writer-with-a-thousand-eyes

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

I just discovered foodtimeline.org, which is exactly what it sounds like: centuries worth of information about FOOD.  If you are writing something historical and you want a starting point for figuring out what people should be eating, this might be a good place?

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Once you care a little about lettering and fonts there’s no coming back

(Top to bottom fonts are: anime ace, back issues, minceraft regular, white rabbit, vcr osd mono, and determination snas

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Dumbass RPG character idea:

A roguishly handsome adventurer who otherwise doesn't seem to much care for maintaining his rugged good looks, but is comically particular of his iconic ridiculous hat, which he never takes off. Like, ever. He sleeps with the hat tilted over his eyes, won't remove it indoors even at a dining table, bathes while wearing it. Nobody wants to know how the hell he washes his hair. Telling him to remove the hat is an absolute dealbreaker - if any place demands that he removes the hat before stepping inside, he'll rather wait outside by the door while the rest of the party does their business inside. It's obnoxious but what are you gonna do.

Then, when trapped in a situation where the party must either sacrifice one of its members or all will die, the guy volunteers, on one condition: the party must take his precious hat, and give it to someone worthy. Ideally someone spectacularly handsome who will look good in it, but he'd rather have anyone at all wear it, than nobody at all. Nobody in the party, though - none of them are allowed to wear his hat. Baffled but grateful, the party agrees to his conditions.

Some time later, once the rest of the party has escaped, they slap the hat on the first person they encounter and deem sufficiently fitting. The person freezes in shock, blinks twice, and suddenly shifts their stance to a familiar posture, sighing "oh thank the gods, you actually fucking did it", in a new voice but a familiar style and intonation. The character was never The Guy, it's a demon bound to the hat, who possesses whoever is wearing the garment.

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Unreliable narrators are one hell of an idea. You can just write whatever, and if a reader points out "hey the way this scene happened should not be physically possible if it's done the way this character described it", you can just be like "yeah I don't trust that fucker either."

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Hello, I'm rewatching LotR and I was wondering what phrases would one say to flirt in the dwarf language with Men?

Something like...

"I would share the last piece of my bread with you"

"All my stones/metal are yours to hold"

...Maybe?

If this would pass as a flirt line, how would it be like translated?

Thank you and sorry to bother you!

Well met!

Ah, a delightful question — and certainly not a bother at all. On the contrary, it’s one of those charming topics that allow us to explore both the language and the culture of the Dwarves.

Let's dive in. Firstly though...

🪓 Would Dwarves Flirt the Same Way?

The short answer: not quite. Dwarves are famously private and reserved folk, especially when it comes to matters of the heart. Flirtation, as we might know it among Hobbits, Men or even Elves — with flowery compliments and bold declarations — is unlikely to be common in Dwarvish culture.

If we look at Tolkien’s inspirations for the Dwarves (namely Old Norse and Hebraic cultures), we find that expressions of affection are often subtle, practical, and rooted in acts of service or shared prosperity, rather than open praise of beauty or lofty romantic declarations.

A beautiful real-world example comes from an Old Swedish runic inscription on the stone found at the estate of Hassmyra, in Fläckebo parish, Västmanland, raised in memory of a man’s deceased wife. Part of the inscription reads:

“Never will come to Hasvimyra a better mistress to manage the house.”

It is an expression of love and respect, not through flowery praise of appearance, but through admiration of skill, shared labour, and the life they built together. Such heartfelt and practical sentiments feel very Dwarvish indeed.

Similarly, in Hebraic tradition, the concept of Yichud encapsulates this beautifully. Yichud — meaning “together, alone, with no one else present” — refers to the privacy and sanctity of the bond between two people. In fact, "Ahavah," the more common Hebrew term for love, is often used in the Torah to refer not to romantic affection, but to friendship, loyalty, and familial devotion. Even David, in mourning Jonathan, said:

“Wonderful was thy love for me, passing the love of women.” (II Samuel 1:26)

In both these cultures, we see love expressed not in boastful declarations, but in quiet moments of unity, shared burdens, and loyal companionship. And if love is customarily expressed this way, why should flirting be any different?

A Dwarf, rather than saying “Your eyes are like stars”, might say:

“Your work shines bright in my hall.”

Or, as you so well suggested:

“I would share my last bread with you.”

Such gestures, grounded in generosity, loyalty, and the sharing of crafted goods or hard-earned wealth, feel far more natural to a Dwarven suitor.

🧝‍♀️ A Note on Dwarf-Non-Dwarf Relations

Now, this deserves a special mention.

While The Hobbit films openly flirted with the idea of Dwarf-Elf romance, this would be extremely unlikely within Tolkien's Middle Earth and the Dwarvish culture. Dwarves are deeply insular and loyal to their own kind — they would not look outside their kin to find their partner.

Two important points on this:

Dwarves would not naturally find non-Dwarves attractive. Their standards of beauty are very much rooted in their own culture — resilience, craftsmanship, endurance, and the beauty of their own people. Not to mention the lack of beards in many other races would be a major issue.

Cultural taboos would strongly discourage cross-species unions. The notion of a Dwarf marrying an Elf or a Man would be not only rare but almost unthinkable, and very likely not be accepted culturally.

Gimli’s famous admiration for Galadriel is often cited as a counterexample. But this deserves closer inspection.

Rather than romantic love, Gimli’s reverence mirrors something quite different — an almost sacred admiration, akin to the veneration of saints. Tolkien, a devout Catholic, infused his work with reflections of his faith. Galadriel, in many ways, is constructed as a saintly figure: her beauty, power, and grace possess unmistakably Marian qualities.

Tolkien scholars have observed this parallel too. Though Galadriel is not an exact replica of the Virgin Mary in Middle-earth, she embodies elements of saintliness and purity, especially in Tolkien’s later writings. In Letter 353, Tolkien even acknowledges how some readers, like his proofreader Father Robert Murray, S.J., perceived Galadriel in these terms — and this perception may well have shaped Tolkien’s evolving depiction of her. Initially seen as a flawed, repentant character who fell into pride at the Kinslaying, Tolkien later elevated Galadriel to an almost unstained figure: a guiding light for others, not unlike the role of Mary in Christian tradition.

In this way, Tolkien crafts Galadriel’s image to inspire reverence, not romantic desire. Thus, Gimli’s feelings toward Galadriel are not of worldly love, but of deep respect, awe, and devotion to an ideal of beauty and wisdom. His gift-request — “a single strand of her hair” — is not the plea of a suitor, but rather, the respectful homage of a craftsman to a paragon of light. It is admiration, not courtship.

In short: a Dwarf may admire the skill or grace of another race, but when it comes to lifelong partnership, their loyalty and affection remain firmly within their own halls.

🧱 Some Dwarvish Flirtation Lines

That said, within their own circles, here’s a small collection of lines a Dwarf might use to express interest (in the below examples, directed at a female individual) — short, sincere, and true to their culture:

Zâskhari yazi karfu hamdê nutut. (“I would share the last piece of my bread with you.”)

Sullu 'abbanê ra ritîhê tâtîn azi d' akhlut. (“All my stones and metals are yours to hold.”)

Zasamkhihiya gâra 'unsasul undu markhê. (“You’d find no safer shelter than beneath my shield.”)

Ni zinanîn, zâthrigi rathkh-kheledulkhud khamazi. (“In the dark places, I would carry a lantern for you.”)

Sâti azafr sanzigil: hudukh ra binhulk. (“You are like mithril: rare and without equal.”)

💡 A Cultural Note: Actions Over Words

It’s also worth noting that for Dwarves, actions often speak louder than words. While such phrases certainly would exist, a Dwarf might more likely show affection by:

Gifting a finely crafted token (even a simple one, like a clasp or brooch)

Offering aid in tasks or protection

Forging something by their own hand specifically for the person they care about

The spoken word is secondary to deeds — but still, a well-placed compliment never hurts!

Ever at your service (and happily the scholar, not the suitor), The Dwarrow Scholar

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

I came up with this three-way table to help me (and now you, if you want) to rate things out of 5 stars. I was thinking of books and films when I made it, but you can probably use it for other stuff.

The idea is that you rate the thing on how much stuff you loved and how much stuff you hated, and those things weight against each other. There's only one way to get 5 stars or 1 star, so those should end up as the rarest ratings, wtih 3 stars being the most common.

'Spicy' means that the thing inspires emotion, whether positive or negative, while 'bland' means it doesn't affect you much either way.

An example of a 3-star (spicy) - for me personally - would be the Twilight series, because there's plenty of garbage in there but also some things that are like crack to me. I can't think of an example of a 3 star (bland) because by nature they don't stick in the mind.

(This also assumes giving 0 stars isn't allowed. That'd throw it out of whack...)

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Chaka Khan for Soul Magazine, 1977.

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Living mirrors illuminate the water 🪩

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

This is badass: Medieval Nubian Fashion Brought to Life. Click through to the link because there’s more replica clothing and it is all stunning!

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

That specific sickly, weird, mottled green color that appears when two mirrors are reflecting each other into infinity is so fucking beautiful… I love you weird nasty green of the aether….

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

i love writing porn and i wont feel bad about it. understanding the eroticism of a character is character analysis if u are enlightened.

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

"If you use em dash in your works, it makes them look AI generated. No real human uses em dash."

Imaging thinking actual human writers are Not Real because they use... professional writing in their works.

Imagine thinking millions of people who have been using em dash way before AI becomes a thing are all robots.

REBLOG IF YOU'RE A HUMAN AND YOU USE EM DASH

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

fanfic writing culture isn’t “oh dang! I wanted to write about this prompt with this character but someone else already wrote it, so now I can’t”.

fanfic writing culture is always “two cakes is better than one. the more the merrier. there can ever be enough fics of this character with this prompt!”

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

Was looking for a book today when I saw these various animal books all on the same shelf and noticed their titles made a nice little impromptu poem about veterinary medicine

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

[writer-with-a-thousand-eyes]

"You survive this and in some terrible way, which I suppose no one can ever describe, you are compelled, you are corralled, you are bullwhipped into dealing with whatever it is that hurt you. And what is crucial here is that if it hurt you, that is not what’s important. Everybody’s hurt. What is important, what corrals you, what bullwhips you, what drives you, torments you, is that you must find some way of using this to connect you with everyone else alive. This is all you have to do it with. You must understand that your pain is trivial except insofar as you can use it to connect with other people’s pain; and insofar as you can do that with your pain, you can be released from it, and then hopefully it works the other way around too; insofar as I can tell you what it is to suffer, perhaps I can help you to suffer less."

- James Baldwin, The Artist's Struggle for Integrity