revealed to us. It doesn't necessarily means his physical eyes have changed but rather the Morax of the past presented himself differently than the Morax of today.

Zhongli's true origins are unknown we have no idea where he came from, what he truly is and the truth of many of his contracts (the tsaritsa, celestia, khaenriah just to name a few). We have known Zhongli for so long, but do we actually know anything about him? Not seeing Zhongli's eyes means there is even more to his identity that has not been revealed to the traveler. His true soul, identity, or purpose have not been revealed, we have not seen him for all that he is.

I have my own theories about Zhongli's true origin (why is the third act of liyue archon quest a new star approaches hmmmm) but if you look through some of the Liyue books or character stories you will notice there is a lot of mention about Zhongli's eyes.

In Rex Incognito, Rex Lapis' disguises as a woman with "eyes shone a brilliant amber" or a rugged worker with "eyes shone like amber from the mountain mines in the light of the setting sun" and a noble young man with "his golden eyes smiling."

In Moonlit Bamboo Forest, the main character meets a woman that "didn't appear to be an adeptus, apart from the piercing gaze of her golden eyes."

Even Tubby, you know the teapot adeptus that takes care of your teapot? In the story quest for the teapot she mentions a "golden-eyed adeptus" explained the limits of adeptal power in teapot to her. First of all Ping mentions in part I of the same quest that Rex Lapis blessed the adepti with "illumination" that allows them perform sub-space creation and form teapots. So the adeptus is clearly him.

In the description for the Euphonium Unbound: Winding, the teapot furnishing that allows you to play music "According to Tubby, a certain adepti with black hair and golden eyes wanted to temporarily change the melody echoing in the Realm Within to match the aesthetic of the tea on the table when he was having a small gathering with his friends in the Realm Within."

These are just the descriptions I can remember off the top of my head. Like many characters have gold eyes but Zhongli alone has so many many references to his eyes. Whenever genshin wants to describe Zhongli without saying his name they just say a person with "golden/amber eyes". Hell there was literally some Millelith soldier that knew Rex Lapis wasn't dead because he saw some guy with golden eyes walk past him.

Like really long story short. Eye symbolism is super important to Zhongli and a key part of his characterization. It is clear that no matter what form he takes it seems his eyes stay the same. Which is super interesting for shapeshifter characters. Shapeshifters usually change everything about themselves unless it very important to them so for Zhongli to hold onto a part of himself could suggest so many things. It could also just be a limitation of his transformation.

ANYWAY to hide Zhongli's eyes in his flashbacks even though we have seen the eyes of all the other archons and then to make his signature description his "golden eyes" is so interesting. Why make his signature feature his eyes then not show us his eyes!! What is the reason!

And again the first answer isn't exclusive at the same time, because his eyes are so important Zhongli not showing his eyes in flashbacks could mean that back then he was hiding a part of himself. Now that he is free from the title of Rex Lapis he can show his eyes freely without care, he is free from the contract of protecting humanity he doesn't have to wear an emotionless mask anymore so his beautiful eyes are on display.

Though interestingly in his museum collaboration we got to see Morax's eyes and in his archon outfit and all. However that could've taken place after the war and is also a fun little collab so like *shrugs shoulder* who knows!

[morverenmaybewrites]

A Crown of Bone Preview

Pairing: Changeling! Reader x Fae Lord! Zhongli

Imagine being a changeling child and living your life in quiet yearning. 

It is a life of hollow hunger and a longing for something you cannot quite name. 

You had been found in the dead of winter, or so your mother tells you, a half-fey child abandoned in a snowbank. She has told you this story many times before. Sometimes in fond reminiscence, more often in hushed whispers, her eyes fearful and haunted as she recalled your unnatural stillness, the way the snowflakes that landed on your skin did not melt, 

You don’t answer whenever she tells these stories; she is already frightened enough. You do not tell her that while you had been found during winter, your first memories were of spring. 

Except it is not the spring of Snezhnaya, where you had been raised. It is not the cold sun, finally rising after months of not showing its face. Nor is it the first tentative buds of snowdrops, pushing their way up from the melting snow.

The spring you remember is brilliant, bursting with vivid color. You remember walking underneath trees whose leaves were the color of fire, you remember the taste of wine against your tongue. 

And sometimes, in those odd moments between dreaming and waking, you would remember seeing the gold of someone’s eyes and the curve of black, gleaming bone. 

You do not mention this to your mother, who is already half-afraid of you. Nor to your father, who gazes at you with a resigned sort of acceptance. 

Instead, you keep it to yourself, tucked away against the curve of your ribs, right next to your slow-beating heart. A secret that is half-yearning and half-memory: someone had left you there in that snowbank, and there are days that you think that they did not do so willingly. 

[anghraine]

Aww, Ash admitted to me when we were discussing Star Wars opinions that she's not only thought about these things before, she's actually really feeling like using her advanced creative writing degree to write ...................... fanfiction, and has actually done so in the past.

me, shoving my 67 SW fanfics on AO3 under the bed: Oh hey, awesome! That sounds really interesting.

[cpcposting]

Probably one of my fave things about CPC is the fact that Gwen genuinely isn’t conventionally attractive, she’s not just some girl who *gasp* wears glasses and has her hair in a ponytail or something X_X The amount of ”””ugly””” characters I’ve that seen that fall into that trope bruhhh. But as the comic goes on, like Frederick, you get used to her appearance and come to appreciate her as truly beautiful bc of who she is <3 

[kiri-instinct]

the genshin fandom doesn't just lack media literacy -- some of y'all are sincerely anti-intellectual but for a gacha game's lore.

i can say "ei's entire regime fits the definition of a fascist regime. ei is a fascist" and someone will say "oh, so you think what dottore does is okay?" as a counter-argument

no, bitch! that isn't even what i am talking about here! i do not think dottore is a good person but we'll get there when we are done discussing ei being a reactionary!

then when u finally get room to discuss that, half the responses are "u'd do the same if ur sister died" or "u just hate women"

these are not arguments! u are just claiming misogyny on my part because i am saying something you find disagreeable but have no counter-argument for!

then u finally get to dottore and they all go "oh, so we are not allowed to like villains anymore?"

THAT IS NOT WHAT I AM GETTING AT!!! PLEASE!!! GOD DAMN YOU!!!

[maharellasa]

.

[lampochkaart]

A God abandoned by her people and a puppet abandoned by his God

[oceanvuongs]

— ted chiang, exhalation

[lemonduckisnowawake]

Very Snow Queen of people to have ice associated with a cold personality/lack of emotion, isolation, solitude, rejection from the majority, perceived wickedness, a danger to love, loss and regret, and - most importantly of all - the ability to be dearly and profoundly loved and cherished and accepted in spite of AND because of anything

[phoenix-is-the-hottest-thing]

One thing I like(d) about Elysia is that she is a meme. She does outrageous, ridiculous things because she’s a comic relief, and her reactions/attitude are exaggerated to make you laugh, and everyone (used to) reacts to the comic relief tropes seriously—

(Whether you actually found it funny is a different matter.)

—and that puts her in the role of jokester while the other person in a scene will play the straight man (as in, the serious person, I’m aware there’s a shortage of straight men in hi3). Sometimes it’s Mei, sometimes it’s Mobius, sometimes it’s even Su, as long as they’re clashing with her nonsense comedy is created!

BUT on the other side of that, Elysia’s early writing shows she has deeper sides to her, too, sadness she hides and thoughtful beliefs she’ll make you earn to speak.

Comic relief characters with sadness or seriousness to them can be really fun, because the gap creates depth! …but there’s a pitfall which I think Elysia kinda falls into.

You see, either you accept she’s doing a bit (which is most likely what’s intended), but you also create a discrepancy in how you perceive her, where she has a seriousness flip switch and you forgive the rude things she does because they’re not meant to be understood as happening within a reality that would treat her actions as bad. Like a cartoon.

(Exaggeration for the sake of comedy, especially if it’s slapstick or comedic sociopathy, is nothing new; nor is the concept that the viewer is meant to understand it’s not reprehensible or serious because it’s played for laughs)

EITHER, you treat her character as consistent, and consider her comedic bits as being in the same register as her serious ones, which translates into Elysia being fucking mean and/or harassing people outright. This gives much more depth to her character, as well as flaws. Mei’s annoyance towards her in ER fits this interpretation very well, and is a big part of why Elysia was subverting Mary Sue tropes back then.

(The unfortunate thing is how we know Mihoyo sees Elysia’s flaws...)

A good example of how this gets fucked up later is the maid uniform incident with Mobius at the beginning of EE. Elysia sneaks into her colleague’s closet and adds fetishy clothing in there.

If you read this scene literally/seriously, Elysia is a creep who breaks into other people’s private spaces and messes with their stuff, in the name of her own personal amusement (it’s harassment). You could even see it as sexual harassment considering the “joke” is that the maid outfit is a kink thing. Very illegal! Very don’t do that!

BUT. The story treats it as a comedic moment. You’re meant to turn off the seriousness switch and laugh about it, because the way it’s written is “silly joke about Elysia doing outrageous things and Mobius playing the straight man”, and “haha, callback to Mobius wearing girly pink clothes”, and “it’s not Mihayou if there’s no asset re-use”.

This creates a gap of perception between the writers and the viewers. At least in EE (I think it was more split in ER, with how some comedic things had serious or lore implications) writers expect the viewer to see these scenes as comedy, Elysia isn’t doing anything BAD, she’s doing something FUNNY, just like Himeko’s naked drunk shenanigans, or every time a tsundere starts beating up their crush in anime, turn your brain off for a minute.

But! Honkai is a serious story, with complex lore and deep characters! By the time we see this scene we KNOW Elysia is a deep character who CAN be a fucking creep (see: her catching Vill-V by literally showing up inside her room to breathe down her neck). We’ve seen several scenes in ER where her outrageous behavior is responded to seriously (Mei calls out her behavior numerous times, etc.)

So we watch and take the scene in as is. The scene tells us Elysia is an outrageous person, and we expect the world of the game to respond to her as such, as the straight man, as it… honestly did in most of ER?

But it doesn’t. The writing has switched register.

Look, it’s a joke.

Look, this scene isn’t here to inform you of Elysia’s flaws, it’s to make you snicker.

Look, nobody minds her shenanigans, they’re funny, they don’t really count.

What do you mean they used to count? Look, you saw it that way.

(The characters used to react as they should.)

Look, Elysia’s perfect.

[propsugar]

v who comes up with elaborate ways to make you and xiao cum. kissing and toying with you to get you to clench on x cock, seeing if the feeling can make him lose it