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Hey JSTOR!

Do you have any interesting articles about mobile libraries in the Great Depression? I’ve been looking for a while

If you have JSTOR access, you can read "The Book Women of Kentucky: The WPA Pack Horse Library Project, 1936-1943" by Donald C. Boyd, which discusses the New Deal-era program that "deliver[ed] books and other reading materials to remote mountain schools and residences"!

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My cat loves books (as pillows)

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After reading Gone Girl recently, I’ve been thinking a lot about unlikable narrators and why I either love them or absolutely despise them (there is truly no in between). I think it really comes down to author’s intent; if the author wants the reader to like or root for the narrator but the narrator is insufferable, the whole book is probably going to irritate me. However, if the author makes the narrator awful on purpose, that usually makes for a fun read.

One example of “accidentally unlikable” to me is Blue Sisters by Coco Mellors (I’m so sorry if you love her books—they are just NOT for me). The reader is clearly supposed to feel sympathy for the main characters because of their circumstances, but it was very difficult to empathize with them when they treat people poorly for no reason and do not show substantial growth by the end of the book.

As for “intentionally unlikable,” there is, of course, Gone Girl, but my favorite example of this is My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh. That narrator is THE WORST, but I love to hate her.

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I am literally fucking BEGGING people to stop saying "ax oh lot uhl." That is absolutely the WRONG way to pronounce that word.

I know the song about the axolotl on the stairs is very cute, but it is teaching kids how to pronounce a Nahuatl word VERY VERY WRONG. Can we all please spend like 30 seconds watching this very nice person show y'all how to say it right? Please?

(Yeah, I used to say it wrong too, and then a friend was kind enough to correct me on the way the word is pronounced in their ancestral language and so now every time I hear it wrong it's like nails on a chalkboard & makes me embarrassed.)

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Meanwhile, over on twitter...

Joe Abercrombie has added 'Customer Service Pro' to his CV, as he keeps getting accidentally tagged in people complaining about the service from Abercrombie & Fitch, a company to which he is entirely unrelated.

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shoutout to those moments when you're writing and not only can you get the words out of your head, but you can get yourself out of your head too.

I love it when the story itself is so clear in my mind that the specific words I'm using to tell it don't matter half as much as just getting the story out and sharing it with someone. When I can turn off the parts of my brain that worry it'll be bad or obsess over finding exactly the right word, and I can just allow myself to get it close enough instead of forcing it to be perfect.

honestly, I think that's half the reason why I write directly into the AO3 form (I know, I know). Doing that forces me to just keep going and get the chapter done instead of futzing with it or worrying forever. It also keeps me from being too precious about my own writing because I know that if AO3 goes down while I'm writing that chapter, I'll have to start all over.

I know that method doesn't work for everyone, but it makes the whole process more alive for me. It makes me decide things faster, edit things less, and relax about the fact that there will indeed be typos.

it's a unique kind of rush, and I always miss it when it's not around. I've posted more than one fic just because I wanted to feel it again.

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not allowed to say Harry Potter, but what was your book series obsession as a teen

mine was definitely Eragon

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Brandon Sanderson's Writing Lecture (2025)

Just a reminder, Brandon Sanderson uploads the new lectures from his creative writing college course to youtube.

Free college level education, especially for fantasy and science fiction writers. Do not miss out on this!

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Write for yourself first. Write what you like and be in love with what you create. Readers who will love it as well will just follow naturally.

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Bazende mutluluk.. evden çıktığın gibi,geri gelmektir. Yani yolda giderken, birine çamur atmamış, birini incitmemiş, birinin kalbini kırmamış olmaktır...💙

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Hey hey, as a librarian, can I just say don’t pace yourself at the library. I get a lot of customers saying “oh I shouldn’t get too many books out at once” but like you should!!!! Max out your card, take everything we have on a subject you’re interested in, make a book fort in your home. We love that shit! It doesn’t matter if you read them or not; just take them for an adventure and bring them back whenever they’re due!

For public libraries, one of the ways we secure funding year to year is lending. Governments don’t want to fund more books if they’re not being used and the way we measure use is by issues. Regardless of whether you read it or not, whether you have it for a day or a month, if you issue it to your library card, we get the stats! It makes the library look good!

Help your local library; get books out even if you know you can’t read them all!

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Pondering my orbs.

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Leonid Pasternak  (Ukrainian, 1862–1945) - The Torments of Creative Work

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Writing sometimes feels like a strange disorder you just kind of cope with by being creative. Like your brain randomly decides to dump a million-piece puzzle in front of you and says, 'Solve this or we will never think of anything else, ever.' You toil away for years and by some miracle you solve it, and it's the most fulfilling, exhilarating feeling in the world. It's perfect. You did it. And your brain is like, 'OK, here's my idea for three sequels and a spinoff.'

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Ros recording The Shadow Rising on audiobook 💙

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"Yet the classical appearance of the Latin alphabet did not emerge fully formed. Rather, it developed in gradual stages, links in a chain of alphabetic acquisition and adapation that connected Roman writing back to Egypt."