gensplosion | Reading

Wellington Library trials new shelving system based on Māori deities

Under Tangaroa, atua of the oceans, lakes and rivers - and all life within them, and the guardian of knowledge of carving - you can find books on bodies of water, fish, art/the arts and carving.

Rongomatāne, atua of peace, the kūmara and cultivated food is where you find te ao Māori books on peace, agriculture, gardening, food and cooking.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

conuly

Nonstandard and informal are not synonyms. Dialectal and informal are not synonyms. Regional and informal are not synonyms. You can speak formally even if you're speaking a nonstandard regional dialect.

Everybody needs to stop saying that dialect words are, ipso facto, informal.

Edit: On a different note, omfg this dude.

*************************

( Read more... )

ysabetwordsmith

Today is partly sunny and mild. It drizzled for much of yesterday.

I fed the birds. I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

These are some posts from the later part of last week in case you missed them:
Poetry Fishbowl Report for July 1, 2025
Unsold Poems for the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl
Poem: "Provoking Change by Bringing Nature"
Space Exploration
Placemaking: How to Connect the Dots
Birdfeeding
Marketplace Books
Climate Change
Today's Smoothie
Superhero on Call
Birdfeeding
Philosophical Questions: Poverty
Extinct Birds
Today's Adventures
Art
Birdfeeding
Follow Friday 7-11-25: History
Communities
Focus
Climate Change
Sandwich Alignment Chart
Mushrooms
Artificial Intelligence
Birdfeeding
Roadside America
Activism
Birdfeeding
Cuddle Party

"Philosophical Questions: Looks" has 42 comments. "Not a Destination, But a Process" has 146 comments. "The Democratic Armada of the Caribbean" has 95 comments.

There will be a bonus Poetry Fishbowl on Tuesday, July 15 with a theme of "anything goes."

sunshine_revival is running through July. See the schedule, meet the moderators, and use the master post to navigate the event. Meet new folks in the friending meme. Spread the word!

* Sunshine Revival Challenge 1: Light
Poem: "The Pleasure of Escaping the Responsibility"

* Sunshine Revival Challenge 2: Tunnel of Love
Poem: "Legs of Grass, Feet of Flowers"

* Sunshine Revival Challenge 3: Food

* Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House
Poem: "The Bee Tree's Gift"

summerofthe69 is now open! You can see the calendar here and the current themes are Body Worship 69 and Greater Than 69.

"In the Heart of the Hidden Garden" is now complete! Lawrence shows Stan more of his favorite places.

The weather has been variable here. It drizzled most of yesterday. Seen at the birdfeeders this week: a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, a pair of mourning doves, a pair of cardinals, a gray catbird, a house wren, a fox squirrel, and at least 2 bats. Currently blooming: dandelions, pansies, violas, marigolds, petunias, red salvia, wild strawberries, verbena, lantana, sweet alyssum, zinnias, snapdragons, blue lobelia, perennial pinks, impatiens, oxalis, moss rose, yarrow, anise hyssop, firecracker plant, tomatoes, tomatillos, Asiatic lilies, cucumber, snowball bush, yellow squash, zucchini, morning glory, purple echinacea, narrow-leaf mountain mint, black-eyed Susan, yellow coneflower, wild bergamot, chicory, Queen Anne's lace, sunflowers, cup plant. Tomatillo and pepper have green fruit. Wild strawberries, mulberries, peas, tomatoes, blackberries, and cucumbers are ripe.

Current Mood: busy

sef1029

FROM BLOSSOMS
by Li-Young Lee

From blossoms comes this brown paper bag of peaches
we bought from the boy
in the bend in the road where we turned toward
signs painted Peaches.

From laden boughs, from hands,
from sweet fellowship in the bins,
comes nectar at the roadside, succulent
peaches we devour, dusty skin and all,
comes the familiar dust of summer, dust we eat.

O, to take what we love inside,
to carry within us an orchard, to eat
not only the skin, but the shade,
not only the sugar, but the days, to hold
the fruit in our hands, adore it, then bite into
the round jubilance of peach.

There are days we live
as if death were nowhere
in the background; from joy
to joy to joy, from wing to wing,
from blossom to blossom to
impossible blossom, to sweet impossible blossom.

svgurl

This is what I wrote for the

hurtcomfortex. :)

Title: what are you to me (everything)
Fandom: MCU
Pairing/Characters: Steve/Tony
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 2391
Summary: Another close call makes Steve realize he can't run from his feelings anymore.

purplecat

The Tardis with the ninth doctor leaning against it in the botton corner.

The Ninth Doctor, side view, greyish background.

The Ninth's Doctor's face with a dalek behind him.

Snagging is free. Credit is appreciated. Comments are loved.

svgurl

These are the fics I received from the

hurtcomfortex exchange. :)

Title: Fleurs du Mal
Author:

Griddlebone
Fandom: Mighty Morphin Power Rangers
Pairing/Characters: Kimberly/Tommy
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 4,466
Summary: Shortly after breaking up with Tommy, Kimberly comes down with a strange illness.

Hanahaki + Kim/Tommy post breakup is such a great combo and I loved the way it was handled.

Title: and swear, a taste of sweetness to soothe your soul
Author:

forsworn
Fandom: The Princess Diaries (Movies)
Pairing/Characters: Mia/Nicholas
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 3863
Summary: Mia's been working too hard, but she's determined to enjoy her day off with Nicholas - and even if her exhausted body lets her down, Nicholas and his gourmet cooking skills can still lift her spirits.

This was so soft and sweet. I love Nicholas taking care of Mia and the banter/dynamic was perfect. :D

ljwrites

KPop Demon Hunters was an experience for sure. It felt slightly weird to watch because it uses distinctly Korean materials but from an outside perspective. The girls' exaggerated comic acting was very Western animation-y, and the traditional Korean medical clinic scene bore no resemblance to real life, obviously.

Even with Korean dubbing it had the distinct feel of a foreign film, because it was! Korean-speaking actors and dubbing artists speak very differently, and the voice acting was obviously dubbing-style because the original was in English.

I also felt like the story had a lot of potential that it didn't quite reach, and foreshadowed things that didn't actually happen. But that's pretty deep in spoiler territory so maybe I'll go there in a different, spoiler-cut post.

Where the movie truly shone was its stylish, energetic representation of K-pop, including in no small part its earworm soundtrack. Fans have been pointing out all kinds of K-pop tropes like the tiny powerhouse rappers Zoey and Baby, the similarity of the two bands to legends like Blackpink and BTS, and the way the male band debuted with a catchy bop ("Soda Pop") before coming back with a darkly cynical, technique-heavy number ("Your Idol").

It wasn't just the stars who got the spotlight; so did the fandom and community, from the fans who filled stadiums for their faves to online challenges and breathless anticipation for new releases. The movie also went into some, though by no means all, of the darkness behind this adoration, and made a good case for the potential destructiveness of such massive franchises and fandoms.

The love of the genre and the fandom, backed up by extraordinary music and production, was what gave the movie its heart and turned what could have been a gimmicky throwaway into a snapshot of an era. The depiction in KPop Demon Hunters of the love and fragility, the beauty and hollowness at the heart of K-pop was arguably more powerful than its scripted story. That's not a knock on the story so much as a statement on the nature of the narrative: K-pop is an age to be experienced in all its glory and corruption, not a tale to be told from a comfortable distance. It is one's own story to live and not someone else's to watch, and that is arguably the true power of KPop Demon Hunters.

Current Mood: thoughtful
Current Music: Saja Boys: Your Idol

oracne

I’ll be at Readercon 34 this weekend after spending most of the last couple of weeks doing massive re-reads.

If you’ll be there, please feel free to stop and say hello! My schedule is below.

The Works of P. Djèlí Clark
Salon I/J Friday, July 18, 2025, 1:00 PM EDT
Andrea Hairston [moderator]; Leon Perniciaro; Rob Cameron; Tom Doyle; Victoria Janssen
Our Guest of Honor P. Djèlí Clark rounded out his first decade as a published author with a Nebula and a Locus for his fantasy police procedural novel, The Master of Djinn, and both those awards plus a British Fantasy Award for his monster-hunting novella Ring Shout. His short story “How to Raise a Kraken in Your Bathtub” is short-listed for the Hugo this year. As a History professor at University of Connecticut, he investigates the pathways leading from West African storyteller/poets (griots, a.k.a. djèlí) to the American abolitionist movement. Help us celebrate the works of our honored guest!

The Purposes of Memorable Insults in Sci-Fi and Fantasy
Salon I/J Friday, July 18, 2025, 5:00 PM EDT
Storm Humbert [moderator]; Anne E.G. Nydam; Charles Allison; Ellen Kushner; Victoria Janssen
Some of the most quotable lines in science fiction and fantasy are zingers. Wit can do a lot to build a character, a world, and a universe, and has the ability to either support or undermine reader expectations. This panel aims to explore and elaborate on the use of wit—and especially takedowns—in literature, exposing how a verbal jab can serve as more than just a punchline.

Moving from Traditional Publishing to Self-Publishing
Salon G/H Friday, July 18, 2025, 7:00 PM EDT
Victoria Janssen [moderator]; Cecilia Tan; Jedediah Berry; Sarah Smith; Steven Popkes
It’s becoming increasingly common to hear of authors whose self-published work was so successful that they were picked up by a traditional publisher. But what of the authors who have gone the other way, by turning their backs on traditional publishing and going into self-publishing? Panelists will survey the varying reasons for making this transition, how authors have navigated it, and what this might say about the state of publishing overall.

Kaffeeklatsch: Victoria Janssen
Suite 830 Friday, July 18, 2025, 8:00 PM EDT

The Works of Cecilia Tan
Salon I/J Saturday, July 19, 2025, 12:00 PM EDT
Victoria Janssen [moderator]; Charlie Jane Anders; Laura Antoniou; Cecilia Tan (i)
Our Guest of Honor, Cecilia Tan, has a publication history that spans Asimov’s, Absolute Magnitude, Ms. Magazine, Penthouse, and Best American Erotica, among others. Writer and editor of science fiction and fantasy, especially as they intersect with erotica and romance, she is also the founder of Circlet Press, an independent publisher that specializes in speculative erotica. Her own writing earned a Lifetime Achievement for Erotica in 2014 from Romantic Times magazine. She also contributes to America’s other pastime, baseball, in her role as Publications Director for the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR). Come hear our panel discuss Cecilia’s many talents and accomplishments.

Un-Kafkaesque Bureaucracies
Salon I/J Saturday, July 19, 2025, 7:00 PM EDT
Victoria Janssen [moderator]; Alexander Jablokov; J.M. Sidorova; Laurence Raphael Brothers; Steven Popkes
In fiction, bureaucracies are generally depicted as evil in its most banal form, yet many of the actual bureaucracies that shape our lives exist to protect us from corporate greed. How can—and should—we tell other stories about bureaucrats and bureaucracies, particularly as the U.S. stands on the precipice of disastrous deregulation? And might fantasies of bureaucracy (such Addison’s The Goblin Emperor and Goddard’s The Hands of the Emperor) be the next cozy subgenre?

The Endless Appetite for Fanfiction
Create / Collaborate Saturday, July 19, 2025, 8:00 PM EDT
Kate Nepveu [moderator]; Claire Houck/Nina Waters; Laura Antoniou; Victoria Janssen
In an article of the same name (https://www.fansplaining.com/articles/endless-appetite-fanfiction), Elizabeth Minkel discussed how “2024 was the year [fanfic] truly broke containment—everyone seemed to want a piece of the fanfiction pie, leaving fic authors themselves besieged on all sides.” Attempts to steal and monetize fanfic proliferated, as did reviews treating living authors as distant and unreachable. What do these trends say about larger changes in attitudes toward stories and creators? How can fans of all kinds nurture supportive connections to authors?

thawrecka

Asking the Question (1599 words) by thawrecka
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Bleach (Anime & Manga)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Abarai Renji/Kuchiki Rukia, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Ayasegawa Yumichika/Madarame Ikkaku
Characters: Abarai Renji, Kuchiki Rukia, Ayasegawa Yumichika, Madarame Ikkaku, Matsumoto Rangiku, Kurosaki Ichigo, Kurosaki Isshin
Additional Tags: Established Relationship, Marriage Proposal
Summary:

Renji asks for life advice and finds most of his friends unqualified to give it.

ysabetwordsmith

The July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl made its $200 goal, so you get a free epic. Everyone is eligible to vote in this poll. I will keep it open at least until Monday night. If there's a clear answer then, I'll close it. Otherwise I may leave it open a little longer.

Here are your options:

"Meeting in the Middle"
Kan Ying sees through the lies of the Parthians and makes his way to Rome.
76 lines

"Once the Avalanche Has Begun"
A foolish choice in a neighboring town makes life challenging for Shaeth's followers.
70 lines

Poll #33354 Free Epic for the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 6

View Respondents

Which of these should be the free epic?

View Answers

"Meeting in the Middle"
4 (66.7%)

"Once the Avalanche Has Begun"
2 (33.3%)

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House

Journaling: What is making you smile these days? Create a top 10 list of anything you want to talk about.

Creative: Write from the perspective of a house or other location.

Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so!

( Read more... )

Current Mood: accomplished

ysabetwordsmith

This poem was written for the Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House. It also fills the "silver / gold" square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo Fest.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

This session's theme was "Weaponized Incompetence and Malicious Compliance." I wrote from 12:30 PM to 4:30 AM, so about 14 hours, accounting for breaks. I wrote 3 poems on Tuesday and another 6 later in the week.

Participation was variable, with 10 comments on LiveJournal and another 32 on Dreamwidth. A total of 12 people sent prompts.

Read Some Poetry!
The following poems from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl have been posted:
"Always Surprised by Consequences"
"Incompetence, Sloppy Thinking, and Laziness"
"No Such Thing as Finished"
"The Pleasure of Escaping the Responsibility"
"Provoking Change by Bringing Nature"

"An Interest in the Affairs of Your Government" (Polychrome Heroics March 4, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl)
"Tomato Seedlings in Tin Cans" (Daughters of the Apocalypse, June 3, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl)

Buy some poetry!
If you plan to sponsor some poetry but haven't made up your mind yet, see the unsold poetry list from July 1. That includes the title, length, price, and the original thumbnail description for the poems still available.

This session's donors include:

janetmiles,

fuzzyred, and Anthony Barrette. All sponsored poems from this fishbowl have been posted. There are 4 tallies, so there will be a bonus fishbowl on Tuesday, July 15.

The Poetry Fishbowl has a landing page.

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

The following poems from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl are currently available. Poems may be sponsored via PayPal -- there's a permanent donation button on my Dreamwidth profile page -- or you can write to me and discuss other methods. There are still verses left in the linkback poems "Delight in Another," "A Sense of Weather Changes," "Ouroboros Insects," "The Loving Embrace of Night," "Generations of Cooks Past," "Homefree and Clear, " "One Bite at a Time," "Stars and Diamonds," "Mishpocha," "Changing Your Nature," and "Besa."

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

ysabetwordsmith

This poem is spillover from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It is posted here as the second freebie, courtesy of new prompter

gothfvck. It was inspired by a prompt from

see_also_friend. It also fills the "bad girls" square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo Fest.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

lycomingst

The Friday Five

1. What was the most sick that you've ever been?
I used to get terrible sore throats when I was young. They got worse every year. The last time I got delusional. When I could afford it I had my tonsils out and I swear I didn’t have a cold for 10 years.

2. What disease are you afraid of getting?
Lyme disease.

3. Are you a big baby when it comes to taking medicine/shots for your illnesses?
No.

4. Is going to the doctor really THAT bad?
Yes.

5. Would you have the flu twice a month if you were paid $1,000 for having it?
Maybe for $10,000 but I don’t come cheap.

ysabetwordsmith

2. 35-billion-year-old Moon rock found in Africa rewrites lunar history

A 2.35-billion-year-old Moon rock that fell to Earth in Africa is rewriting what we know about lunar volcanism. This rare meteorite, studied by UK scientists and unveiled at a major geochemistry conference, reveals that the Moon was volcanically active far longer than previously thought. With a unique chemical makeup and an age that bridges a billion-year gap in Moon rock samples, it suggests the Moon had internal heat sources that persisted for ages.

Current Mood: busy

mrsluigivargas

Worry [Part 2]
A few days after the events of the previous chapter, there's a belated-birthday breakfast to have.

Fandom: Super Mario
Rating: General Audiences
Characters: Toadsworth, Luigi, Mario, Peach
Relationships: Toadsworth & Peach
Additional Tags: Quadruple Drabble
Length: 400 words

~~~

( Here's the fic! )

~~~

House cleaning! I've had this extension in my WIP folder for a while. I think it was originally going to fill a Feveruary prompt, but it's way too late now XD But here it is anyway!

I dunno if this fic is good or not; I just wanted to posit the idea of Peach making Toadsworth handmade birthday cards ever since she was a toddler. It’s a fun concept!

Also Mario’s gift was breakfast and Luigi’s was one of his old books that he wanted to share. They had to cobble together things at the last minute because they didn’t know Toadsworth’s birthday was today until just recently.

The Espresso Addict

Diary & multifandom recs

gensplosion!

Reading

Libraries

Today's five second mini-rant:

Birdfeeding

Monday Update 7-14-25

A poem for summer

fic: what are you to me (everything) - steve/tony

Ninth Doctor Icons

h/c exchange gift fics (1 kim/tommy, 1 mia/nicholas)

Why KPop Demon Hunters pops

Readercon 2025

Bleach fic

Free Epic Poll

Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House

Poem: "The Bee Tree's Gift"

Poetry Fishbowl Report for July 1, 2025

Unsold Poems for the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl

Poem: "Provoking Change by Bringing Nature"

(no subject)

Space Exploration

Fic: Worry [Part 2]

The Espresso Addict