#german indie writer | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

blackswaneuroparedux · 11 months

Text

We might know how it ends, but like all good stories it bears repetition. So here it is again, the story of a battle.

Bernard Cornwell, Waterloo: The True Story of Four Days, Three Armies and Three Battles

So I've been getting lots of questions about the significance of the Battle of Waterloo for Britain, France, and indeed Europe.

Great claims have been made as to the legacy of the Battle of Waterloo; but it is not as clear cut as many may claim; for it certainly did not crush all French opposition in a single blow; it did not augur in a century of enduring peace and prosperity across Europe; nor can it claim to have permanently re-established the monarchical system in Europe. Therefore after all the glory, the death and suffering caused on that battlefield, what were its real long term legacies?

For the people living in the vicinity of Waterloo, the utter destruction of the land and of their homes was devastating to their lives, but time soon healed the wounds on the landscape and the abandoned equipment scattered across the battlefields became a virtual treasure trove for the locals as the field of Waterloo was soon at the top of every travellers ‘must see’ list during a sojourn in Belgium. Numbers lived for years selling relics of the battle or became guides to the battlefield as the bloody fields instantly became a top tourist attraction. Every poet and writer in Europe had to visit to witness the scenes of devastation before penning their impressions and publishing to an eager audience, hungry for every new edition.

When they are examined with the benefit of hindsight, battles are rarely accorded the significance given to them. Few become venerated among a nation’s lieux de mémoire, or contribute to the foundation myths of modern nations. Of the battles of the Napoleonic Wars, it is arguable that Leipzig [the 1813 battle lost to the Allies by French troops under Napoleon] has its place in the rise of German nationalism, even if its real importance was greatly exaggerated and mythologized by 19th-century cultural nationalists. In Pierre Nora’s magisterial study of France, only Bouvines, in 1214 [which ended the 1202–14 Anglo-French War], makes the cut. Waterloo, unsurprisingly, does not figure.

Yet at the time Waterloo was hailed in Britain as a battle different in scale and import from any other of the modern era. It had, it was claimed, ushered in a century of peace in continental Europe. It had brought to a close, in Britain’s favour, the centuries-old military rivalry with France. And it had ended France’s dream of building a great continental empire in Europe, while leaving Britain’s global ambitions intact. If the Victorian age could be claimed as ‘Britain’s century’, it was her victory over Napoleon that had ushered it in. Britain, it seemed, had every reason to celebrate, every reason to claim Waterloo as its own.

To some extent Britain’s response was justified; it was a victory that positioned the country favourably, bolstering its global ambitions and helping to create the conditions for the economic success that lay ahead in the Victorian era. Having laid the final, decisive blow on Napoleon, Britain could command a leading role in the peace negotiations that followed and thus shape a settlement that suited its interests. While other coalition states claimed back sections of Europe, the Vienna Treaty gave Britain control over a number of global territories, including South Africa, Tobago, Sri Lanka, Martinique and the Dutch East Indies, something that would become instrumental in the development of the British Empire’s vast colonial command. It is not surprising then that in other parts of Europe, Waterloo - though still widely acknowledged as decisive - is generally accorded less significance than the Battle of Leipzig.

If Waterloo was Britain’s greatest military triumph, as it is often feted, it surely does not owe that status to the battle itself. Military historians generally agree that the battle was not a great showcase of either Napoleon’s or Wellington’s strategic prowess. Indeed, Napoleon is commonly believed to have made several important blunders at Waterloo, ensuring that Wellington’s task of holding firm was less challenging than it might have been. The battle was a bloodbath on an epic scale but, as an example of two great military leaders locking horns, it leaves a lot to be desired.

The short term significance in the aftermath of the Battle of Waterloo marked the end of Napoleon’s storied military career. He reportedly rode away from the battle in tears. Though he emerged victorious, the Duke of Wellington later reflected on the the horrific costs of that victory: “My heart is broken by the terrible loss I have sustained in my old friends and companions and my poor soldiers. Believe me, nothing except a battle lost can be half so melancholy as a battle won.” Wellington went on to serve as British prime minister, while Blucher, in his 70s at the time of the Waterloo battle, died a few years later.

Waterloo’s long term significance must surely be the role it played in achieving lasting peace in Europe. Wellington, who did not share Napoleon’s relish for battle, is said to have told his men, “If you survive, if you just stand there and repel the French, I’ll guarantee you a generation of peace”. Perhaps the lesson of this historic battle the nations of Europe which fought as foes that day need to forget these old sores and celebrate together; recognising that it did force Europe to acknowledge that it must find a new path of reconciliation and accord. This road has been far from smooth, but each time it has failed, a greater understanding of the need for the European states to work more closely together has emerged from the ashes.

Ultimately this is the truly significant importance of Waterloo.

#cornwell #bernard cornwell #quote #waterloo #battle of waterloo #wellington #napoleon #britain #france #prussia #europe #germany #battle #war #napoleonic war #politics #peace #military history #history

83 notes · View notes

stereopticons · 7 months

Text

20 questions for fic writers!

tagged by @rmd-writes

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

78! Which is honestly still astounding to me.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

327,853

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Schitt’s Creek, with a smattering of RWRB and 911

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

the lie between your teeth (SC)

if I’m not beyond repair (SC)

never knew a home before I found your hands (RWRB)

love you in moderation (do I look moderate to you?) (SC)

so bitter and so sweet (SC)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Yes! I am very slow at it but I do eventually respond to them (I promise!).

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I mostly only write HEA, but I guess I have to go with (we’ll always long for) one more song by nature of it being MCD (but after a long life, at least)

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

How do you judge which happy ending is the happiest? I do not know.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Once and I did not appreciate it one bit.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

I do. It’s the kind that always has a lot of feelings in it (and is often a lil bit kinky)

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

I have only written one—twist yourself around me, which was pre-canon SC/Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. I did have an idea for a v smutty SC/911 crossover with slut era Buck but I have yet to write it.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not a whole fic, as far as I know.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

No, but I would be open to it!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes! It was a lot of fun and I would love to do it again.

14. What’s your all time favorite ship?

David/Patrick

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I’m not willing to admit defeat on any of them just yet, even when it feels like I’ll never finish anything again.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I think feelings and introspection. At least I hope so.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Not using the word murmurs. I’m getting better at world building but it’s still a weakness.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I included David speaking German in a fic once because I headcanon that both he and Alexis speak multiple languages. I think if it’s done right and you don’t rely on online translators, it can be good!

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Rent

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

How am I supposed to pick one out of 78?! I was going to say if I’m not beyond repair but I went over to grab the link and was scrolling through my works like oh but I love this one too!! I think my actual favorite is the as yet incomplete indie band Patrick which I swear I’m gonna finish one day (but if you want to read part of it that IS posted, that’s you light me up like starlight. The full fic will be a prequel)

Tagging @indestructibleheart @nontoxic-writes @blackandwhiteandrose @hippolotamus @lizzie-bennetdarcy @jettestar @alienajackson @rosedavid @housewifebuck @kiwiana-writes @mostlyinthemorning @apothecarose and anyone else who wants to play

#tag game

22 notes · View notes

violetfaust · 6 months

Text

The Broken Destiel Seals: A Semicomprehensive Unillustrated List

(So far)

I didn't complete my (self-appointed) assignment for Destiel Day, which was to compile a complete list of every time Destiel went canon (thus breaking one of the Sixty-Six Seals: when they all fall, the pale coconuts will collide), with nice gifs. To me, Destiel is "canonized" by persons/entities who officially create and distribute the show: producers, writers, actors, directors, other crew, translators, and networks.

Have, instead, this work in progress.

November 5, 2020, 15x18, “Despair”: Cas declares his love.

Then:

Nov. 11, 2020: Misha Collins at DCLOnline: “It was a long time in the making. It was really important to [Robert Berens] and really important to me. When he pitched me the storyline it gave me chills. I thought - this is awesome. This vindication and this expression of love - at the end - it makes it all worth it. I was really happy about it. You know, it’s interesting, there are some fans who are asexual who have taken solace in the fact that Cas hasn’t made this kind of declaration [before] so I feel bad that those fans might get a little bit alienated. However, I’m sure that a lot of them are also okay with this. There’s a trope in Hollywood of “kill the gays” and so Cas meeting with his demise only seconds after making this homosexual declaration of love fits into that fairly insidious trope, however, for some reason, that is, in my mind, not really as important as the declaration itself.”

Nov. 12, 2020, 15x19, “Inherit the Earth”: Lucifer, whose signature move is pretending to be a dead lover to get someone to let him in (done to Sam, Nick, and Vince Vincente), pretends to be Cas when calling Dean.

November 19, 2020, 15x20, “Carry On”: Bobby’s knowing eyebrow waggle when telling Dean that Cass "helped"--was safe in heaven.

November 25, 2020, the Latin American dub: “Te amo.” “Y yo a ti, Cas.” https://teamironmanforever.tumblr.com/post/637355024027090944/highlight-translation-of-the-spanish-dub-actor

Those are the first five seals, taking us to the end of November 2020.

But they were just the beginning.

December 6, 2020, 5x4 “The End” script: “I think the only thing we have left, me and Dean, is each other.”

December 6, 2020: confirmation that Dean was scripted to say “I love you” in the crypt scene.

December 11, 2020, 15x18 script direction: “Still beautiful. Still Dean Winchester.”

December 28, 2020, 7x1 script direction: “Dean looks down, away, quietly emotional—believe it or not, the following is a loving, heart-wrenched eulogy.”

January 8, 2021: Sky Deutschland describes Cas’s closest relationship as “Dean <3”

March 3, 2021, 15x18 German dub

March 10, 2021, 15x18 French dub

March 25, 2021: Before airing the SPN finale, Sky Deutschland shares Destiel reunion fanart. https://www.instagram.com/p/CM2hL42CQbO/

April 4, 2021: cameo with Misha reciting deleted bit from 05x04 The End gets published

April 10, 2021, Misha at Paris DarkLight Conline: The mix tape contained rock love songs.

April 18, 2021, 13x6 second draft script: Dean spread Cas’s ashes in a beautiful meadow near a windmill.

Note: from November 2020 to the beginning of May 2021, Destiel was going canon an average of once a week.

6/18/21, 15x18 Russian dub: “From our very first meeting, ever since I pulled you out of hell, I’ve been changing beside you. I learned love from you.” “Don’t even think about it, Cas.”

6/30/21, original script for 8x17, “Good-bye Stranger”: “I forgive you, Cas…I love you.”

9/4/21, Misha Collins at Memento Con 21: “Cas saw love in Dean’s eyes.”

9/9/21: the Italian dub’s “I love you” is platonic (unlike all other translations); Misha retorts with a “Ti amo” tweet.

10/15/21, DenCon 21:

April 2022, SPN Indy: Misha confirms that Jensen/Radio Company song “Watching Over Me” is about Cas

9/5/22, 13x20 “Unfinished Business” production script: “I lost Cas and it damn near broke me.”

10/23/22, Jensen Ackles at VanCon 22: “I had an answer for that in the next set up--camera set up after Castiel is taken and Dean's on the floor and puts his--I put my--my head in my hands--um--in that moment I did that not because I just lost--well because I--I-- he--because I lost Cas, but also because I didn't-- I didn't say anything--I didn't give him anything. And--what I had in my head was, I should have said 'I love you too' and hugged him."

Note: Someone in the future will earn their doctorate in psychology studying Jensen Ackles's tangled pronouns when he talks about Dean.

11/16/22, 14x10 “Prophet and Loss” blue pages: “The world loses you, and me—I—I lose you too. And that is unacceptable to me, Dean. Unacceptable. Totally.”

2/25/23, JA at JIB 2023: “Well, I mean hopefully we get to see that at some point but I'm sure it would go how we all think it would go, it would probably be a big embrace and then Dean would say ‘Can we talk about that goodbye a little bit?’"

February 2023, JIB: Jensen and Misha write a Destiel song onstage

8/23/23: News breaks that the Latin American translator “doesn’t add stuff” and while he doesn’t remember specifically, he thinks Dean’s reciprocation must have been in the script he worked from. https://www.tumblr.com/blanketforcas/726452424930410496/context-for-those-who-missed-it

Those are the roughly 28 Destiel Seals through 11/5/23.

And counting...

#destiel #spn #nov 5th #dean winchester #castiel #the destiel seals #to date #remember remember the fifth of november #to repeat:#in late 2020/early 2021 destiel was going canon an average of once a week #op

10 notes · View notes

checkoutmybookshelf · 8 months

Text

Lady Whistledown Returns: Chapter 4

Six writers, inclement weather, and one villa. How will the situation handle an unexpected visitor?

Need to catch up? Find previous chapters and works on AO3.

This chapter does not have any content warnings.

The first few weeks at Villa Diodati were characterized by incessant thunderstorms, pouring rain, and temperatures close to freezing. The papers increasingly attributed the weather to a volcanic eruption in the Dutch East Indies, but their stories differed, and Byron opined that the persistent fog that the American newspapers insisted was reddening the skies and dulling the sun couldn’t possibly be anything but American hysteria. Anthony’s letters had been full of concern about bringing the crops to maturity, and Kate’s and Violet’s letters had been full of little else than Anthony’s temper and the utter inadequacy of that year’s fashions for the temperature. Eloise’s letters bemoaned the lack of meetings about women’s rights and insisted that Penelope introduce her to the daughter of the great Mary Wollstonecraft. When Penelope had mentioned this to Mary, she had half sighed and half giggled, and agreed to include a short missive to Eloise in Penelope’s next letter to her.

After nearly a week of evenings of the Bridgertons, Shelleys, Byron, and Polidori huddling around a fire in the drafty sitting room attempting to find topics of conversation that were not bemoaning the lack of summer, Byron produced Fantasmagoriana—a French anthology of German ghost stories—with so much flourish and fanfare that Penelope half expected him to claim the works of Shakespeare. He proceeded to insist on dramatic readings to “suit the mood of the evenings.” Penelope enjoyed the first evening; Byron was an engaging reader, nearly theatrical in his voice and in how he used the space in the room as he read.

Subsequently, however, Byron became less and less enamored with the exercise. He was politely complimentary of Mary and Penelope’s readings, but barely civil with Colin and actively derogatory with Polidori’s and Shelley’s readings. He took to pacing about the room as others read, distractedly and distractingly cracking his knuckles.

Penelope began writing short editions of Whistledown to bleed off the stress and tension of Byron behaving like a particularly tetchy bomb that seemed to refuse to just go off already and resolve the tension. She shared these privately with both Colin and Mary; collectively they agreed that while the short works were perhaps a bit cutting, they were not inaccurate.

By the evening that would have heralded Byron’s second turn to read aloud, he had become truly insufferable, spending his days alternating between brooding in the day room while spread across a truly astounding amount of furniture and disappearing altogether. As the group gathered, expecting to finish the book that night, Byron bounded in with all of their travel writing cases in his arms.

“Inspiration must strike,” he declared, enthusiastically shoving writing cases into arms. Penelope and Polidori politely exchanged cases, as did Mary and Colin while Byron gesticulated wildly, nearly decking Shelley in the head with his own sturdy case. “Forget simply reading others’ uninspired ghost stories; we can and we shall do better! I insist that tonight we shall be a salon of writers—we shall write! Imagine your fears, your ghosts, those things that give you horripilation or would compel you to absquatulate. Put them in truth and hideous beauty on the page!”

“Do you think he knows he is giving us all a very particular horror to write about?” Colin whispered for Penelope’s and Mary’s ears. Penelope smiled, burying a giggle. Mary’s slight smile was distant, her eyes lighting up and becoming pensive. The evening was ultimately far more enjoyable than the previous ones had been, with Colin and Penelope experimenting—albeit somewhat unsuccessfully—with a genre that neither had written in before. By the wee hours of the morning, the group had pages written and were beginning to droop. Each giving a brief outline of their idea to the others, affectionate jibes and praise were exchanged as each made their way to their respective beds.

As though in reward for their efforts the previous night, the morning dawned relatively clear-skied and sunny. Penelope and Mary insisted on taking Mary and Percy’s son out to explore the grounds and perhaps wade at the edge of the lake. Byron was once again sprawled across an entirely improbable amount of furniture, writing on his so-called fragment, and declined to accompany the ladies. Percy opined that he was “feeling somewhat delicate,” and Polidori insisted that Percy rest under his care as a physician. Colin had initially agreed to accompany the ladies and young child—he and Colin got on quite well, given Colin’s experience with his own nephews, and Penelope never tired of enjoying Colin behaving utterly ridiculously to win a chuckle from the boy—but Byron declared that he would simply be at sea without a writing partner, and Colin was forced to remain behind or be rude to his host.

Once Pen, Mary, and Mary’s son had departed and Polidori had declared Percy “fragile in feeling only” and all four men dove into their writing cases and continued writing. Eventually, the four began trading pages and opining on their progress. Byron quickly lost patience with the group dynamic, and began to sigh and moan as though he were dying.

Thoroughly out of patience, Colin begged off with a splitting headache and retired to his and Pen’s room. He was rummaging through one of their cases for a book or newspaper to read when the door opened.

“I thought you and Mrs. Shelley would be longer—” he began, turning toward the door in expectation of seeing the sun flame off red curls. His voice died away upon seeing the dark coat and hat of Mr. Worth. The queen’s agent wore a deeply uncomfortable expression.

“Mr. Bridgerton,” he said, nodding politely.

“Worth. Why are you in my bedroom?”

Worth’s expression grew even more uncomfortable and something deeply guilty crossed his face for a moment. He refused to meet Colin’s eyes. “Mr. Bridgerton…” Worth’s voice petered out.

Colin watched Worth visibly struggle with himself, shifting from foot to foot and wringing his hands. The other man’s obvious discomfiture would ordinarily have Colin pouring a drink and making a lighthearted quip to ease the tension, but in this case he was increasingly white-knuckling the bedpost. This had to be about Penelope and the Whistledown book. If Worth was here to arrest Penelope, Colin would tie the man up in their closet, take Pen, and run for it, consequences be damned. He had friends across Europe, they would be able to get beyond the reach of the crown. Thank God that Pen wasn’t in the villa just then; he could be confident that Worth did not have her.

The agent would not simply speak, and Colin’s patience was wearing thin. He cleared his throat expectantly, but when that failed to spur the other man into speech, Colin unclamped his hand from the bedpost, took a step forward, and said, “Spit it out, man! Why are you here?”

“Her Majesty Queen Charlotte has extended an invitation to you, Mr. Bridgerton. You are to come with me instantly.” Worth still wouldn’t meet Colin’s eyes.

Something tense in Colin’s chest eased. Worth wasn’t here for his wife, and his answer to this invitation was clear. “I am afraid I will have to disappoint her Majesty,” he said. “Penelope and I are guests of Lord Byron, and it would be unthinkably rude to leave suddenly. Let me show you out.”

As Colin took another step toward the man to make good on his words, Worth held up a hand.

“Excuse me for my lack of clarity, Mr. Bridgerton. Invitation was clearly insufficient to describe the nature of the request. The queen demands that you return to London in my custody immediately.”

Colin’s barked laugh was a combination of surprise and derision, and he used it to cover a step toward his armoire. His sword hung on the inside of the door; if Worth wanted to make an issue of this, he would be sorely mistaken thinking that Colin would be an easy target. “You cannot imagine that Penelope and I are simply going to let you arrest us and drag us back to London, sir.”

“Not Dame Penelope,” said Worth, quickly. “Just you, Mr. Bridgerton. And I would hardly call it an arrest. We refer to it as being recalled.”

“I am not an agent, Worth. I would call it an arrest. And one in which I must disappoint you and her Majesty!” Colin had made it to the armoire, and smoothly retrieved his sword, drawing himself up to his full height as he pointed it directly at Worth.

“Apologies, Worth, but I will not be returning to England with you.”

“Mr. Bridgerton, please. I beg you not to make an issue of this.”

“Step toward the armoire, if you please,” ordered Colin.

Worth took the step as he responded. “I have no quarrel with you personally, but I ask you again, sir, to please come quietly.”

“It will not happen. Another step.” Colin’s reach was long, and he had the point of the sword level with Worth’s throat, if a polite few inches away from the flesh.

“What do you plan to do?”

“Surely you cannot expect me to share our plans with an agent who is trying to arrest us,” retorted Colin, advancing the blade a few inches as Worth took another step, clearing the bedroom door.

“No, I cannot. But I can keep you talking long enough for this!” Worth’s voice raised slightly on the last word, and the bedroom door opened with force, but not so much that it banged into the wall or made a sound that would draw attention. Ten men in identical coats and hats, all armed with swords and knives, crowded into the room. Many blades were leveled at Colin. “Please, Mr. Bridgerton. This need not descend into barbarity. Lower your blade.”

Despite his practice both at school and with his brothers, Colin lacked the expertise to overcome so many opponents alone. Being cut to ribbons would do neither him nor Pen any good, so Colin lowered his sword, slowly and grudgingly.

“Drop it on the floor and kick it to me,” instructed Worth.

“What precisely do you intend to tell people?” asked Colin, complying.

“Nothing. Her Majesty intends for no one to know.”

“You cannot imagine that you can forcibly abduct me and Penelope won’t bloody well notice and write to Anthony,” cried Colin, one knee flexing as he instinctively tried to go for his sword and just as quickly checked the motion. Unfortunately, his motion spurred the other men, who more or less jumped him en masse, forcing Colin to his knees as they pinned his arms behind him.

“This plan will fall apart before we are across the channel. Letters travel faster than twelve men do,” said Colin, in a moment of stillness.

“You underestimate her Majesty’s experience in these matters.”

“Sound more mournful about this Worth, it’s such a tragedy that you’re kidnapping me,” snapped Colin.

“It’s true, Dame Penelope will realize you’re missing,” said Worth, fishing in an inside jacket pocket for a moment as he walked to the bed. “However, she will not write to the Viscount. She will not write to anyone. Not once she has read this.” He placed the letter on the pillow, the words “Dame Penelope” writ large and clear on the front, above a decorative wax seal. Back still to Colin, Worth sighed. “Gag him.”

Colin tried to yell and fight the hands holding him. Realizing too late and with a sudden, stomach-turning jolt that if he was not discovered now, he would not be, and Pen would be left alone in Europe. Unfortunately, the queen’s agents were far too practiced. Before the words had finished leaving Worth’s mouth, Colin’s head had been pinned against someone’s chest or shoulder, and his jaw was first forced open as someone’s balled up handkerchief was thrust between his teeth and a length of rope followed it. The free ends were bound behind his head, keeping everything in place and muffling every yell.

“My apologies,” said Worth to Colin. “I had hoped you would see sense and come quietly, but I must carry out my duties, regardless of your cooperation.” Turning to the other men, Worth said, “Get him out of here. Down the back stairs, and do it quietly.” The agents bundled Colin out of the villa and into one of a pair of utterly nondescript carriages.

The hours-long carriage ride began a somewhat tumultuous journey back to England. Worth initially allowed Colin relative freedom of movement, with at least three men accompanying him at all times. However, after Colin leaped overboard on a riverboat to escape and forced them to hunt up and down three miles of riverbank to find and recapture him, Worth ordered his hands tied and ankles hobbled when they were on the move.

Colin blessed his school friends for teaching him how to pick pockets because he was able to swipe a small knife in a town they crossed through, and he cut through his bonds. He nearly gave the agents the slip down a side street, only to be cut off by a wagon that stopped suddenly when the horses pulling it shied away from a startled cat streaking across the cobblestones. Before the agents pulled him away and dragged him back to the floor of the inn they had taken over for the evening, Colin bruised all of his ribs.

After that stunt, Worth disappeared for a few hours and returned with a packing crate meant for furniture. Colin was transported the rest of the way to the channel in the packing crate—with a few extra holes for air drilled into it. Out of sheer frustration and lacking any other options, Colin passed the time riding in the crate by singing the filthiest sea shanties and drinking songs in every language he knew at the top of his lungs. The jostling grew rougher the louder he sang, and Colin added a full body’s worth of bumps, bruises, and splinters to his very bruised ribs. Just as he was beginning to feel nauseous from the motion of the ship, Worth levered open the top of the crate, shackled Colin’s wrist to his, and after warning Colin that he couldn’t swim, walked the pair of them up to an isolated section of the stern. They saw no other passengers, and even the sailors seemed not to see them. Colin’s motion sickness immediately faded away, but the nausea remained.

He had been gone from Pen for days. He had no notion of what was in the letter Worth had left her, and had no idea whether she had taken any action. Or what that action might be. Musing on what Pen might choose to do was merely a distraction, and Colin knew it. What was Lady Whistledown in Penelope was more than capable of getting her safely back to England and Bridgerton House to work with Anthony to fix the situation. The simple truth was, he missed her. Missed her presence at his elbow, missed carding his fingers through her loose curls at the end of the day, missed the feeling of her warmth in his arms. More than anything he missed her quick wit and the way she goaded and challenged him to meet her and play on her level. They had not been apart since their marriage, and this separation stung all the more for being unwilling.

That he hadn’t been unable to escape the custody of eleven agents was not precisely unexpected, but it rankled his pride and made Colin feel as though he had failed Pen somehow, because he had not been able to get back to her. Worth searching him for anything that could have conceivably been used as a lockpick even after he had been locked in a box for days on end had been gratifying but entirely unnecessary.

Colin stared moodily down into the waves of the channel, debating the odds that Worth had lied to him about being unable to swim. The tightening of his hands drew the other man’s attention, and Worth stepped back a few paces from the rail, gently but firmly dragging Colin with him.

“I’d as soon not drown with you in a futile attempt to escape,” said Worth, tone an odd mix of dry and apologetic. “I genuinely cannot swim. My parents were poor; I never learned.”

“How did you manage to get yourself appointed as an agent of the queen then?” Colin asked, curiosity genuinely piqued. Between escape and irritation attempts, he had noticed shades of Oxbridge in the bearing, speech, and attitudes of the ten men who had been keeping an eye on him, but Worth had not struck him as a younger son of a ton family who had eschewed the military or the church.

“She caught me trying to steal the family silver.”

Colin’s startled laugh sent seagulls bursting into flight from their resting places along the lines. “Surely not! Don’t they execute boys who try that?”

“Careless ones, certainly,” replied Worth. “But apparently the fact that I made it unseen into the palace, stole a livery, and made my way utterly unnoticed to the royal apartments was amusing enough that Her Majesty took me into her household and trained me up with an eye toward making me an agent.” He stumbled as the ship listed sharply to one side on another’s wake. Colin caught Worth before the man could drag them both down, his sea legs compensating instinctively.

“Not a sailor, I see,” said Colin, awkwardly moving to clap Worth on the shoulder but not quite having the right angle to do so because they were cuffed together.

“Not in the least. Barring the imperative of duty to queen and country, I should count myself lucky never to have to set foot on another ship for the rest of my life.”

“Quite the strong sense of duty too, to kidnap a fellow away from his wife.” The lack of vitriol in his voice surprised Colin. He rather liked Worth, in spite of himself, and the fact that the man was not threatening Pen apparently bought him more good will than Colin had intended to sell.

Worth shuffled his feet awkwardly, just avoiding meeting Colin’s eyes as he stepped to the rail and held on. “This truly is simple duty. I hold no animosity towards yourself or Dame Penelope. Her Majesty is a complex woman. Capable of great magnanimity and equally great cruelty.”

“I should never expect a man to speak ill of his benefactors,” said Colin. “But neither would I expect him to speak well of anyone threatening his family.”

Rather than answer as the docks of London drew ever closer, Worth reached into an inside pocket of his coat and withdrew a flask. Between them, the two men drained the flask in companionable silence before Worth was obliged to chivvy Colin back into his packing crate for the journey to the palace.

#polin #the polin fic #bridgerton #polin fic #polin fanfiction #polin fanfic #colin bridgerton #penelope featherington #penelope bridgerton #colin bridgerton and penelope feathertington #colin x penelope

10 notes · View notes

the-resurrection-3d · 1 year

Text

For those not following the current Twitter drama, Substack (which is essentially OnlyFans for writers) made a new 'notes' feature that Elon decided was a rival to Twitter and started blocking links to it + nuking Tweets mentioning Substack. He then proceeded to get into it with Matt Taibbi, the indie journalist HE PERSONALLY CHOOSE to drop The Twitter Flies last year, because Matt picked the platform where his income actually comes from over Twitter. Elon's apparently deleted and then reinstated the TF threads and then posted and deleted his DMs with Taibbi, but of course people saved them.

The Twitter circle feature is also broken now, so people can view private tweets and even have them recommended on randos' FYP. Allegedly this violates some European privacy laws, on top of the German laws Twitter is already in violation of for not responding to reports of illegal content on the site (including Nazi shit).

7 notes · View notes

excuseme-greentea · 7 months

Text

get to know me pt. 2

I was tagged by @callmenewbie 💛 thank you

nicknames: a short version of my name but also lizzie, which has nothing to do with my name (possibly started 100 years ago because of lizzie maguire, I honestly can't remember)

zodiac: taurus

fav music: pop, indie, dance, a little bit of country? I'll love anything if it makes me feel things

followers: > 5k (not including sideblogs)

following: 134 but many of them are inactive

do you get asks: sometimes. I recently opened my ask box again, so feel free to use it

amount of sleep: 8 1/2 hours are my sweet spot but most nights it's closer to 6

what are you wearing: black leggings and a brown hilfiger hoodie (it's race day, that's basically george merch), comfy socks, hair up in a claw

dream job: I'm a journalist/writer, doing what I've always wanted to do, but I'm so burnt out right now, I'm starting to consider there is no dream job... :)

languages: german, english, french and a little bit of swedish

random fact: I once met craig david and he told me he loved my energy and my height (my height!), I've been chasing that high ever since

aesthetic: light/dark academia, basic beige, coastal grandma in the summer?

tagging @miroslavcloset @gxtzeizm @footballandfiasco and anyone who wants to do it, tell them I tagged you :)

#I love tag games #this was a bit trickier

2 notes · View notes

lanwangjiismyreligion · 8 months

Text

My print cover is finally ready🙏😭😍😌!!

Now we come to the test printing. The final quality check 👀💦💦...keeping my fingers crossed 😅🙏💦💦.

#writing #author's life #selfpublisher #german indie writer #books

2 notes · View notes

disappointingyet · 8 months

Text

Variety

Director Bette Gordon Stars Sandy McLeod, Luís Guzman, Nan Goldin USA/West Germany/UK 1983 Language English 1hr 40mins Colour

Weird but absorbing indie noir

What kind of film is this? When it begins with a conversation between Christine (Sandy McLeod) and Nan (Nan Goldin) in a locker room, it feels like this could be an early example of the young-woman-trying-to-do-something-arty-in-NYC-and-struggling microgenre, and that would be fine. Instead, a rather weirder plot is set in play when Christine surprises her friend by saying she would take the one job that Nan knows is available: working the ticket booth at the Variety, a cinema that shows dirty movies.

Christine initially seems pleased with the job, but it seems to have some unsettling effects on her. During conversations in public places with her earnest, somewhat uptight boyfriend Mark (Will Patton), she’ll break into long monologues describing erotic scenarios.

Then she starts following the besuited middle-aged regular at the Variety who has invited her out. It’s clear he’s involved in dodgy stuff, which might be connected with the corrupt fisherman’s union Mark is doing an investigative report about. Less clear is what Christine is up to, and whether she grasps how much danger she might be in.

Contrasting with the thriller elements are scenes in the bar where Nan works, with groups of women just talking about their lives.

So what we’ve got is part offbeat noir, part psychological drama and part slice of life. I’m not sure all of that fully gels, and there were occasionally bits where I thought I had missed something but the film works nonetheless.

I think the thriller elements are surprisingly effective (some other reviews seem to disagree). Like the film as a whole, they gained from being shot in the real world. We get the assorted filth-industry locations of the type so carefully recreated in the David Simon series The Deuce, but these are actual working peep shows etc. We also get the crumbling boardwalk at Asbury Park, a huge fish market and even Yankee Stadium (I was wondering if they had permission to film there or somehow snuck a camera in - not easy to do with the equipment they had in those days.)

There’s an interesting mix of folks involved, some then experiencing their moment, some whose time would come later. Writer Kathy Acker – whose work was daring or notorious, depending on your perspective – gets a script credit. I don’t generally like a sax-driven score, but this one is excellent – it’s by John Lurie, who around the same time was starring in Jim Jarmusch’s breakthrough Stranger Than Paradise, which was shot by Tom DiCillo, who (yes) was one of the cinematographers on Variety.

There are a couple of character actors making early appearances here who are still busy in the 2020s. I’ve already mentioned Will Patton – the other one is Luís Guzmán, who plays Christine’s co-worker at the cinema. I’m here to report that Guzmán arrived in the movies fully formed – to say he’s easily recognisable in Variety is an understatement.

But I’m guessing it’s Goldin’s presence that meant I could see this in a cinema in 2023. Clips from Variety appear in All The Beauty And All The Bloodshed, the recent critically beloved documentary about Goldin’s life and work. She seems to be playing herself: the character is called Nan, she’s a photographer and she works in a bar, as Goldin did at the time. (I'm assuming the bar she worked at and the one in the movie are the same place, but don't know that for sure.)

Variety had a slightly strange origin – Bette Gordon was an underground New York-based film-maker offered a chance to make a bigger film by a German TV channel (Britain’s recently established Channel 4 contributed too). Gordon came up with idea and asked Acker to write it – but three other people get a credit for the screenplay and I think I can guess which bits are left from Acker’s draft.

It’s very much a snapshot of a moment in early 1980s New York, but it’s also an involving and fascinating movie. I like it a lot.

#1980s new york #1980s movies #film noir #nan goldin

3 notes · View notes

dr0pple · 9 months

Text

Hello! My name is Aym/Brooke or you can call me by my username. I am Non-binary and go with They/them and xey/xer pronouns (I'm trying neopronouns for the first time! So please correct me on anything that I do wrong with use or spelling). I am also a minor so please just don't be weird. I speak English, learning German and Portuguese. I'm an artist and writer who mostly writes about/draws my interests:

Content creators I watch:

Ranboo, aimsey, Guqqie, Cellbit, OliveSleepy, Tubbo, Slimecicle, Shubble, and Nihachu.

Shows I like:

GenLoss, Adventure Time, F.R.I.E.N.D.S, and Bluey. (And ASMP and QSMP if those count)

Music artists:

James Marriot, Lemon Demon, Los Campesinos, The Front Bottoms, Good Kid, and Will Wood. I also just like indie rock in general.

This is my project I'm working on! https://www.tumblr.com/chainreaction0?source=share

DNI:

No weirdness, 🟩🟧🟦 fans, WILBUR SUPPORTERS LEAVEEEE, people who support streamers on K!ck, also normal DNI like racism, transphobia, homophobia, zionism, anti-semiticism and ableism is not tolerated.

I will try to upload more and maybe try streaming on Twitch and upload on youtube, but until then, art posts on Instagram, Tumblr and DevianArt. Thank you! :D

4 notes · View notes

ilovetextingandscones · 1 year

Text

does anyone know pages or places where indie german sci fi and fantasy writers share/sell original fiction?

#german #langblr #deutsch #writing

3 notes · View notes

drachliebe · 1 year

Text

intro doc . rewrite doc . tabaluga's bio . lilli's bio .

drachliebe ( formally drachenlure) : an indie and semi-selective dual rp blog of t.abalug.a and lilli , from the franchise "t.abaluga" and a rewrite of the 2018 movie of the same name . mixed media inspirations including the original musicals , the novel , and fairytales of old . a study on self discovery , fleeting innocence , forbidden friendship , and unconditional love ... ( more info below )

RULES :

I. RULE ONE — patience is a virtue. Please forgive me if I'm slow to reply or if a thread slips my mind. don’t be shy to speak up about it after a day or three as long as you’re polite! I am a college student, and that takes a lot of my time irl, and i also run other blogs!

II. RULE TWO — This blog is semiselective and oc/multimuse/multiship/multiverse friendly! I love crossovers and interacting with characters from different media, and we’re all here to have fun after all. Personals feel free to follow and send in asks, just please don’t reblog headcanons and threads.

III. RULE THREE — On the topic of writer’s etiquette, around here we follow the golden rule and do no harm, take no crap, alright? And of course I don’t condone taboos like pedophilia, incest, hatred towards a group of people, disrespect of religion, and so forth. Please be kind to one another.

IV. RULE FOUR — I am 21+ years and would prefer to interact with mun’s over the age of 18, but I’m lenient. Despite this (generally) being a children’s franchise, there will be a fair share of content warnings. These include mentions/implications of death (especially related to freezing), totalitarian/cult-like rule, war / genocide / and self-destruction, the loss of innocence, and contemplations of mortality and existentialism. Long story short, take this story with the same sentiment as an old fairytale or an 80’s family film– a whimsical musical adventure not devoid of the horrors.

V. RULE FIVE — PLEASE READ MY NAVIGATION PAGES!!! This is a very canon-divergent take for both characters, especially Lilli, but I do hope it does them justice! I am unfortunately not fluent in German and I do not have all translations of the original albums and the musical, so please forgive me if some details are a bit muddy. I would be delighted to learn more from those who are more familiar with them!

the characters ( in very brief summary ) :

🔥 -- t.abaluga is a young dragon that lives in paradise ( also called grünland ), and is also the last of his kind after the lord of ice, a.rktos, hunted and killed his kindred. being the only creature capable of preventing a.rktos and his entire empire of eisworld from completely freezing the world, t.abaluga must find his true fire, a mature dragon flame that marks the coming of age in a dragon, in order to protect his homeland and save his friends.

❄️ -- lilli is the daughter of a.rktos, a little doll made of ice that was meant to lure out any potential dragon that survived, as dragons are attracted to princesses. however, a.rktos made her so lifelike, that she began to slowly grow a consciousness the longer she existed. lilli's views and very programming are challenged when she meets and befriends t.abaluga, and begins transforming into something far more real.

side characters ( wip )

a.rktos : an immortal entity in the body of a snowlem and lord of ice. lilli's father. ojo, digby, bully : an arctic hare kit, mole pup , and ladybug. taba's best friends limbo : a polar bear. servant to lilli. double agent. kolk : a trickster raven. taba's foster mother.

header temp. icon temp. blogroll .

#// pinned post #🌙) ⋆｡°✩ooc .

4 notes · View notes

rockislandadultreads · 2 years

Photo

Book Recommendations: LGBTQIA+ History Month

Eminent Outlaws by Christopher Bram

In the years following World War II a group of gay writers established themselves as major cultural figures in American life. Truman Capote, the enfant terrible, whose finely wrought fiction and nonfiction captured the nation's imagination. Gore Vidal, the wry, withering chronicler of politics, sex, and history. Tennessee Williams, whose powerful plays rocketed him to the top of the American theater. James Baldwin, the harrowingly perceptive novelist and social critic. Christopher Isherwood, the English novelist who became a thoroughly American novelist. And the exuberant Allen Ginsberg, whose poetry defied censorship and exploded minds. Together, their writing introduced America to gay experience and sensibility, and changed our literary culture. But the change was only beginning. A new generation of gay writers followed, taking more risks and writing about their sexuality more openly. Edward Albee brought his prickly iconoclasm to the American theater. Edmund White laid bare his own life in stylized, autobiographical works. Armistead Maupin wove a rich tapestry of the counterculture, queer and straight. Mart Crowley brought gay men's lives out of the closet and onto the stage. And Tony Kushner took them beyond the stage, to the center of American ideas.

Be Gay, Do Comics edited by Matt Bors

Be Gay, Do Comics is filled with dozens of comics about LGBTQIA experiences, ranging from personal stories to queer history to cutting satire about pronoun panic and brands desperate to co-opt pride. Brimming with resilience, inspiration, and humor, an incredible lineup of top indie cartoonists takes you from the American Revolution through Stonewall to today's fights for equality and representation. Featuring more than 30 cartoonists including Hazel Newlevant, Joey Alison Sayers, Maia Kobabe, Matt Lubchansky, Breena Nuñez, Sasha Velour, Shing Yin Khor, Levi Hastings, Mady G, Bianca Xunise, Kazimir Lee, and many, many more!

Gay Berlin by Robert Beachy

Known already in the 1850s for the friendly company of its “warm brothers” (German slang for men who love other men), Berlin, before the turn of the twentieth century, became a place where scholars, activists, and medical professionals could explore and begin to educate both themselves and Europe about new and emerging sexual identities. From Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, a German activist described by some as the first openly gay man, to the world of Berlin’s vast homosexual subcultures, to a major sex scandal that enraptured the daily newspapers and shook the court of Emperor William II—and on through some of the very first sex reassignment surgeries—Robert Beachy uncovers the long-forgotten events and characters that continue to shape and influence the way we think of sexuality today. Chapter by chapter Beachy’s scholarship illuminates forgotten firsts, including the life and work of Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld, first to claim (in 1896) that same-sex desire is an immutable, biologically determined characteristic, and founder of the Institute for Sexual Science. Though raided and closed down by the Nazis in 1933, the institute served as, among other things, “a veritable incubator for the science of tran-sexuality,” scene of one of the world’s first sex reassignment surgeries. Fascinating, surprising, and informative—Gay Berlin is certain to be counted as a foundational cultural examination of human sexuality.

Indecent Advances by James Polchin

In his skillful hybrid of true crime and cultural history, James Polchin provides an important look at how popular culture, the media, and the psychological profession forcefully portrayed gay men as the perpetrators of the same violence they suffered. He traces how the press depicted the murder of men by other men from the end of World War I to the Stonewall era, when gay men came to be seen as a class both historically victimized and increasingly visible. Indecent Advances tells the story of how homosexuals were criminalized in the popular imagination—from the sex panics of the 1930s, to Kinsey study of male homosexuality of the 1940s, and the Cold War panic of Communists and homosexuals in government. Polchin illustrates the vital role crime stories played in circulating ideas of normalcy and deviancy, and how those stories were used as tools to discriminate and harm the gay men who were observers and victims of crime. More importantly, Polchin shows how this discrimination was ultimately transformed by activists to help shape the burgeoning gay rights movement in the years leading up to Stonewall Riots of 1968.

#LGBTQIA #history #library books #reading recommendations #reading recs #book recommendations #book recs #TBR pile #tbr #to read #nonfiction #nonfiction reads #lgbtq history month #lgbtq+ history

8 notes · View notes