lirazel: Pooh and Piglet in a snowy field, the text reads, '"Is it Yuletide yet?' asked Piglet hopefully."" ([misc] yuletide)
lirazel ([personal profile] lirazel) wrote2025-10-24 09:45 am

Dear Author Letter - Yuletide 2025

Dear author:

Hello and happy Yuletide! Thanks for choosing one of my fandoms and thanks in advance for the story! I always find that the writing is the most enjoyable, rewarding part of Yuletide and I hope you feel the same way.

details here )



The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion )

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell )

Seventy-Two Letters )


Life with Derek )

손 : The Guest (TV) )

Summers at Castle Auburn )
shadowkat: (Default)
shadowkat ([personal profile] shadowkat) wrote2025-10-22 08:22 pm
Entry tags:

News such as it is on the Buffy Reboot/Continuation:

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale

Description per IMBD: "Follows Buffy Summers as she trains a new vampire slayer, to fight the forces of evil."

Pilot: "Nova, a 16-year-old bookworm, discovers she's a vampire Slayer in a rebuilt Sunnydale. During Vampire Weekend, a festival celebrating the town's dark past, vampires Jack and Shirley plan a ritual to raise a vampire army."

Only returning cast member listed from the previous series is Buffy.

Per Variety

basically states what is stated above in less detail on plot and more on folks involved )
shadowkat: (Default)
shadowkat ([personal profile] shadowkat) wrote2025-10-22 07:39 pm
Entry tags:

Sleep deprived Wed hangs in there...

I managed to get a referral for physical therapy finally - but couldn't schedule an appointment until December 4. It's about ten-fifteen minutes (walk, train, walk) from work. So not too bad. Assuming there are no delays, in which case, I'm screwed.

After raining most of the night, it cleared by mid-morning and was a windy blustery day with bulbous white clouds latter in the day. So blustery - that I put my hood up, and I felt the wind cut through my wind breaker during my walk at lunch time along the pier.



It's cool in the apartment tonight, around 68. Which means the wind and chill have carried into evening. And the chill and damp may be aggravating the arthritis in the spine and knees. I don't know.

Because of where I work - I get more on the political front than most? For example? There's a huge Freight Rail Merger - which the Doofus was fond of supporting, but now all the manufacturers, specifically the chemically manufacturers, have pleaded with him not to support it - because it will create a monopoly in regards to rail transportation - and raise their costs.

My brother went to a No Kings Demonstration in upstate NY over the weekend, and informed mother that most of the protesters were Baby Boomers, the one's she saw seemed much younger. He also keeps seeing Sam Waterson (Law and Order, among others) in passing. I wouldn't have recognized him. If I see someone out of context, and don't interact with them daily - I have no idea who they are. I barely recognized a minister at my church on the subway.

Mememage

17. Have you ever bought something via the Internet and regretted it?

Yes, more times than I care to think about. Usually bags or clothing, also knitting supplies. I keep thinking I can knit, and keep forgetting you kind have to be able to count in order to knit, and I can't count without skipping over numbers. Also I suck at threading needles.

18. The definition of an antique is something that is 100 years old – do you own anything that old?

No. At least I don't think so? No.

19. Are you wearing any finger rings today?

No. I don't wear jewelry. No rings, no necklaces, not even earrings any longer. The appeal of rings is completely lost on me? They get in my way and having anything on my fingers irritates me. Good thing I don't have to wear them.

20. When was the last time it rained where you live? Has it been drier than normal for this time of year?

Last night. Not really, although we've had dry spells this year. And it threatens drought, but then it rains. I live on islands? And we just had a Nor'Easter.

21. Do you own a wine rack? What do you keep in it?

No. I no longer drink alcohol and I have no space for it.

22. What size is the smallest decorative ornament in your home?

I have no idea. I can't measure to save my life. If I had to guess? An inch? I got a wooden Russian shell doll from Moscow Mentee some time ago, and it has a tiny little doll, and I think that's the smallest. So whatever size that is?
ffutures: (Default)
ffutures ([personal profile] ffutures) wrote2025-10-22 06:20 pm
Entry tags:

Another Repeat Horror/Fantasy Bundle - Nightmares Underneath

This is a repeat of a bundle previously offered in August 2023, featuring "Chthonstone Games horror-fantasy RPG of dungeon incursions from the Realm of Nightmares." which I then described as follows: '...another "old school" fantasy offer in which the idea is to face the adventurers with deadly nightmares, which might be considered 'Monsters from the Id' except that they are real for game purposes and dangerous. But hey, you can kill them and loot their stuff, so maybe it isn't all bad...'

 

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/25Nightmares

  

Last time I went on to say "I'm REALLY not the target audience for this one, I think. I've pretty much given up on straight fantasy RPGs. Other games have done the dream thing before, and in my opinion have done it better. But as usual your opinion may differ." I really don't see any reason to change that.



lirazel: Langdon watching Mel again, the Pitt ([tv] sensitive person)
lirazel ([personal profile] lirazel) wrote2025-10-22 08:44 am
Entry tags:

fic: like a needle and thread

There is something so wrong with me.



like a needle and thread (6342 words) by Lirazel
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: The Pitt (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Melissa "Mel" King/Frank Langdon, Melissa "Mel" King & Trinity Santos, Frank Langdon & Trinity Santos
Characters: Original Characters, Melissa "Mel" King, Frank Langdon, Trinity Santos
Additional Tags: do not let the original characters tag deceive you: this is kingdon all the way down, Post-Season/Series 01, Hurt/Comfort, frank gets hurt; mel doesn't deal with it well, POV Outsider, but don't worry: we always get a happy ending at my house, featuring my langdon&santos bffs agenda
Summary:

Frank.”

The name isn’t loud, especially in the rising din of the ER, but something about the raw terror in it makes Jessa’s heart leap. She spins around to look at Dr. King, and finds that her face is so white that Jessa reaches out unconsciously to grab her by the arms and steady her. She remembers just in time that Dr. King doesn’t like to be touched except by a very few people (Dr. Landgon, Dr. Mohan, occasionally Dr. Santos) and she jerks her hands back.

“Dr. King? Are you okay?”

morgandawn: (Jeremiah Hope)
morgandawn ([personal profile] morgandawn) wrote2025-10-21 12:29 pm

Baltimore Area Fans - Fandom History Rescue Help Needed

Fandom History Rescue Help Needed:  Edgewood Maryland (1 hr north of Baltimore)

A Star Trek fan needs help retrieving her fandom history collection from her apartment now that she is in a nursing home. It consists of correspondence  and fanzines dealing with Star Trek and Sime Gen fandom history in the 1970s and 1980s.  If there are any volunteers willing to help sort and box for shipping, please send me a DM or email me at morgandawn @ gmail.com
morgandawn: (fanarthistory)
morgandawn ([personal profile] morgandawn) wrote2025-10-21 12:23 pm

Fandom History Rescue Help - Phoenix Arizona

 A few months ago Phoenix fans helped rescue a fanzine collection and were in the process of boxing the collection for shipping. The organizer/volunteer has been ill and we're looking for volunteers in the Phoenix area willing and able to help with the final push of boxing and shipping the zines to their final home. Please send me a message or email morgandawn @ gmail.com
lirazel: ([tv] practically a zen exercise)
lirazel ([personal profile] lirazel) wrote2025-10-21 12:21 pm
Entry tags:

fic: i can hear the truth auditioning

i can hear the truth auditioning (14964 words) by Lirazel
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: The Pitt (TV)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Melissa "Mel" King/Frank Langdon
Characters: Melissa "Mel" King, Frank Langdon, Abby Langdon, Original Characters
Additional Tags: Mel-centric, Post-Season/Series 01, Emotional Infidelity, this is as close to cheating fic as you're ever going to get from me, so enjoy it while you can, but there's no actual infidelity here, really this is an anti-infidelity fic in a lot of ways, the mel in my mind just wouldn't do that, like i'm glad y'all are having fun, but this is my take, mel!whump, only emotionally this time though, y'all mel cries so much in this i'm so sorry, she does get her happy ending though i'm not a monster, Angst with a Happy Ending, frank langdon is about to be the most divorced man in america, subtitle: mel works through some stuff over the course of five conversations with four different people
Summary:

She keeps her head down, focuses on work and Becca and studying for boards, and all the time, she’s thinking of Emily.

Mel had thought she was so pretty and cool, the first time Dad brought her to dinner. Emily wasn’t the only guest—there had been at least two other grad students invited, too, but Mel only remembers Emily’s red-brown hair tumbling over her shoulders, the hazel eyes that looked almost as big as an anime character’s, the way she talked with her hands about the Victorian novels that lined the bookshelves in Dad’s study. After dinner, Mel and Becca had agreed that Emily looked like a Disney princess, and when Becca said something about it a few days later to Mom, Mel didn’t understand why Mom’s laughter was brittle.

ffutures: (Default)
ffutures ([personal profile] ffutures) wrote2025-10-21 12:08 pm

Finally got a new(er) phone

Having been happy with my old iPhone SE (first 2016 version) since 2020 I've had to upgrade because some apps I use quite often will no longer run on it, presumably due to security issues. I need a Lightning connector for my thermal camera, and the most recent iPhones are USB-c, so I got the last iPhone released with a Lightning connector, a 2022 iPhone SE 3rd version - it's an ex-display one from an eBay shop which sells at £154.99 including P&P and appears to be completely unused. They've got a lot of them, if anyone else is interested I can send you a link.

So far I'm pretty happy - it's a bit bigger than I like to carry, but does have the advantage that I can read the screen clearly. Data transfer turned out to be remarkably easy - I've never had two phones or devices that were compatible with Apple's settings transfer thing before, and it really does seem to have gone perfectly without supervision. Not sure yet what I'll do with the old phone - trade-in value is pretty small so I'll probably keep it as a backup for the time being.

And yes, this is yet another lurch into rampant consumerism - I've had to replace my ipad, PC and phone this year and my old Macbook Pro last year - but it's probably keeping someone in work somewhere...

snickfic: (Buffy desert)
snickfic ([personal profile] snickfic) wrote2025-10-20 08:57 pm
Entry tags:

books

The Secret of Chimneys (1925) by Agatha Christie. An adventurous fellow arrives in England set on delivering a manuscript and a batch of illicit love letters and ends up in a wild plot involving a murder, a stolen jewel, and a Ruritanian country in Eastern Europe.

This is one of Christie's light-hearted romps. I definitely read this at some point 25+ years ago but had forgotten basically everything, including how much fun Christie is when she's in this mode. (Aside from the ambiant xenophobia, classism, antisemitism, and some unexpectedly central pro-monarchial sentiments.) I had a great time.

--

Eiger Dreams: Ventures Among Men and Mountains by Jon Krakauer. A collection of essays spanning a wide range of topics at least tangentially related to climbing. As the title suggests, not many women in this book. Overall a mixed bag, as an essay collection is liable to be, and sometimes Krakauer's voice wears a bit thin, especially when he's trying to be funny. OTOH, in the midst of "Tentbound," an otherwise tediously humorous essay on being stuck in your tent for days at a time, we get this passage, the end of which delights me more than I can even articulate:

Boredom presents a very real, if insidious, peril. To quote Blaine Harden from the Washington Post: "Boredom kills, and those it does not kill, it cripples, and those it does not cripple, it bleeds like a leech, leaving its victims pale, insipid, and brooding. Examples abound . . . Rats kept in comfortable isolation quickly become jumpy, irritable, and aggressive. Their bodies twitch, their tails grow scaly." The backcountry traveler, then, in addition to developing such skills as map and compass, or the prevention and treatment of blisters, must prepare mentally and materially to cope with boredome, lest his tail grow scaly.


My favorites out of the bunch are probably "Valdez Ice," about climbing frozen waterfalls; "Club Denali," about people attempting to climb Denali; and "Devil's Thumb," about him randomly deciding at the age of 23 to go to Alaska and solo climb a particular peak. You will notice all of these are about difficult, hazardous climbing in very cold temperatures, aka sort of similar to his Everest book.

In addition, usually Krakauer gives kind of mixed messages about his own climbing, on one hand saying it's an addiction and the only thing he's good at, and on the other hand only talking about how uncomfortable it is and how much he would rather be doing something else, So Devil's Thumb in particular was nice for a story of him actually doing some major climbing and only making a little bit of fun of himself over it.
fresne: Circe (Default)
fresne ([personal profile] fresne) wrote2025-10-20 08:34 pm
Entry tags:

Dear Yulegoat Letter 2025

Dear Yuletide Goat,

Blessings upon you and your found kin. Thank you for signing up to write this fic. I hope that you enjoy the process.


But you're here to find out a bit more about my requests, so let's get to it.


Things I enjoy reading include:

-Complex female characters. This does not mean they need to be perfect, but they do need to have in character reasons for the choices (good or bad) that they make.

-Rich language. Give me metaphors. Similes. Complicated words that flirt with meaning.

-World building. I like to know what the sun feels like (or lack of it). I like details about why the world is the way it is. I also enjoy brush strokes of details. Hints that there's so much more to learn.


Do not wants: Humor based on embarrassment.

Fine with treats.

Read more... )

 

yourlibrarian: Old Man Stewart Shakes His Fist (OTH-OldManStewart-jesse_the_k)
yourlibrarian ([personal profile] yourlibrarian) wrote2025-10-20 02:49 pm

Are Kids On Our Lawn?

1) Well, I guess we've come full circle in the commercialization of fandom. Lionsgate Hired TikTok Fan Editors to Market Movies

"Mendez says he realized the potential of fan edits a couple years ago, when “Suits” videos were garnering hundreds of millions of views on TikTok. He credits those clips with catapulting the 2010s legal drama to the most-streamed show of 2023 and spawning a spinoff.

While it’s difficult to measure the conversion rate of people who see a fan edit and then watch the movie or show it’s based on, Mendez says the proof is in the comments section...The week Areq’s edit was posted, viewership of the 2015 boxing drama increased 29% on Amazon Prime, according to Luminate data.”

2) Was watching High Potential and a recent episode was such a mess, all it revealed was that the show writers are clearly not in the same category as their main character. Read more... )

3) I don't want to ding High Potential for this specifically because this problem occurs in every show and movie I think I've ever seen. But it leaped out at me because the way CPR was done for a drowning victim was so crappy. The fact is that near-drowning can cause lifelong problems in a number of areas and is not something one just bounces back from in minutes (not to mention, there's hardly ever a scene of a victim doing prolonged puking). To me, this is a public health disservice. Read more... )

4) Even though I never used Deviant Art myself, it's fascinating to read about its history (and its deliberate destruction) given it's a contemporary period for my being online. It seems strange to have the ethos of the web then explained to people who have never known anything but today's impersonal and exploitative models.

"All of these various elements that might make up a page linked back to the tens, sometimes hundreds of other creators, alongside prominently displayed collections of favorited works from around the website, making every profile a constellation of user creation curated in a unique way that promoted not just the user themselves but the entire community." Read more... )

5) There was a recent article in the Hollywood Reporter about how movies are the lifeblood of streaming services. Though I find this disappointing, I don't find it surprising. Movies are (often) a one-shot sort of story, quick to get through, and usually getting a lot of expensive publicity before their release date, thus raising awareness in a big part of the potential viewing public. And people rewatch a good bit because, again, it's short and doesn't require a big commitment.

The other two reasons are, I think, more recent in nature. Read more... )

Poll #33746 Kudos Footer-546
This poll is anonymous.
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 6

Want to leave a Kudos?

View Answers

Kudos!
6 (100.0%)



ffutures: (Default)
ffutures ([personal profile] ffutures) wrote2025-10-20 08:13 pm
Entry tags:

Another Horror Bundle - Ghastly Affair

This is another horror bundle featuring Ghastly Affair, the "Gothic Game of Romantic Horror in the fevered age of Marie-Antoinette and Napoleon." 

https://bundleofholding.com/presents/Ghastly

  

This one is quite interesting, although it does have its origins in systems that put numbers on everything - I'm a little boggled that these include stats for Death and for Lucifer. it's primarily focused on Gothic horror, but claims a lot of other things as inspiration including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural, etc. - a list of fictional characters that might be inspirational puts Faith Lehane immediately after Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter. It has quite a lot about weird science and weirder magic, horrible illnesses (including several that often get overlooked in RPGs, such as rabies), and period architecture - the last is there because a major theme of Gothic horror was strange crumbling manors and their denizens. While the military history of the era is mentioned in the timeline, it's mostly there as background, and this isn't the game you want if you want to re-enact Sharpe or Master and Commander. On the other hand, it would work very well for ideas like a Napoleonic-era version of The Beguiled and other war-adjacent dramas.

The bottom line is that you get a huge amount very cheaply, and it's full of ideas that could be useful for any game or fiction with similar themes. This is one I definitely recommend, but I should really add a disclaimer that I sometimes forget - I get to download this stuff free, if you don't your mileage may vary.

hannah: (Interns at Meredith's - gosh_darn_icons)
hannah ([personal profile] hannah) wrote2025-10-19 10:01 pm

Maintenance.

In a moment of deep adulthood, the sort where you're the one taking care of yourself, I'm trying some new sheets tonight. A new fitted sheet, a new duvet cover. I bought them because Ikea was selling them, because I wanted fitted sheets by themselves, and because I wanted something monochromatic. There's times it's surprisingly difficult to find things with only one color. Not even a fringe. I ran into this trying to find a rug a few years ago and ended up not buying one at all, because that was easier. I didn't care it was two shades of green; I only wanted one. That was the level I was going on, which was a level beyond what the sales people could work with.

These sheets aren't quite as soft, even after being washed, and some of that's on them being so new and some of that's me gambling on buying them online. I didn't want to deal with trying to navigate all the different linen stores, especially the ones that are merely departments within much larger stores. All that said, it's not like I'm trying out a completely new set of sheets - I've got regular sheets that work fine, I just needed the fitted ones. So there's some continuity going on, which should help enough I won't struggle too much with the adjustment.
ruuger: John Doggett and Monica Reyes from The X-Files with the text: "The truth is out there" (Doggett & Reyes - Truth is out there)
Ruuger ([personal profile] ruuger) wrote2025-10-19 10:05 pm

We are officially old

So I've suddenly started getting quite a lot of comments to my old Doggett/Reyes fics lately - I'm guessing people are binging X-Files on Disney+ (and/or have rediscovered Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish thanks to Peacemaker and Flanaganverse) - but I just got the best/worst comment to a fic I posted in 2004:

this fic is older than me lmao but i really like it. you’ve captured doggett’s voice so well

I am ded.
shadowkat: (Default)
shadowkat ([personal profile] shadowkat) wrote2025-10-18 05:55 pm

Saturday breezed on by....like it always does

Spent most of my vacation attempting to quell various aches and pains, brought on by various factors, some known, some guessed at, some not?
Read more... )

***

The UU Church has a Devotional Poetry Writing Group. I flirted with it. But I'm wary of anything regarding the writing and sharing of poetry. Read more... )

UU Church is also featuring a singer/song-writer for tomorrow's service, who is (apparently) popular? I hadn't heard of them before the Church newsletter told me about him - but I'm also not really into religious music? While I have, as you've no doubt figured out by now, widely diverse taste in music, there are few genres I rarely listen to? They are "traditional classical opera", "electronica" (depending on the electronica), "religious music", "gospel", "choral music", "rap" (depending on the rap), and heavy metal (depending on the heavy metal). So, as result, I hadn't come across this person, who I think is trans, and is creating queer religious music and going across the country with it.

Anyhow...I checked them out last night, and their song, entitled Ploushare Prayer by Spencer LaJoye.

Folks, they made me cry? It really moved me. I was surprised.
Ploushare Prayer Video )
But not sure I can deal with the crowd that will converge on the church tomorrow to hear them play for free. I'll do it on Facebook or Zoom instead. No steps. Sleep in. And better acoustics, not to mention I can see more.

***

Pain and fear of large crowds kept me from participating in the No Kings Day. I hope it went well. More to the point? I hope it accomplishes something?

Ah, it's getting darker earlier now. Sunset was at 6:30. My heart goes out to my brother - whose heating and cooling system has failed him. He's tried to get it fixed multiple times. The first time, they came out, he paid them, they claimed that they fixed it. They didn't. They came out again, claimed to fix it, they didn't. Then they got bought by someone else. Who kept claiming they didn't get my brother's calls or emails, and came out, and then well up and disappeared. So he found a new company - and the whole system has to be replaced. He has a wood burning stove - but it's not going to heat the entire house, and his bedroom is one floor below it, and heat rises? And it gets cold up there? And my brother gets cold easily. [I'm so glad I rent. Let all of that be somebody else's problem. We've had hitting issues - but they tend to get resolved quickly - since there's about 100 people affected.)

****

Television

1. Weirdly I'm enjoying Angel the Series better now than I did way back when I first watched it in the late 1990s. If I was to hazard a guess - I think it would be lowered expectations, and no longer wanting Angel and Buffy to be together - or being disappointed that they aren't? I wasn't in the fandom until roughly 2002 - or midway through S6. Read more... ) At any rate - I'm enjoying Angel more now. Partly, because I like Angel, Wes, and Cordelia better now than I did twenty five years ago. I find them a bit more relatable and comforting. They are all a tad lost, and doing the best they can to make things work, while flailing miserably most of the time. The writers dig down into classic noir tropes.

And, I like how most of the writers veer away from the classical hero trope. For all the times, Angel succeeds, he also fails miserably. In the Scourge? The seventh or eighth episode, he attempts to sacrifice himself heroically - but his speeches to Doyle about why he sacrificed his humanity and a life with his one true love to pursue the cause, backfires on him in a huge way. Read more... )

Moving on to Parting Gifts - which I didn't like the first time I saw it, twenty five years ago, I do now. It's a great study in characters and contrasts. Also demonstrates how Wes, Cordy and Angel work slightly better than Doyle, Angel and Cordy did. For one thing - they get it across pretty quickly - that there are 0 romantic feelings between Angel/Cordy or Cordy/Wes. Read more... ). They also set up each character's skill sets. Read more... ) But mainly, within a short period of time - they set up the problem, the on-going villain (WRH law firm in the shadows), and the relationship dynamic between Angel, Cordy, Wes. And I realized while watching that I like all three, and all three actors in spite of myself?

I prefer watching this outside of a fandom superimposing its views onto me?
I can find it comforting and enjoyable on my own. Also, no longer caring who ends up with who, or romantic ships - makes the show more interesting?
I was never much into romantic relationships on television shows? I much prefer the platonic friendships - they are more interesting to watch, and less frustrating - particularly within the noir/horror genre.

2. The Diplomat S3 - this is fun. Want sparkling funny witty dialogue - this is it. Good actors. And excellent political satire. Also, even though the President in this series was responsible for an act of terrorism? I still prefer Allison Janey as President to the one we currently have. I'd rather live in the world of the Diplomat? Sad I know. But here we are. And, sigh, Rufus Sewell is hot. This show just makes me laugh. I'm not binging it this go around - I'm letting it last. Then I may rewatch from the beginning.

[I'm still watching Poker Face and Rain Maker on Peacock, just slowly.]
shadowkat: (Default)
shadowkat ([personal profile] shadowkat) wrote2025-10-17 01:50 pm
Entry tags:

Friday Five

Diddy-dallying prior to taking off for massage. Also, spent time revising novel. Making some progress?

Friday Five...(I'd say I'm happy it's Friday? But I wish I had five more days of vacation now that the sciatica is getting better, and I can walk without too much pain?)

1. How long ago did you join LJ (or DW)?

I joined Lj in August of 2003 then DW about eight years later - when a Russian firm bought LJ, and it began posting ads and making it like FB...and kind of went downhill from there? So both combined? 22 years.

2. How did you find out about LJ (or DW)?

Through the ATPO_BTVS & ATS Board or Buffy fandom Voy boards.

3. If someone introduced you to LJ (or DW), is s/he still on your friends list?

Sadly, not any more. She was on FB for a while, but disappeared from it shortly after the pandemic or during it. (Social media friends much like real life ones - can at times feel like a revolving door? Or folks you meet on a hike - but eventually part ways with - because, well, everyone has to do their own hike?)

4. Have you introduced anyone to LJ (or DW)?

Yep. Quite a few actually. I had a bunch follow me from LJ over to DW.

5. Is your LJ (or DW) public or friends only, and why?

If it's about my workplace, or really personal - about family or personal friendships - it's usually locked. Everything else is public - I've made a few new friends on both sites because they've seen my unlocked posts.