#literature convention

[blackswaneuroparedux]

If you haven’t the strength to impose your own terms upon life, then you must accept the terms it offers you.

- T.S. Eliot

[worldwithinworld]

One of the things I love most about Cassius and Lyria's relationship in Light Bringer is how, yes, Cassius is protective of Lyria because she is younger and smaller and Cassius just can't help being a big brother, but Lyria is just as protective of him. Because she's a protector too. They are the same in that way.

[verona-honey]

Your books are stacked under the bedside table, belts loops over the floors in coiling snakes of leather, metal buckles clinking underfoot as I pad to the closet.

There’s a lingering breath of your cologne hanging in the air, dissipating as transcendently as incense smoke.

The ache I feel, looking at the strewn clothes and papers littering the carpet, deepens, loneliness cloying at the pit of me. Your side of the bed grows cold. I wait for you.

[adrasteiax]

(...) 'Do you dream of me?' you said. My heart was dust that used to leap To you; (...)

Christina Rossetti, from The Convent Threshold in “The Complete Poems Of Christina Rossetti”

[howifeltabouthim]

I knew I would never be able to tell anyone . . . Nobody wants to hear about great suffering or anarchic decisions. They think it's an offense against their ears, their lives.

Lisa Taddeo, from Animal

[phenakistoskope]

every day i consider converting to christianity in order to meaningfully commit apostasy.

[curiousorigins]

Scary Story Question.

(Please tag or comment where the creepy thing happens and if that matches your regional building standard. Basements, Attics, or Both. Their commonness and whether or not creepy thing happens there. I guess if neither is common in your area, whether it's the crawl space under your house or porch.)

[anglerflsh]

What were the specifics of these social mind games which you used to avoid paying for food ?

it's not even social mind games I just get lunch paid in exchange of unofficial tutoring (which half the time means I talk to people about like. Descartes or Dante's Inferno)

[avaantares]

Hey, fellow Scarlet Pimpernel fans~

I'm putting together some new seminars for this year's con circuit, and one of them is going to be about the history of the Scarlet Pimpernel (because somehow, despite being a SP fan and collector for over a quarter century, I haven't done one yet). It's only slated for an hour at this point, so I'm doing a high-level overview of Baroness Orczy and her upbringing (and how that influenced the story), the publication saga, the play, the sequels, literary influence of the novel, the lawsuit over production rights, and a highlights reel of the various stage, TV, and film adaptations.

What I'd like to know from other fans is any of the following:

What would you REALLY like to see included in a talk about the Scarlet Pimpernel franchise?

What do you love about the book(s)? What do you feel makes it a compelling or relevant story for modern readers?

What are your favorite trivia items about the books, films, plays, or anything else related?

Do you have any rare memorabilia, interesting book covers, or story illustrations you'd like to share pictures of? (My personal collection is weighted heavily toward early-1900s theatre, plus a lot of Broadway musical, but I'd love to see what other people have!)

Are there any resources you think I MUST check out for additional background on this topic?

Anything at all is helpful, even if it's just a fun fact or a photo to put up on the screen during the lecture. (If you share photos with me, I'll assume you're okay with me using them in a slide deck. If you'd like onscreen credit for the picture, please let me know what name you'd like displayed!)

Thanks in advance!

.

Also -- I'm DYING to find a more complete copy of the 1960 TV production with William Shatner, which AFAIK exists only in a 16mm kinescope, unless someone's digitized it and I missed it. Does anyone have a lead?

[atlantic-riona]

"it's not realistic—" do you think I am reading the genre named "fantasy" for how accurate it is to real life

[blackswaneuroparedux]

We die to each other daily. What we know of other people is only our memory of the moments during which we knew them. And they have changed since then. To pretend that they and we are the same is a useful and convenient social convention which must sometimes be broken. We must also remember that at every meeting we are meeting a stranger.

- T.S. Eliot, The Cocktail Party

[usergreenpixel]

JACOBIN FICTION CONVENTION MEETING 30: CLISSON ET EUGÉNIE (2009)

1. The Introduction

Hello, Citizens, and welcome back to Jacobin Fiction Convention! So, today’s the day we get a rather unexpected author on the scaffold in the spotlight - Napoleon Bonaparte himself! Yes, THAT Napoleon, so you can bet that this is a bit of a unique book.

Turns out in his youth the guy wanted to be an author and wrote the short story we’re about to dissect. Granted, it’s a story he never finished and was apparently extremely embarrassed about it later (I can relate to that), so this is the second reason why this particular review is going to be a unique one. I don’t think we ever had anything unfinished as a topic.

Anyway, you might be asking yourself how exactly I found out about Napoleon’s writing in the first place. For that I have to thank one of the Neighbors, @tairin , who first brought up his writings in conversation long ago. Luckily, the unfinished drafts were published in English in 2009, so translation is available for those who don’t know French. HOORAY!

Unfortunately, the book is a bitch to find online but a website called archive.org came to my rescue like the proverbial cavalry. You do need to make an account there but afterwards it’s possible to borrow this book for 14 days like you would do in a library and read it free of charge. That’s how I read the book, considering the fact that negative reviews of my mutuals made me unwilling to pay money for an ebook or a physical copy.

Is it that bad though? Let’s find out.

This review is dedicated to @tairin , @theravenclawrevolutionary and @michel-feuilly .

Okay, let’s begin!

2. The Summary

The book tells a tragic love story of, well, Clisson and Eugénie. So it’s a romance novel. Also, apparently, a self insert fic with Clisson standing in for Napoleon himself. I have no idea who Eugénie might be though.

People who already know my preferences might remember that romance is my least favorite genre, but I still decided to give the story a chance, so let’s talk about how that decision turned out.

3. The Story

Honestly, it has a lot of romance clichés so the story just wasn’t for me. I didn’t detest it or anything, but I didn’t like it either.

I did, however, appreciate the beginning which shows us Clisson as a talented soldier who is tired of combat and looking for something else in life. It made the narrative just a tad more relatable, in my opinion.

Another point in favor of the story is the fact that Clisson and Eugénie don’t fall in love at first sight and the story takes time for them to develop proper chemistry. I’m not the biggest fan of the “love at first sight” trope so yay for avoiding it!

As for the ending… a bit depressing and anticlimactic but, as someone battling depression, I could relate to Clisson as I had moments where I was close to the headspace he has in the ending. Funny how depression has changed my opinion on some melodramatic moments in media…

4. The Characters

The characters are a bit flat, but not as much as in works of some beginner authors. Since it’s a short story, I’ll only focus on the main characters.

I honestly expected Clisson to be more of a Gary Stu, but I didn’t really get those vibes and could even relate to him towards the end. He has a more gentle, vulnerable side that few people get to see and, at the end of the day, simply craves love and happiness. He is more than just a hero obsessed with war.

Eugénie… I don’t like her and don’t care about her reasoning. I don’t like cheaters. End of story. But I like the fact that she fucked up this way and we didn’t get a blameless perfect love interest. She’s more than that.

Trust me, my first attempts at creating characters were much worse than what we have here.

5. The Setting

I liked some descriptions in the book and, for a short story, Napoleon managed to create settings in a way that’s not bad. Not excellent, but not bad either.

6. The Writing

Personally I don’t really like the writing style, but I tend to have that problem with many works of the past. There’s just too much purple prose for me, but I know that some people appreciate it so hey, you do you.

7. The Conclusion

Overall, maybe I just had really low expectations but… I didn’t hate the story, nor did I like it. Romance genre is just not for me and I’m the absolute last person who should review romance novels.

I went in fully expecting to hate the story, but I don’t. Maybe I just have more patience for beginner authors, maybe I’m just in a good mood. Either way, I can’t quite recommend the book, but I still think it’s an interesting read, if only to get a glimpse into a facet of Napoleon that isn’t talked about much.

On that note, let us finish today’s meeting. Stay tuned for updates, Citizens!

Love,

Citizen Green Pixel

[queer-ragnelle]

If shallow readings of medieval text has a million haters I am one of them. If shallow readings of medieval text has ten haters I am one of them. If shallow readings of medieval text has one hater then that is me. If shallow readings of medieval text have no haters then I am dead. If the world condones shallow readings of medieval text then I am against the world.

[jeanmoreaux]

"fanfiction doesn't count as literature" elaborate

i am not sure what even to elaborate on this bc it seems pretty self-evident to me. fanfiction is not literature—fanfiction is fanfiction. literature and fanfiction are both pieces of writing, yes, but authorial and narrative intent, form, style, and conventions are completely different (and that's just on a textual level... i mean if you look at it on a meta-level and considering things like accessibility and publication conventions there are even more differences). they scratch different itches and serve different needs. like, you wouldn't call a letter i write to a friend "literature" either, even though it's a piece of narrative writing.

you can find examples of good and bad—and, let's be real, most often mediocre—writing in both literature and fanfiction. neither one is inherently better or worse than the other. i also think it would do a great disservice to fanfiction to count it it as a traditional genre, since it has its own history that is mostly separate from traditional literature (and traditional literary genres). fanfiction also encompasses so many subgenres that it wouldn't make sense to just throw it all into one genre of literature.

but also, like, you don't need the approval of a stranger on the internet to call fanfiction literature. if that's what you wanna do then go for it. we can have different opinions on the topic and it be okay. you do you—it's literally not that deep.

[thesapphocinephile]

Are there any classic stories when read through a modern lens you disagree with?

[howifeltabouthim]

Until that time her life had been one dry and dusty road.

Chris Kraus, from I Love Dick