#advice colum

[paniniqueen]

A story begins long before its first word. It ends long after its last. Make the ordinary sublime. Don't panic. Reveal a truth that isn't there yet. At the same time, entertain. Satisfy the appetite for seriousness and joy. Dilate your nostrils. Fill your lungs with language. A lot can be taken from you - even your life - but not your stories about that life.

Colum McCann, Letters to a Young Writer

#This made me gasp in the library #beautiful #Colum McCann #Letters to a Young Writer #advice #writing

[sokokoko]

Award-winning writer, Colum McCann, teaches creative writing in Hunter College, New York. This text is based on edited extracts from Colum McCann's book, Letters to a Young Writer.

#this extract is all (legally) available online for free so i definitely have the right to share this #writing #soko #writers on tumblr #writerscommunity #writers #writeblr #writing advice #creative writing #young writer #young writers #advice to young writers #colum mccann #books on writing #books #on writing #writing motivation #writing inspo #writing inspiration #motivational #inspirational

[gotham-ruaidh]

Little Bit Better Than I Used To Be

Catch up: Chapter 1 (Starry Eyes) || Chapter 2 (Save Our Souls) || Chapter 3 (Dancing On Glass)|| Chapter 4 (Merry-Go-Round)|| Backstage (1) || Backstage (2) || Chapter 5 (Danger)|| Backstage (3) || Chapter 6A (Love Walked In) || Chapter 6B (Without You) || Backstage (4) || Chapter 7 (Stick To Your Guns) || Chapter 8 (Time For Change) || Backstage (5) || Chapter 9 (Take Me To The Top) || Backstage (6) || Chapter 10 (Home Sweet Home) || Backstage (7) || Chapter 11a (Nightrain) || Chapter 11b (Nothing Else Matters) || Chapter 12a (Handle With Care) || Chapter 12b (I’m So Tired of Being Lonely) || Chapter 13a (Angel) || Chapter 13b (She’s My Addiction) || Chapter 13c (Patience) Chapter 14a (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 14b (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 14c (Where Do We Go Now?) || Chapter 15a (Dreams) ||| Also posted at AO3

Chapter 15B: I Sing A Song of Love

Wilmington, North Carolina

Labor Day Weekend, 1988

~~~~~~~~

When I cannot sing my heart I can only speak my mind

- “Julia”, The Beatles (1968) [click here to listen]

“How was Alec?”

Jamie drew back the covers of Dougal and Gillian’s guest bed, bending to kiss his wife’s bare shoulder. “Good. He’s been producing a record for a local New York band – some punk kids he saw at CBGB. He wanted my advice on something.” He settled against the headboard, rolling his shoulders. “He also said that Faith took some really good photos at the wedding. I asked him to send them to Colum.”

“Hold these for me?” Claire slipped off her rings. Carefully he took them, watching her rub lotion into the palms and backs of her hands.

“I know you don’t like it when I take them off, Jamie, but it’ll just be for a moment. I’ve been feeling so dry since we landed.”

He shrugged. “I don’t mind. And I hope the dryness is something you can get used to. If we’re really serious about the house.”

Dougal, God bless him, had introduced them to Amy – real estate agent extraordinaire, and former patient at The Ridge (“white wine,” she’d explained in the car from the airport. “I thought I had it under control until I crashed my car into the house I was about to show, right in front of the clients, and two empty wine bottles rolled up from under the seat”). Amy was smart, and low key, and had lined up showings for six beautiful homes tucked away in the mountains.

So much to think about.

But they had time, now. All the time in the world.

“I can get used to anything, Jamie. When I want to.” She held out her hand, and softly, gently he slid her engagement and wedding rings back onto her finger. Kissed her knuckles.

She smiled. Reached out to trace her name tattooed over his heart. The only tattoo on his chest – proudly visible to the world on the nights he played without a shirt.

“Would you add our wedding date?”

His heart raced beneath her thumb. “Maybe. But I was thinking that I could save the space for something else.”

She quirked an eyebrow.

He smiled.

“Maybe – the names of our children.”

Her thumbnail grazed his nipple. Eyes searing into his.

And then his mouth was on hers, sharing breath and laughs as they struggled under the thick comforter to find each other.

Sometime later, he slipped from her to turn off the lights in the room. Paused to light the candle on the bedside table. Heart stuttering with love as the shadows played across his wife’s smiling, sleepy face.

“What was the first tattoo you ever got?”

He tangled his legs with hers. “On the top of my left arm. The name of our band. Me, Ian, and Angus all got it at the same time.”

He shifted a bit, and she squinted in the candlelight – but there it was.

“That’s adorable.”

Jamie snorted. “Angus was the one who wanted it. We’d just signed our record deal, after three years of playing shitty club after shitty club, and getting stiffed by promoters who didn’t pay us, and dealing with some real next level bullshit. So we went out to celebrate, and Angus downed half a bottle of tequila, and Ian and I helped him with the other half, and before we knew it we were on a quest to find a tattoo parlor.”

She smiled. “And you and Ian got them by accident?”

He traced the long, sloping line of her clavicle. “Fuck no. Angus cried like a baby because it hurt so much. And then I wanted to show him how it’s done. And then I bulled Ian into it. It’s still the only tattoo his has. Jenny was so mad. But she’s over it now.”

“Does Angus have any more tattoos?”

“I have no idea. Why don’t you ask one of the groupies?”

She pushed him gently. “Stop. Charlotte and Molly are actually really nice girls. I think they genuinely care about him. From what they told me last week, they had a wonderful time in Aruba.”

“Please tell me they didn’t share any specific details.”

She rolled her eyes. “I know they’re both on the Pill, because they asked me for a prescription when they learned I was a doctor. Kind of awkward when I told them my license had been suspended, but I helped them get what they needed.”

Jamie buried his face in Claire’s shoulder. “That’s good. But I really don’t need that mental image. They’re both a foot taller than him, for God’s sake. How does that even work, in bed? Sounds like a complicated math problem.”

She kissed his forehead. “From what they told me, it’s not an issue.”

He shifted up, mouth finding hers in a kiss.

“Will it ever stop, Claire?” he whispered against her lips, after a long, long while.

He didn’t need to be more specific.

“I don’t know, Jamie.” She kissed him, long and sweet. “I really don’t. But I don’t want to ever find out.”

--

Two A.M. Neither could sleep – too much on their minds.

Sometimes it was like this on the road.

They speculated why. Too much post-show energy. An uncomfortable bed. Because no substances were available.

Or, as Jamie would say – too much life to live, to waste by sleeping.

“Play for me?”

He kissed her forehead and crawled out of bed, toward the guitar case.

She recognized it from their time at The Ridge. A bit of mother-of-pearl inlay on the neck. Sides worn with time and love.

The guitar he had written all those songs on, at The Ridge. The songs he had always played to her first, in the early morning before everyone else woke up. Feeling like the two of them were the only people in the world.

The same songs he now played, night after night, for thousands of people.

Every time still felt like the first time.

She sat up a bit in bed, leaning against the headboard. Watched Jamie sit beside her, candlelight playing over his arms and chest and hips.

“Any requests, Dr. Mrs. Fraser?”

She smiled.

“Surprise me.”

He smiled back. Thinking.

Strummed a few chords. Thinking.

Launched into song.

Half of what I say is meaningless

But I say it just to reach you, Julia

Looked up at his wife.

Her beautiful, beautiful face stricken with pain and grief.

He lay down the guitar. Pulled her to him, skin on skin.

Holding her, smoothing her hair, as she cried.

“Sshh. I’ve got you. I love you. Sshh.”

She took a deep, shuddering breath.

“My mother was named Julia,” she whispered into his neck. So softly that he felt it, more than heard it.

“I’m sorry. I never asked you about it. I didn’t mean – ”

“The White Album was the first record I bought with my own money. I used to listen to this song and think of her.”

He pulled her a bit closer. Wanting her to crawl inside his skin.

“I wonder sometimes what my life would have been like, if she and my dad hadn’t died when I was five.”

“If you would have become an addict, you mean?”

She twined her fingers with his. Thumb tracing his wedding ring. “If I would have married Frank. If I would have become a doctor. If I would have become an addict. If I would have met you.”

“All what ifs. You can’t drive yourself crazy that way, Claire.”

“It hurts, Jamie.” She closed her eyes. He kissed the tears sliding down her cheeks.

“I know, Claire.”

“I really wanted her to be at our wedding.”

“I know.”

“And your Mom, too.”

Ellen Fraser had died when Jamie was eight.

If anyone understood, it was him.

“Yes. I’m sorry. I never want to cause you pain, Claire.”

She took a deep breath. “I know, Jamie. And you couldn’t have known about the song.”

He kissed her cheek. “I can play another one.”

She shook her head. “No. I want you to play it. I need a new memory.”

He smiled. Gently turned her around so that he sat against the headboard with her back pressed against his front. Reached out for the guitar and settled it across Claire’s knees, his hands reaching around her to find the strings.

He strummed a bit. She relaxed a bit.

“You know, John Lennon wrote this song for his mother. She was also named Julia. He lost her when he was a young man – and he mourned her the rest of his life.”

He kissed the shell of her ear. Played another chord.

“It’s OK to mourn, Claire. And to remember.”

Began singing, low and quiet, into her ear.

Half of what I say is meaningless But I say it just to reach you, Julia

Julia, Julia, ocean child, calls me So I sing a song of love, Julia…

Safe in his arms.

“Love you,” she whispered, starting to drift away.

He finished the song. Carefully set the guitar on the carpet, and eased her back onto the bed. Holding her so close, so gently. A wonder.

“Dear God, I love you.”

#outlander #outlander fanfic #little bit better than i used to be #jamie and claire

[onwriting-hrarby]

On endings—The last sentence

Hello, it’s been a while! After finishing Rotten Judgement I have been taking a little break with writing my novel and also reading quite a lot, but RJ has still been on my mind because I wanted to talk about endings. Or, more specifically, about the last sentence. I would also like to do a literary analysis on the last chapter (how I built the pace for it), but I feel like that would be giving too much into the readers’ readings and feelings. Yet, if you would like me to talk about building a pace (with examples), please tell me so.

In this little post, we will talk about:

The importance of an ending

How does an ending need to be?

When does an ending appear?

Motifs and themes

On changing endings—because of the people

Again, bare in mind that this is not "writing advice" per se, only my impressions as a professional in the sector :) also, tagging @writeblrsupport in case they find it interesting and want to share!

First things first—The importance of an ending

People say that while writing it’s important that you get a nice first sentence, gripping, that keeps the reader into the page. It’s not that I disagree, but I do believe that we have bubbled up this notion of “the first sentence” a little too much: it is not the first thing the reader reads. Nowadays, the first thing we might read about a book can be the review on bookstagram, and if we are in the bookshop, we might choose the book for its cover or typo—to end up reading the claim or the synopsis. This notion of the first sentence might have worked when the novels were inside newspaper, written by chapters, and the chapters needed to be gripping and auto conclusive. Of course, if the first sentence is all that—all the better.

But I consider the ending to be more, if not equally important as the first sentence. Colum McCann says something along the lines that our last sentence will be the first sentence of the imagination of the reader—of what’s further than the ending. It will be the first thing the reader is left when they finish the book.

Yet—don’t make it senseless. The ending has to be coherent with the story. Ending the last sentence with a plot twist or a shock just for the sake of it—for the “remembering” effect—is not the way to go. Mainly, because the reader will frown, take themselves out of the narration completely, and get angry. (I am speaking with knowledge: I said no to a translation because it had this problem.)

How does the ending need to be?

I guess, for me (as always, I speak from personal experience), the endings should be gripping, coherent, and satisfying. I’ve talked about coherence, but let me explain a little about gripping: When I say gripping, I don’t mean that it’s full of tension, or shocking, or leaves you breathless. That, if your story demands it, too. What I mean is that the whole path to the ending (the so-called “resolution of conflict”) should have your reader seated the whole time, wanting to know how it ends. There are different narrations and paces to this: crime, mysteries, fantasy or sci-fi generally have a faster path to this resolution of conflict, and their ending tends to be, yes, gripping (in its original sense). Other narratives, like realism, or character-based books, or non-fiction, might have a slower one. That is good, too, because as I’ve said, most of all the ending should be coherent. But still, the book should not fall out of the reader’s hands. If it does, then there’s a problem with the pace. Generally, you won’t help that with the ending, but sometimes you can do it. The reader wants to finish the book. We don’t have to sacrifice, to my view, any coherence, any intention of us as writers, or any literary quality, but we have to be aware of the grippiness of our text to balance it out to have a satisfying ending.

What do I mean by satisfying? Again, that it’s not confusing, that it makes sense, that doesn’t make the reader feel like they didn’t follow. The reader is not dumb—will never be—so you should treat him with respect. (The readers are more intelligent than the authors, and they pick up on things you wouldn’t have even thought about in your prose.) The satisfaction is that final breath when we close the book, this exhilarating feeling, that “good, very good” that we mutter after the last page. I believe we should strive to leave our readers with this kind of satisfaction.

In summary: if you have a bad beginning, you have a whole novel to make up for it; if you have a good novel but a bad ending, the thing falls into pieces at the last sentence.

When does the ending appear?

This is as easy as to answer Where do people get inspiration from—there isn’t one answer, everyone has their way. To me, though, it works best if I know where the story is going to go from the beginning.

When I start writing the story, it’s almost 6 months after I started thinking about it—not purposefully, but during walks, or talking with friends, some dialogues and scenes occur to me, and I also get to know the characters better. Because I do a character-based narrative, their motifs are the main things I need to have clear when I plot a story. I usually think about the beginning: what is the starting point for the story (which can or cannot be the same for the characters if I’m doing in media res, etc), with which scene do I want to begin? Then, normally, I will get glimpses of possible scenes that go in the middle: an important point for them, maybe the climax. But I always, ALWAYS get the ending before finishing the story. And normally I think about the ending—more like, it comes to me—before I begin writing the story altogether.

Why? Again, Colum McCann says something that pinpoints exactly the answer I would give to you (but better): if a story is a plane and the ending is a destination, we don’t need to know the exact destination, but we need to know that the plane will land.

I leave myself a chance to change the ending if I’m writing the story and I see that the ending is going to change according to what the story needs, but it rarely happens, because I tail my stories around the ending, and not the beginning or the characters. Let’s say that I’m writing a romance: if I tail the story around the beginning (the characters meet), then I have a confusing plot because there are just a million ways in which the characters can evolve from that. If I tail the story around the characters (one is cute, the other one is grumpy, they fall in love) then I have all feelings and a plot, but I don’t think I have a motif or different layers. If I tail it around the ending (the characters get together despite their differences) suddenly I have a message.

I am being a little reductionist here, but you get the gist. Again, this works for me, but it cannot work for you at all! It all depends on what you want from your story, in the end.

Motifs and themes

I feel like endings should be conclusive in the novel, too. That is: in a way, they should summarize the motif of what you want the reader to stay with in your proposal. I don’t know if I succeed with every single ending of mine, but I think I have grown the capacity of doing this kind of summarizing without being too obvious.

The book shouldn’t be a thesis, but it should put something on the table. It can be a secret pact between you and the reader, but it has to lay motifs and themes that the reader can observe and think for themselves. But if your book is too obvious about the theme or your intention as an author, the reader will get bored easily because, again, the reader is not dumb and doesn’t want to have a lecture on it. Laying out your motifs and themes has to be subtle enough for the reader to choose whatever they want to fixate on, and ending with this motif reverberating has to be subtle enough to avoid boredom but clear enough so that the reader knows they have understood and they are with you.

Following the previous point about changing endings, and to go back to the intention of this little post, I had to change my last sentence completely.

Mind you, I had the last sentence written 6 months before writing the ending! Oh my! I had it scribbled in one of my notebooks, the page marked with a dog ear so that I wouldn’t forget I had to end like this. But—stuff happened, that stuff being that my main motif of the story changed.

It wasn’t planned, and it wasn’t suddenly: the story had always revolved around love as a constant effort and life as a constant struggle. Because my main intention was to talk about the first one (and it was what I had people lured into my writing in the first place), six months before the ending I had my first sentence, which was: 

“And hands in hands, because they know that love is never the end of any story, they stare at each other and promise wordlessly to keep walking down this path—the one that is bumpy, full of trial and error. And swear to keep on trying, incessantly, every day, together.”

But I wrote that when I was in Chapter 10 (of 21) of the story, so of course, I should have given myself the space to change it. I was stubborn, and I didn’t, so when I started crafting the last three chapters and doing revisions of the other 18, I realized—late, and almost because I had to—that the story didn’t revolve around the love, but about the life. The way I had plotted the last chapter of Rotten Judgement, even, was all about a political revolution! There wasn’t love in it! Or not romantic love per se. There was a birth at home! Now it’s all clear to me, but please imagine me having to write a whole seating 30-page chapter and coming to the end and… it doesn’t work.

What happened, then? What had I done wrong?

Historia, the character who’s giving birth in the bathtub, was the character who was setting the pace of the chapter, which transitioned between the birth and the demonstration. The pace of the birth was very clear to me, and every stage signalled a change in pacing overall (I won’t say much here, this belongs to the post about the last chapter and pace per se). When Historia’s son finally comes out of the womb, it serves as a little epilogue to the fast pace of the chapter. It all stops, and then the son is born.

Mikasa and Eren, the couple, help Historia with the birth of the son. Tired but exhilarated, he kinda proposes to her, and thus the first last sentence should have been born. But ending with the love of the pair would be to neglect that even if the city was burning there was a new birth, a possibility of doing things right. So, it was clear to me that I had to end the ending with Historia grabbing her son for the first time, and the son opening the eyes to this chaotic, political life—so, my second theme.

What I did was to move the couple’s scene and first last sentence to this slow pace.

The ending to that 200k story and 30 last pages of revolution ended up like this, thus:

Amidst tearful cries in the bathroom, they [Eren and Mikasa] giggle against each other desperately. And hands in hands, because they know that love is never the end of any story, they stare at each other and promise wordlessly to keep walking down this path—the one that is bumpy, full of trial and error. And swear to keep on trying, incessantly, every day, together. From out the window, the sirens hustle closer and closer to the building now. Smoke columns rise from the avenue and the Parliament. Some screams penetrate the walls of the apartment, but the air is filled with hope and the anticipation of their friends—surely—coming back. The new mother [Historia] crouches forward to the midwife, takes the head of the newborn with care, then his whole little body, red and moving, watches his little mouth open and his closed eyes and the mother puts their baby against her chest. Little Marco falls silent for a moment as if he was taking in the arduous work of being alive.

On changing endings—because of the people

On a last note, I wanted to address writers who change the ending because they see that the fans want something specific, or that the public is not taking the leading up to the ending well. Some mentions: High School Musical The Musical The Series (they changed the ending of the main pair because they saw that another ship was very famous and the main character wasn’t in the show anymore; it resulted in a shit-show of character development); Sherlock (resulted in the worst 3rd season ever); Game of Thrones (don’t let me get started); Sally Rooney’s Beautiful world, where are you (an epilogue set in the pandemic which reads like an adding that she can’t even have written); How I met your mother (oh please), and much more.

Don’t do it—don’t! You know what the story needs. You know what you want to tell. Don’t let anyone influence you. Be Succession. End when you need to end, and with what makes sense for the story to end with.

#writerblr #writing inspiration #writing #writers on tumblr #creative writing #writers #writeblr #writing advice #writing community #writing exercise #writing tips #writerscommunity #writerslife #writersociety #writer problems #aspiring author #author #writers of tumblr #writing life #writers community #hrarbycraft

[jaggededges123]

if the nies and the eighth-cest could switch one partner for a day, what do you think would happen?

okay i had to answer this first because what a mind you have, incredible <333

i'm assuming like random transmigration shenanigans or something like that lol. i think silas and mingjue would spend the entire day trying to figure out what had happened and how to reverse it because how could this happen?? no???? they need colum and huaisang back!! also i think mingjue would try to give silas so much unsolicited advice about how to train but it would be bad advice because the magic systems are completely different. silas does not take the advice, obviously. i think that silas would appreciate mingjue's very no-nonsense attitude and good moral fiber even if he is a heathen.

on the other hand, as long as colum is not strictly opposed, i think huaisang is probably giving him the best head he's gotten in his entire life lmfao. colum is v worried throughout, obviously, and so is huaisang but in all seriousness i think they would tolerate the stress of separation a lot better. if they're not fucking they're doing like... normal things, i think. colum makes huaisang tea, which is very much not up to snuff for his delicate palate because he's not from a place where all the plants are like, sickly and wilty. presuming silas and huaisang just blinked out and popped in, i think colum and huaisang both know that if there's going to be a magical/cultivation-based solution, it's probably going to come from the other side of things XD

#coffeetomb #mdzs/cql #ask game #thank you 🥺💖

[mariacallous]

The government's controversial Legacy Bill has passed after a vote in Westminster, despite widespread opposition in Northern Ireland.

A bid by the House of Lords to amend the bill was voted down by 288 to 205.

The bill ends new Troubles-era cases and inquests and offers conditional amnesty to those accused of killings.

The Irish government is considering legal action against the UK over the bill which the Democratic Unionist Party said was "abhorrent".

The bill will return to the Lords next week before going for royal assent.

It has been widely opposed by victims groups and all of Northern Ireland's political parties.

The government has said the legislation, which applies to all former members of the security forces and ex-paramilitaries, is an attempt to draw a line under the events of the past.

Prosecutions that are currently ongoing will continue to conclusion.

Veterans groups - such as the Northern Ireland Veterans Movement - widely support the bill.

However, some other military veterans have criticised it.

On Tuesday, the Lords backed an amendment to give victims' families a greater say in granting immunity from prosecution to offenders.

But the Conservative majority in the House of Commons rejected that on Wednesday, clearing the path for the legislation to be sent for royal assent.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris told the House of Commons it was incumbent on the government to find a process that "can deliver positive outcomes for as many of those directly affected by the Troubles as possible".

"We must be honest about what we can realistically deliver for people in circumstances where the prospects of achieving justice in the traditional sense are so vanishingly small," he added.

What has the reaction been?

Taoiseach (Irish prime minster) Leo Varadkar said it was "the wrong way to go about dealing with legacy issues in Northern Ireland".

"There aren't many things that all of the five main parties in Northern Ireland agree on but they all agreed this is wrong, and this is not victim-centred and not human-rights proofed," Mr Varadkar told reporters in County Wicklow.

He said the Irish attorney general is preparing advice on whether the case could be taken to the European Court of Human Rights, "essentially saying that this bill, this act is not compliant with the European Convention on Human Rights, of which United Kingdom is a signatory".

'Exceptionally cruel'

DUP assembly member Emma Little-Pengelly said the "abhorrent" passage of the bill represents a "dark day for innocent victims of the Troubles".

Ms Little-Pengelly said the bill "plays into the hands of those who want to airbrush the past".

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said he was "angry and ashamed" at the outcome of the vote and called on the Irish government to intervene.

"The British Government doesn't care about the rights of victims but the international human rights standards that we all enjoy must be defended," he said.

Speaking before the debate, Sinn Féin MP John Finucane described the bill as devastating for families, adding it would unilaterally close the door on them getting truth and justice.

Mr Finucane's father, solicitor Pat Finucane, was shot dead by loyalist gunmen at his home in Belfast in 1989.

"When we had the New Decade, New Approach political agreement, the British government made a promise, a commitment, in that agreement that they would legislate for Stormont House within 100 days," he said.

"One hundred days later, they made a very public and dramatic U-turn without any consultation.

"The British government have refused to listen and refused to act, and instead they plough ahead with a piece of legislation which is exceptionally cruel."

People Before Profit assembly member Gerry Carroll said communities "must rally in opposition" to the bill.

"Truth and justice are rights that have never truly been afforded to victims here," he said. "Campaigners have vowed not to give up in their pursuit of justice and will not stop opposing this rotten legislation."

How do victims' families feel?

Grainne Teggart, of Amnesty International UK, said it was a "dark day for justice" and that the law only absolves "those responsible for conflict-related abuses - and, shamefully, all under the guise of reconciliation".

Victims' rights campaigner Raymond McCord, whose son Raymond Jnr was murdered by loyalists in 1997, said the UK government had shown no compassion for victims.

"My next step is taking the government to court, [they] simply don't care about truth and justice," he said.

Kenny Donaldson, from victims' organisation South East Fermanagh Foundation (SEFF), said the government had "effectively relinquished their responsibilities in overseeing justice".

"It is regrettable that they were not willing to accept the very reasonable amendment which came from the House of Lords yesterday which would have ensured that victims and survivors could feel somewhat empowered."

'A terrible injustice'

The family of a man who was shot and killed by a soldier in Londonderry on 15 September 1971 earlier labelled the legacy bill "a disgrace".

William McGreanery was shot in the Bogside area of Derry by a member of the 1st Battalion Grenadier Guards.

His nephew, Billy McGreanery, who was just 13 when his uncle was killed, said he feared the bill could rob many families of justice.

Their own family's case is currently with the Public Prosecution Service (PPS).

"I think a terrible injustice has been done to every family in this country," Mr McGreanery told BBC Radio Foyle.

"On the worldwide stage it's a disgrace that they are treating people this way and if this was any other part of the UK, I don't think they would get away with this."

The topic of dealing with the past has been a contentious political issue for a long time in Northern Ireland.

More than 1,000 killings from the Troubles have never been solved.

It has been brought into the main news headlines in recent years as a soldier has been in court charged with murdering two people in 1972.

The man, known only as Soldier F, is accused of killing the men during what became known as Bloody Sunday, when the Army's Parachute Regiment opened fire on a civil rights march in Derry.

[sablelab]

Covert Operations - Chapter 227

SYNOPSIS: Letitia Chisholm makes her way to the Perch to wait for Colum Mackenzie to return from the White Room. Meanwhile surprise company is waiting for Jamie and Claire when they leave the Committee Room. Operations learns of his fate.

Chapter 226  and all other chapters can be found at … https://sablelab.tumblr.com/covertoperations 

 *This can also be read on AO3

THANK YOU all for supporting this story, for your feedback, for your likes and for reblogging each chapter. I am so grateful that you are still enjoying Covert Operations.  Thank you all so much. 👋

CHAPTER 227

James Fraser, Claire Beauchamp and Letitia Chisholm made their way from the Committee Room a short while after their leaders had left to make their way to the White Room to pass sentence on Operations.  Letitia stopped for a moment to say her goodbyes before walking towards the Perch where she would wait for Colum’s return when he had finished business with his brother.  Claire gave her a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek and Letitia responded similarly with the warmth of her embrace. Jamie watched their exchange with a deeper affection for Section One’s founding leader.

“Thank ye Letitia for all ye have done for my Sassenach, and myself in helping to bring my Claire back to me.  I will forever be grateful.”

“Oh, Jamie.  Words cannot describe how much it was you who brought me back from the brink of death myself.  You also reunited me with my love Colum Mackenzie.  You are indeed a very special man.  I am proud to call you friend and perhaps one day nephew.”

“Likewise,” he responded respectfully. “Thank ye too for yer testimony.  It certainly clarified the events that happened to Clare for her uncle.”

“It needed to be said, not only for Quentin but also to make Operations and Madeline aware that they could not get away with such methods for the reasons they did so.”

“Thank you, Letitia.  I too am thankful for your support this morning.”

“Claire, you have only a bright future to look forward to with Jamie by your side.  You both deserve only the best from here on in.”

“We will certainly call on ye for yer wise counsel if needed.”

“I am always available to be of guidance, support or assistance, if and whenever you might need it, but … I’m sure that won’t be necessary Jamie.”  Letitia replied giving him a wry grin.  “You are the best of the best and are wise and astute in all matters of the heart …,” she glanced at Claire and her smiled widened significantly, …”and in the future running of Section.  You won’t need my advice.”

James Fraser nodded in appreciation.

“Hopefully I will see you both later today or tomorrow under better circumstances.  It will be up to Mr. Lambert to decide when an announcement is to be made of Section’s new leadership.”

Claire gripped her hand overcome with emotion.  Letitia smiled and turned to make her way to the Perch knowing that this young couple had their destiny in sight.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~                                                   

Jamie and Claire watched Letitia Chisholm go and listened to the counsel of their thoughts. Little did they realise when the elevator had whooshed them quietly into the depths of the earth that it would take most of the day for Operations and Madeline’s destiny to be sealed.  They had entered Section with resolve and a steely determination for what they may face this day, and Fate had undoubtedly stepped in with a vengeance in more ways than one. All of Operations and Madeline’s past indiscretions, manipulations, management of Section operatives and any underhand machinations they had been involved in, planned and carried out, had indeed been scrutinized. Claire remembered the magnitude of questions that flooded her mind when they had entered Section, for fear of the unknown and what to expect always made her apprehensive. There had been a lot riding on the decisions that were to be made this day.  Now in retrospect, Madeline and Operations’ actions had consequences and she had paid dearly for those decisions, as too would Dougal Mackenzie.  

She couldn’t help but recall their call to come in this morning especially now they knew exactly what had concluded. The sessions in the Committee Room had been disturbing from the get go.  Much had been revealed of Operations and Madeline’s subterfuge in the way they ran Section that was eye opening.  She knew that they had manipulated her badly and had used her love for Jamie to keep him under control, but the extent of that knowledge was distressing.  She had much to think about but even more to be grateful for.  They had both felt the tension in the air when they had made their way to the Committee Room with the eyes of Section operatives on them both.  Their colleagues knew that something serious was happening but were polite enough not to ask.  They knew that in good time they may know the reason for this inquiry taking place with the Head of Centre and Oversight behind closed doors.

The inquisition had certainly been a harrowing experience especially having to relive what Madeline had put her through with the Gelman procedure.  However, in a way it was liberating too to finally have all that had happened to her out in the open.  It was necessary for both of their uncles to know what she had gone through but also what her partner had done to bring her back to life. Reliving all that had transpired and Jamie’s endeavours in saving her with Letitia’s help had opened her heart even more to how deep her love for this special man was.  She would have been bereft without his love and support and that of Murtagh too for helping him.  The fact that the wizened old codger was his godfather made the sacrifices they made to save her all the more poignant. She couldn’t love him, or Jamie more. 

Undoubtedly it was Letitia also that had been the integral factor in Jamie being able to put in place all that he did to deprogram her.  The fact that her love would have been beside himself with worry caused her distress to think about what an emotional roller-coaster ride he had been on. However, it was his steely determination and most importantly his love that had been successful in reversing the mind-altering procedure Madeline had used on her.  In thinking back on their evidence, she could only be filled with acute love for this man who held her heart.  James Fraser was a good man.  Although he was a cold-blooded killer for Section in the past, she just knew that in his role of Section’s new leader, he would be able to show another side to his personality long buried deep within him.  Section under his leadership would be more egalitarian.  Operatives would not perform under the duress that they may be cancelled.  Rather they would do the job required of them because they believed in the ethos of a new Section …  and one that protected the right of freedom and not oppression, of right rather than wrong and of free will over a hard determination. Operatives would have autonomy and agency under his leadership which they had never had before.

Life in Section One was going to change exponentially.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~    

James Fraser too held his own counsel.  In particular he needed to contemplate the news that Murtagh Fitzgibbons had been keeping a watchful eye over him without declaring his relationship as his godfather.

The information that Murtagh had been passing on crucial intel about Operations and Madeline behind their backs, only went to prove how much he must love both he and Claire.  Murtagh Fitzgibbons had always been his champion and unbeknownst to him, he now realised the why.  He had sacrificed everything to protect them both as operatives, and also their relationship.  He remembered the smug smiles he had often cast their way when they returned to Section as proud as punch that their missions had gone to plan.  But not only that, Murtagh had kept a fatherly eye on him as well as taking his Sugar under his wing since she first came into Section as a raw recruit.  Somehow, he must have known that Claire would come to mean the world to him.  He was her protective guardian, her confidant and her best friend here in Section. Murtagh Fitzgibbons always managed to make light of serious situations when Claire was in two minds about the validity of missions and the fact that her moral compass seemed to always be tested. He was a calm presence and offered wise guidance for her to ally her fears.  And she loved him.

All the news of Colum Mackenzie being his uncle, and Mr Lambert’s, Claire’s, had knocked them both for a six.  He had always thought he had his finger on all things pertaining to his Sassenach, but this information had come as a revelation left of centre.  His top priority had always been Claire and he guessed that he had taken his eye off the ball in regards to himself. He had loved that she had such a friend in Murtagh who had been stalwart in his affection for her as well. Little did he know that his godfather’s love had hovered over him also.  He couldn’t believe how lucky he had been to find his life partner in this hellhole and under the most heinous of situations.  At the same time, he had found that it was not just her love that had brought him back from the darkness, but the love of several people who had done so surreptitiously.  He felt his heart swell with the knowledge that he was no longer alone.  He was surrounded by those who loved and supported him.  He just knew that when the time came to announce his and Claire’s leadership of a new Section One, that they would be supported. Those who had done so from a distance, could now show their faces.  He felt more than optimistic. He knew that his destiny had been preordained and with his Sassenach by his side all was possible. 

He also thought back to seeing a smiling Murtagh standing with his fiancée Bóinne Rivière when they had entered Section One this morning.  He now knew why he had that reaction.  Initially he thought it was because he and Claire always seemed to warrant that reception. However, he now realised that that cheeky old bugger was hiding a secret that he would soon find out.  Could it have been that Murtagh seemed tickled pink that the truth would finally be revealed? His godfather had always been his champion, keeping him safe with his inventive gadgets and superior weaponry.  Murtagh had nursed this secret while keeping a fatherly eye over him and his Sassenach. He recalled his own reaction at seeing the proud and joyous face of Murtagh staring at him which made him give his own wry grin in response. He wanted so much to hear all about his godfather Murtagh Fitzgibbons and his presence in his life.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~    

As James Fraser and Claire Beauchamp moved outside the Committee Room they happened to glance up and see that the very person that had been on their minds was standing in the distance with another huge silly grin on his face.  Moving over to where he stood, both Jamie and Claire couldn’t help but make eye contact with the man who was his godfather … Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser.

Noticing that the two people who he loved the most came nearer with pensive looks on their faces he spoke before they had a chance to.   He knew that this was all bewildering to them and they both needed to make sense of his secret relationship with them. His eyes however, watched Jamie and his Sugar like a hawk trying to gauge their feelings.

“So, it is over then?” Murtagh asked breaking the ice before they could say anything.

“Aye.”

Raising an eyebrow in a quizzical way he asked, “I guess that you may have some questions?”

“Aye … we do.  But not here Murtagh.  This is not the place.”

“Just name where and I will be there Jamie.”

“My office in twenty minutes.  Claire and I need a moment to think.”

“As you wish,” he nodded giving them the space they both needed to contemplate on what was the most important thing they needed to know when they next met.

Murtagh Fitzgibbons watched as his godson and Claire turned in the direction of James Fraser’s office.  No doubt him being Jamie’s godfather was a shock to them but he relished Claire’s response with her eyes as they moved away.  She loved it.  She loved that he was Jamie’s godfather and she couldn’t hide her delight that it was so.  He would explain everything and answer all their questions when they met in twenty minutes time. He knew that they needed to ponder this information and needed time to make sense of it.

Turning to walk back to his munitions’ station, he couldn’t help but grin, thankful that at long last both Jamie and Claire knew the truth of their relationship.  He was grinning from ear to ear.  He had a bouncy step in his gait, and a small chuckle emitted from his lips in sheer happiness.  Murtagh Fitzgibbons Fraser couldn’t feel any better than if he had won the lottery.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The Section One operatives had been following the course of events since the arrival of the Head of Centre and Colum Mackenzie this morning, and knew that something was going down in the Committee Room, but not exactly what.  The fact that Operations and Madeline had been held in Containment and had been escorted there also meant that something big was happening.  Admittedly they had seen Operations taken back to the White Room and since then, he had not come out again. It sent a chill of dread in their mind as to what exactly was happening to the Head of Section, but also a morbid thrill at the same time that he was not in there for his health.  Operatives knew that he had been tortured and could tell by the signature incision he bore that there must have been a reason to torture Section’s leader. 

Why had he been taken back there again for another bout of Henry and Elizabeth’s modus operandi that was legendary in Section?  There could only be one reason.  Those tortured in the White Room were not there for minor transgressions.  No.  They were placed in there because there was a very good reason for doing so.  What then had Operations done that warranted him being tortured in the White Room?  Whatever it was, it must have been very serious, treasonous or it was something that had gone against Section’s principles.

Those in the Common Area had been shocked to the core when a gurney had been seen leaving the Committee Room with a body on it.  Then when the covering slipped to reveal the deathly white face of Section’s second in command, the shocking news that Madeline was dead went through Section like wildfire. It spread through the echelons of Section in a similar way as did the fact that they had been detained had done earlier yesterday.  There was not an operative from all levels who now did not know that she was gone. 

How that had happened was anyone’s guess.  Had she been eliminated in the Committee Room by the Head of Centre or Colum Mackenzie?  Or had she taken her own life?  That seemed the most probable cause as no gunshot was heard so it stood to reason that she had fallen on her own sword.  It seemed a very Madeline thing to do.  She would have wanted to be in control for that was the way she did things.  She would subject herself to no one, least of all to her superiors.  If Operations had been tortured then there was no way that Madeline would have wanted to be on the receiving end of the Torture Twins skills in persuasion. 

Nevertheless, the full story of what had really happened in the Committee Room may never be revealed.  If Operations too was eliminated by cancellation, the Head of Centre and Oversight must have had very good reasons for doing so.  This was certainly a conundrum and one that only the likes of Murtagh Fitzgibbons might know.  He was the one person in Section who always had his ear to the ground and knew things often before they even happened.  Was this sheer speculation on his behalf, or did he have prior knowledge of happenings?  Murtagh had been in Section a very long time and perhaps it was just history repeating itself that found Operations and Madeline on the receiving end of some long overdue justice for how they came to power in the first place.

The suspense of not knowing would certainly make Murtagh or his little buddy Fergus Claudel more determined to find out everything that had gone down in the Committee Room.   They had also seen the stern looking Head of Centre and the solemn face of Colum Mackenzie as they made their way to the interrogation room. 

Meanwhile in the White Room …

“Damn you, Madeline!”  

These words resonated over and over in Operations’ mind as he finally came to terms that she was no longer alive. Raising his head, he forced himself to look at his executioner in the eye with a look of steely determination.  He knew that the Head of Centre was the only one who could announce what his sentence would be.  Pride and arrogance made Dougal Mackenzie resolute in order to face his opposition with the stalwart fortitude he and Madeline had exhibited in running Section. Despite his grief, he shuffled his body in the torture chair which enabled him to sit up straighter to hear his final verdict.

The succinct, emotionless way that the Head of Centre had announced his partner’s death, was a foreboding message that his sentence would most undoubtedly be declared in the same way.  Knowing that his brother was there as well to hear the proclamation of his demise did not surprise him in the least. Considering that there was no love lost between the brothers, Colum would obviously want to make sure that when the time came, he would witness his death.

The question was would they torture him a little more or put him out of his misery?  He had asked for a bullet. That would be quick, clean and precise, but it was up to the Head of Centre to make that decision.  His brother had tortured him on two occasions now, so would he want to see him suffer for a third time just to make him capitulate and ask for forgiveness he knew would never be forthcoming?  It was blatantly obvious that Colum had the upper hand and enjoyed seeing him squirm. 

Damn you, Madeline! Why did you commit suicide?  Why did you not want to face our sentence together?  We had run Section side by side, but your decision left me to face the consequences alone, and not as the team I thought we were.  You deserted me in a blatant display of selfishness and disregard for my feelings. My thoughts may be of you, but did you even think of me when you took your own life? Obviously not. Perhaps it was always your nature to take what you wanted from others regardless of the consequences as you did from your sister when you pushed her down the stairs wanting the doll she had.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

His relationship with Madeline was indeed toxic and abusive at times. It may have been lust at first, but when scorned he responded by demanding sexual favours from her which soon turned abusive. He couldn't really come to terms with her rejection when he wanted more than she was willing to give.  While his attachment to Madeline, however one-sided and unhealthy at times, it was fairly clear that her position was much more detached. Did she love him? No … not really.  She used him. Did he love her? Probably at first. Did she merely believe that his leadership was good for Section? … In her mind what was good for him was really good for her aspirations.  She loved the power they had together as leaders.

In their world sex was a service and tool of the profession that their Valentine operatives used to lure their enemies, but what did it actually signify for them? It meant nothing apparently, for Madeline had vetoed his advances and harboured no regrets. She was devoid of any empathetic or emotional feelings for anyone really.  A romantic relationship never existed as far as she was concerned.  Madeline had no real feelings for him and that was blatantly obvious. Although they were never monogamous this added another layer of complexity to their relationship, triggering jealousy, anger, and indeed even violence on his behalf.  He felt duped, rejected and totally blindsided. It was the ultimate act of rejection, done without a care for how her death would affect him. He was ropable.

To hell with her!

However, now that Madeline was dead, he had nothing to lose.  He would go down fighting with the very last breath in his body. There was no way in Hades that he would yield to Quentin Lambert and he never would to his brother Colum.  He would not make it an easy decision for Mr Lambert to make.  He had been deprived of his closest ally and supporter, stripped of control over Section One, humiliated and exposed because of the dossiers, so he did not want to be forced to watch the persons he detested gain more and more at his expense.  Knowing that James Fraser and Claire Beauchamp would take over the running of Section One was the ultimate indignity. All that he and Madeline had done for Section over the years, was for naught. With his death, an era at Section One would come to an end.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Dougal Mackenzie was resolved to the fact that he would not leave the White Room alive and had nothing to lose with his vitriol.

“Well … I know that you are both here to torture me and witness my demise.  So, tell me … what are you planning to do that will demean me even more than you have already done?”

“I see you have not lost your sarcastic tongue Dougal,” Colum replied taking a step forward so that his brother could see his face. “Your bitterness has always been a trait of your personality.”

“Spare the platitudes.  What is my sentence? Or are you wanting to see me capitulate and beg for clemency?”

“I doubt you would ever admit defeat.  You never have … and never will.”

“Ah?  So, you plan to continue my session in the White Room a little longer just to prove a point.  Is that how it is going to be?”

“It is … if you would like it to be.”

“I am indifferent.  I care not one way or the other.”

“As you wish,” the Head of Centre announced. He then outlined the charges against Operations.  “Dougal Mackenzie Level 9, Head of Section One, Vietnam veteran, former Lieutenant, recruited into Section One just before the fall of Saigon, you have been sentenced to death for your treason, atrocities against mankind and your own personnel as well as your blatant disregard for the mantra and ethos of this organisation. Your lust for power was your ultimate undoing.”

Operations glared at him; his lips pursed in a determined way as he listened as Quentin Lambert continued.

“You were once an invaluable asset to Section One, but power corrupted you, enticing you with the thrill of accumulating more and more.  Your thirst for control gained by any means necessary is what sullied you. You are not fit to lead this organisation and have not been for some time.”

“You are rotten to the core Dougal. The information in my dossiers have proven this again and again.”

“My!  My!  Such flattery from my brother,” he replied sarcastically.  “But tell me this Colum … will my death make any difference to the chosen two?  No doubt you had our nephew earmarked for greatness.”

He then turned his steely gaze towards Quentin Lambert stating, “Your nepotism is evident with your niece too Mr Lambert. You can’t deny that it was your plan all along to make James Fraser and Claire Beauchamp the new leaders of Section.”

“You were distrustful of my niece and your nephew, and attempted to kill them on a number of occasions, despite grudgingly being forced to accept their success at completing Section One missions.  I’m sure it pains you to acknowledge that they are indeed the rightful successors for leadership. You know this is the truth and your thwarted any chance of them taking over command with the manipulation of them.  You wanted and needed to hold on to your power at all costs.”

Operations refused to acknowledge the truth of the Head of Centre’s words and remained stoic.

“You and Madeline never ever played by the Section Rule Book Dougal. You always made your own strategies by whichever way would best suit your objectives, regardless if it was ethical or not.  This brother was also your undoing.”

“You are enjoying this aren’t you Colum?  You have waited a long time for me to have my comeuppance.  And now you can gloat.  How does it feel to be superior?” was his scurrilous retort.

“I am not crowing brother.  In fact, I pity you. Your pride got the better of you until you were unable to see right from wrong. This is a situation of your own making.  It has been proven irrefutably that the crimes you and Madeline committed is why you find yourself in this circumstance.”

“I'm impressed with your diligence Colum. Not many people could have deceived Madeline and I so thoroughly … touché!  Congratulations, you've won at last.” “I won a long time ago brother. I had to draw you both out. You should have accepted it and moved on. Letitia taught me well.  Now it has all come to this.”

“I believe that you must have had help in compiling your dossiers Colum.  Section must have had another mole who was passing on information.  Who was it?”

“Murtagh Fitzgibbons,” he replied taking in the surprised look on his brother’s face.

Swallowing the bitter pill of the knowledge of this information, and although aggrieved that his Vietnam colleague was responsible for this transgression against him and Madeline, he was resigned to the fact that his intel had been correct. They had both been responsible for the atrocities outline in each section of the dossiers and now he knew it was time to pay the piper, which the Head of Centre did.

“Before I pass sentence,” Mr. Lambert stated, “I believe you have something that belongs to me.”

Operations couldn’t reach into his clothing, but Colum did, and removed the silver Chain of Command that was around his neck.  If he could have had a last say in procedures, he would have ignored his brother, taken the chain from around his neck himself and let it fall to the floor with a thud in a last act of defiance. He didn’t have that chance but his eyes registered the hate for these two men clearly enough that his thoughts were apparent to them.

“Dougal Mackenzie.  You asked that your death be by a bullet.  I am granting that request.”

As Colum passed the chain in his hand to the Head of Centre, Operations stated unflinchingly, “So magnanimous of you sir…  but I thank you.”

“Here you are, Quentin … You have command back,” the Head of Oversight stated solemnly.

“Yes … I have command of Section, which in due course I will pass on to its new leader.”

Then turning back to Operations sitting in the metal chair Mr Lambert finished relaying his judgement. “Dougal Mackenzie … You will be taken from the White Room to await your execution. May God have mercy on your soul.”

With those final words, Colum Mackenzie and Quentin Lambert turned away and made their way out of the White Room, leaving a now despondent Operations with his thoughts of his imminent execution resounding in his head.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~to be continued Friday 16th September

#jamieandclairefanfiction #jamieandclairecrossover #outlander fanfic #the lallybroch library #crossover outlander/lfn spies modernau #outlander fanfiction #lfnoutlander #sablelab #jamie and claire

[abimee]

i think we need less of those stupid advice colum articles that are like ''MY SISTER HAS BIPOLAR. NOBODY IN THE FAMILY WANTS TO INVITE HER TO CHRISTMAS BECAUSE WERE SCARED OF HER. IM NOT EVIL AM I?" and more stuff about demonic it is that these degenerates aggravate their relative's bipolar and cast them out all because theyre too fucking stupid to be decent human beings my god i hope these peoples houses catch on fire from their gaudy christmas trees

[tolkien-feels]

I just read your thoughts about Nienna and Manwer and I loved your take! What are some other thoughts you have about the Valar, especially their relations with the maiar?

(Please pretend I'm answering this in a timely manner)

This post, right? Yeah, that's one of the way too many thoughts I have on the Ainur.

You see, I grew up reading Padraic Colum's The Children of Odin so when I got to the Silm I was, if anything, more at home with the Valar than with the elves (who weren't much like the elves I knew from the Hobbit and LotR) - and then when I read the Book of Lost Tales I was like "!!!!!! This feels even more like coming home!!!!" Which is why I never shut up about BoLT!Valar even though I don't usually talk much about HoME

People very often either dislike the Ainur (either as in "I don't like how they're written" or as in "they're incompetent/evil") or else they like them to be eldritch beings. These are all very valid readings of the text, but I tend to see the Ainur as simply another step on the hobbit > men > elves loose hierarchy Tolkien has got going on. I see them as fundamentally alike the Children of Iluvatar, differing in culture and might but not really in nature (at least not completely - though there are canonical differences.)

I also think that, fallen Ainur aside, they're all genuinely doing their best even though that is often not enough - most of my issues with how they behave are really issues I have with Tolkien's worldview, and that's something that comes up in many other situations as well and I'm not getting into it. But all in all: my take on the Ainur is that they're fundamentally good even if flawed.

Now as for how I headcanon the relationship between the Valar and the Maiar: Complex™️

For one, I think it depends on the specific beings involved. Uniformity is Sauron's thing - Iluvatar actively encourages diversity and creativity, so I see no reason why there would be a rigid pattern they have to conform to.

Similarly, I also don't think that the Maiar are (functionally) a race created to be slaves, which is a take I've seen more frequently than I'd expect. You know that scene when Aragorn calls Faramir from the shadows and Faramir just... instinctively recognizes Aragorn's authority, and is moved to offer his service to the king with the very first words he speaks? That's how I imagine the Maiar. They're an extremely idealized embodiment (hm... enspirtment? They don't actually have bodies to embody anything lol) of the love of a vassal towards a lord. Similarly, the Valar themselves are ideal lords, and their authority is benevolent, not tyrannical.

Many of the Maiar we meet in the Silm were children of the Valar when Tolkien first came up with them, and I like to keep some of that by having part of the authority of the Valar take the shape of guidance. You know how the Valar often go to Manwe for advice when a situation is too important or complex for them to feel sure on how to act? I imagine that's how the Maiar are.

But while speaking of authority, I have to say that I think the relationship between Valar and Maiar is pretty much defined by love. There's no reason why it shouldn't be, given how Tolkien's universe works. Think... Frodo and Sam but on a cosmic scale? Like, there is a clear hierarchy, but the mutual devotion is really the most important and remarkable aspect.

As for specifics, like I said, I headcanon it would really, really depend on who we're talking about. Crafty Aule probably teaches his Maiar stuff all the time in a way I don't imagine Ulmo does. Manwe is probably way, way more inclined to be Soft™️ than Mandos. Orome's Maiar probably hunt with him, and Nessa's dance with her. There's just... A lot of room for diversity - and I'm speaking of broad groups here. But there's no way Mairon and Curumo had the same relationship with Aule, because their personalities are simply too different.

This is. Already way too long. So I'll shut up now. But feel free to ask me to elaborate on any of these points! I just don't want to bore you

[thisismynamenowxpoetry]

ALL THESE WRITING TIPS DONT APPLY I USE WIZE 14 COURIER NEW AND ARC COS I DONT LIKE FINAL DRAFT WHERE ARE THE ADVICE COLUMS FOR MEEE?

#screenwriting #it’s fun #but it kinda sucks #but I love it

[strawberryblondebutch]

Fic writer asks: B & R (and if it doesn't break the rules of ask memes to add to R: how much overlap is there between those who were the strongest influences and those you most enjoyed as a reader?)

B: What was the first fandom you read fic in? Which was the first you wrote fic for? I have no idea, for the first part. The first fic I remember reading was for DC Comics, because I was reading a lot of Green Arrow and Birds of Prey at the time, but this was on AO3 and I know I was reading stuff on FF.net, I just can't remember it. The first that I wrote for was actually Paper Girls, back before it was adapted into a TV show - I was ahead of my time! I also predicted Kajemac probably a year before it was canon. Brian K. Vaughan, I'm ON TO YOU

R: Which writers (fanfic or otherwise) do you consider the biggest influence on you and your writing? Oh man. There are a lot of fic writers that I like who make me want to be a bigger writer that I actually won't list them, because I /know/ I'll forget someone and kick myself over it. My favorite non-fic author is Joan Didion, and I also love Stephen Graham Jones, Colum McCann, and Don DeLillo. I'd throw DeLillo under strongest influences; he has a very distinct writing style that's hard to get out of my head whenever I read something of his. My other influences are Carmen Maria Machado and Kelly Sue DeConnick, because I've actually taken writing classes with both of them! Machado gave me the best advice I've ever received, which is: "How can you go wrong with lesbian werewolves?"

Fic Writer Asks

#gasp! i speak!

[urbanhermit]

Saint Columba of Iona (521-597) Apostle of the Picts, Apostle to Scotland, Abbot, Missionary, Evangelist, Poet, Scholar and Writer – born on 7 December 521 at Garton, County Donegal, Ireland and died on 9 June 597 at Iona, Scotland and buried there. Patronages – Derry, against floods, bookbinders, poets, co-patron of Ireland and of Scotland. St Columba is also known as Coim, Colmcille, Colum, Columbkill, Columbkille, Columbus, Columcille, Columkill, Combs. Additional Memorials – 6 January as one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland, 17 June translation of relics. Well-born, handsome and educated, Columban was torn between a desire for God and easy access to the pleasures of the world. Acting on advice of a holy anchoress, he decided to withdraw from the world. His family opposed the choice, his mother going so far as to block the door. He became a Monk at Lough Erne and studied Scripture extensively, writing a commentary on the Psalms. He then became a Monk at Bangor under abbot Saint Comgall. In middle age, Columban felt a call to missionary life. With twelve companions (Saint Attala, Columban the Younger, Cummain, Domgal, Eogain, Eunan, Saint Gall, Gurgano, Libran, Lua, Sigisbert and Waldoleno) he travelled to Scotland, England and then to France in 585. The area, though nominally Christian, had fallen far from the faith but were ready for missionaries and they had some success. They were warmly greeted at the court of Gontram and king of Burgundy invited the band to stay. They chose the half-ruined Roman fortress of Annegray in the Vosges Mountains for their new home with Columban as their abbot. Columban always enjoyed being in the forests and caves and as he walked through the woods, birds and squirrels would ride on his shoulders. Toward the end of his life came word that his old enemies were dead and his brothers wanted him to come back north, but he declined. Knowing that his time was almost done, he retired to a cave for solitude and died as he had predicted. https://www.instagram.com/p/CelgIbsrgWo/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[dariamalek]

The Perfect “Quarantine Routine”

Giving it a fun, rhyming name makes it a little less stressful, right?

I have to admit, I have been extremely MIA for the last few weeks and it’s honestly because I didn’t have anything to write to you guys. I have about 8 different partially finished posts in my drafts folder that I just didn’t get a chance to complete and there was just one culprit for my case of writer’s block: quarantine.

Dun, dun, DUUUN.

So we’re all either extremely annoyed of staying home, going through our own cases of the grumps and eating LOTS. I, for one, have been doing all those things simultaneously and I think I found the reason why some people are not very happy with this quarantine.

Many of you have had your jobs or schools temporarily cancelled and closed down, thus having you stay home with nothing to do except binge Netflix and well, eat. This will make someone feel as mush as my grandmother’s mashed potatoes (which would make for an amazing snack along side some Ritz crackers, I’ll tell you) however, I have found the one thing that will make this feeling of extensive laziness go away: a routine. Which, I should mention, is also what many of you lost in the first place that is making you feel this way.

I’ve made posts about routines in the past including my “Bedtime Routine,” “Morning Routine” and “My Perfect Routine For 9-5 Jobs” which are all currently linked. However, I never explained my psychological reasoning behind why and how having routines benefit us, which is strange given the clear biography on my page.

Firstly, routines can help with insomnia and sleeping schedules. Though your brain remains active when you sleep, it is still getting recharged. However, when your brain or body aren’t really working, or doing anything during the day, the brain does not feel like it needs to recharge at night. Thus, making it difficult for you to fall asleep. Having a routine and items on your daily schedule to complete will help your brain feel like it’s actually doing something throughout the day and working and no, watching “Deep Sea” documentaries on Netflix doesn’t count as “working.”

Stress is also big during quarantine. Whether it’s about your job or the literal pandemic going on outside your window (it’s one of those “see but can’t touch” moments), it’s understandable that you would feel extremely anxious during this period. Setting a time for things in a routine help your mind understand that you do have time for everything - and this works especially well if you’re working from home. However, adding some time for relaxation or something fun (in my case, watching Jane The Virgin on Netflix #TeamMichael) will give your brain an incentive, reassuring yourself that you do have time for literally everything in the day. Also, getting used to a daily routine will help your brain slowly predict its daily tasks, thus reducing anxiety.

So now that we’ve covered all the science stuff, here’s a little sneak peak on how I planned out my “Quarantine Routine.”

It’s been a few weeks of quarantine and I’ve learnt that planning weekly is the best way to go, especially if you work at home like me and don’t want to be up until two in the morning in bed typing away, extremely annoying your sleeping partner (because he still has to go to work in the morning). This is also good if you’re a student who has finished their exams and don’t have much to do.

Make sure you have something productive to the three most important elements during quarantine: your job/school, your space and yourself.

Here’s how i planned out my week: I looked at my work at a week’s worth and stretched that along Monday - Friday, that way I am not stuck at a computer screen for hours upon end each day. Then, I found a new part of the house to clean or redecorate everyday. If I have a heavier workload, I will just dust or vacuum the house. Make sure that there is a balance between workload and lifeload. Then, I found something that I wanted to do that would help me with my mental wellness. For me it’s reading, finding a new cooking/baking recipe, writing, painting; stuff that will help you connect with yourself.

Here’s how it panned out:

7-7:30: Good morning!

7:30-8: Take this time to do your morning routine. Brush your teeth, wash your face: taking care of hygiene, regardless of whether you’re staying home or not can impact your mental wellness extensively. Do your morning routine like you would if you were going out somewhere.

8-9: Do a light workout. Since the weather is getting better, maybe go for a walk outside. According to Craig Janes, director of the school of public health at the University of Waterloo, going for a walk is totally fine during the COVID-19 outbreak. Just be wary of social distancing and stay cautious: this means staying 2 metres away from others at all times. Getting fresh air could improve your mental or physical health. During my walks, I also tend to take my protein shake (aka breakfast because I have IBS which means I have scratched off most breakfast foods off my diet list) in order to make sure I don’t get hungry. You could eat breakfast before or after your workout or take a protein bar with you on your walk. I tend to rotate my physical activity from light at home workouts, yoga and going outside for walks.

9-9:30: Take a nice relaxing shower. Don’t be afraid to spend a little more time in there. There’s no rush and really let your muscles relax. Make yourself a nice protein sake while you finish off with your skincare routine. Just because nobody is going to see you doesn’t mean you can’t take care of yourself.

9:30-11:30: I like to do my work at two hour intervals. I try to aim for 4 hours of work a day in order to complete my weekly load. This may be different for you depending on how much work you need to complete or what you attention span is like.

11:30-12:30: LUNCH! I’ve tried cooking my lunches as much as I can rather than having leftovers, which help with the whole “productivity” thing. However, eating outdoors really does help. Fresh air will make you feel much more productive going  back to work.

[TIP]: Keeping a diet log can be super helpful for those who overeat or snack throughout the day like I do. Put down the times you will eat breakfast, lunch and dinner and then you can determine what the right time is to snack for you. It should be 3 meals a day and 2 chances to snack!

12:30-2:30: Back to work!

2:30-3:30: This is when you can binge your Netflix show, read a chapter of your book or just relax, have a cup of tea. NO NAPS! We are trying to make sure you fall asleep by the end of the night.

3:30-4:30/5: This is the time where you do something light and breezy in order to better your space, which is another important element of mental wellness during quarantine. Without taking care of your space, overtime it will get messier and it will become a distraction. Getting into the habit of doing light cleaning will help you better your mental wellness, even after quarantine as well, and lessen your lifeload. On this specific day, I started my deck transformation for spring. Started putting up the table and the barbecue and unloading some spring activities from the shed, and redecorating the furniture on my deck. This is also another good time to snack!

4:30/5-5:30: Relax again, but do something different! Don’t go back onto the TV. Maybe do some writing or art exercises. Play a game with someone if you live with them. Go sit outside for a bit. Sing or play music. Don’t use your relaxing time to do repetitive things, otherwise you will get bored quickly and run out of ways to unwind in the future.

5:30-6:30/7: Depending on whether or not you have a family, intermediately fast or need to cook before you serve, your timing on dinner may be a little all around the place. But that’s okay. If you can, try having dinner with your family, roommates or significant other - all at the table with no phones. This is a great way to have some social interaction during quarantine. It’s important to remember there’s life beyond this and once it’s over, you will get back to your own routine. Try not to talk about “updates on COVID-19″ but rather talk about something new that you learnt today. I’ve started my joke of the day segment which my partner doesn’t find too appealing so I’ve switched to fun facts (because word of the day was too easy). Today it was: frogs absorb water through their skin so they don't need to drink. Pretty cool, huh? Totally forgot about quarantine.

6:30/7-8:30/9: I personally use this time to meditate and connect with my body. Maybe do some stretching and self reflective activities. Just being able to be one with my thoughts and making sure I am doing well. This also includes phoning a friend and seeing how they are doing. Remember, just because you don’t see a face(s), doesn’t mean they’re not out there. Maybe your friends need your spiritual company as well. Feel free to have some fruit snacks as well. I even schedule out my snack times because I don’t want to over-eat.

9-10: This is movie time for me, but again it’s up to you how you want to use your downtime. Spending an hour with your significant other or family is much needed right before bed.

10-11: Start your bedtime routine! Mine will be linked here.

11-Zzz: Lay in bed and close your eyes. If you need to listen to some light piano music, go ahead. Eventually, you will feel your eyes getting heavy and you will drift to sleep.

I understand these are trying times. However, understand they are just temporary. I also urge you all to listen when they are asking you to stay home and be safe, as well as practicing social distancing. This will not go away if we are not listening to our doctors.

Also, take the time to thank our medical professionals who are away from their families in order to work hard to help the rest of us stay healthy and safe during these times. Your service is much appreciated.

And most importantly: take care of yourselves and your loved ones. Don’t panic over every news story. Turn off the news for a little while and just relax and forget about it. We will all go back to our norma lives once this is over only if we listen and cooperate.

Be safe and take care of yourselves.

[NOTE FROM DARIA: You will notice that my writing style is a lot different than in this post. I wanted to be able to comfort and connect with all of you as much as I could in this post, mainly because a lot of people (including myself) are quite anxious about our current standing. I feared if I wrote a piece that was similar to my other posts in tone, it would diminish my goal for this text due to it sounding more like a lecture rather than a helpful piece. I am curious to know whether or not I should continue writing my texts like this, or if you prefer the wordier posts.]

With love,

daria xx

#quarantine #social distancing #covid-19 #corona virus #hygeine #mental wellness #mental health #insomnia #anxiety #sleep #laziness #netflix #jane the virgin #routines #psychologist #therapy #Health and Body #mental health awareness #advice blog #advice colum #meditation #relaxation

[askjennie]

Hi Jennie, do you think that a LDR is what’s best for a person sometimes? I’m constantly working and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to hold up a relationship where I see them all the time. I have someone in my life who I’ve grown close to for the past couple months and have met up a few times. We want to be together, but lots of people say it’s a bad idea to be in a LDR but can it be a good thing? I don’t get people seeing it as a burden while it works with my lifestyle right now?

Yes, I think so. Different people need different things from their relationships. For some people, a long distance relationship seems impossible, because they just couldn’t deal with not seeing their partner all the time. For some people, a long distance relationship isn’t fun, but it’s something that they can manage to do because they’re committed to being with their partner. And for some people, a long distance relationship actually really suits them, because they like living independently and don’t feel the need to spend a huge amount of time with their partner. 

So, if what other people say doesn’t ring true for you, then you don’t need to listen to it. They may be talking about their own feelings and experiences, without taking your feelings and experiences into account. You only need to listen to your own needs, and your potential partner’s needs, and figure out if this is an arrangement that could work for you or not.

#advice #ask me anything #ldr #long distance relationship #relationships #advice blog #advice colum #askjennie

[the-friendly-editor]

Don't tell too many people that you're working on a book. Don't give them the chance to ask you if you've finished it yet. Don't let them torture you at parties. There's almost nothing worse than the question, 'How's that book of yours coming along?' (It's second to hearing that someone else has actually finished a book.) Most people don't know how long it actually takes for a book to get written. Just say 'it's on its way'--even if it's not exactly on its way. Keep working, keep shaping. Eventually it will happen. Maybe even sooner than you think.

Colum McCann, Letters to a Young Writer

#writing advice #writing #writing positivity #colum mccann #colum mccann letters to a young writer

[loudmouthbrowngirl]

Dear Men

Dear Men, @allthoseblogs @sotonbloggers #beechat #bbloggers @ISpyaBlog @9jaBloggers @AfroBloggers @RetweetBloggers @Bloggeration_ #TheClqRT @LovingBlogs #BlackLGBTQ

I’ve been thinking about this for a very long time. Probably because women such as myself have been fighting for the same rights and freedoms men have had for hundreds of thousands of years.

There is this prevailing theory that once upon a time, women were considered powerful and that power was respected. Largely because women could bring life into the world and men could not.

There was a…

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#advice #Battles and Beefs #colum #Women