#sff title challenge

[signourneybooks]

2024 SFF Title Challenge | Possibilities for 8 Prompts

A little later than I wanted to but I am finally here with some suggestions for the first 8 prompts of my 2024 SFF Title Challenge. Sometimes we end up being lucky with finding the right title to fit the word. But other times we have to go out and find the right books to find the prompt. And what makes your life easier, than me who has already found some titles for you. I divided, where…

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#2024 sff title challenge #sff title challenge

[morebedsidebooks]

Ten 2023 Anticipated Books

New year, new books. Here's a mix of ten Asian titles I'm looking forward to. (Of course, release dates/cover art can and do shift.)

JANUARY

Is Love the Answer? by Isaki Uta

Isaki is one of my favorite Japanese artists. Over the last few years more English language publishers have also been taking notice of her work. This is a standalone coming of age comic with an aromatic asexual protagonist. From Kodansha USA.

FEBRUARY

At 30, I Realized I Had No Gender: Life Lessons From a 50 year-old After Two Decades of Self-Discovery by Arai Shou

This is one autobiographical Japanese comic worth mention as there’s little out there in English to compare. Besides digital release first, it will also appear in print later in the year. Also to note the US arm of publisher Tokyopop came back into English language publishing a few years ago. Besides some other endeavors particularly carving itself a niche in LGBTQ+ comics. Which if great, unless you have the long memory like me that also makes it a bit frustrating because of the company's frankly bad history.

JUNE

River's Edge by Okazaki Kyoko

This may be a familiar title because of the live action adaptation. Or Okazaki’s name as a phenome of visceral comics in the 1980s and 90s before an unfortunate car accident sidelined her career. It’s been a bit of a drought too since previous English editions of her work like Helter Skelter or Pink nearly ten years ago. This comic from 1993 has a cast of high schoolers and their screwed up lives.

Until I Love Myself: The Journey of a Nonbinary Manga Artist by Pesuyama Poppy

Another special two volume autobiography in comic form from a Japanese nonbinary artist. From Viz Media.

The Surviving Sky by Krikita H. Rao

An epic lush eco SFF novel featuring solarpunk, yogic philosophy, and a stormy marriage for it’s two 30s-40s aged bi/pan protagonists where civilization is also on the line.

AUGUST

Guardian: Zhen Hun by Priest

Danmei novels appearing in English continue strong. This mysterious Chinese fantasy series around the head of special investigation unit tasked with unusual cases and an enigmatic university professor was the basis for a popular (and persevering under censorship challenges) live-action series in 2018. From Seven Seas.

They Were 11! by Hagio Moto

A classic sci-fi comic from the 1970s with some themes around gender and attraction influenced by the novel The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula Le Guin. I’ve reviewed the previous English edition from back in the 90s. Publisher Denpa is small operation so it’s taken some extra time but a new deluxe edition with the sequel is coming.

TBA

Kitchen of Witch Hat by Hiromi Sato and Shirahama Kamome

The Witch Hat Atelier series is beloved in many languages and garnered awards. This ongoing spin-off comic series is another treat, literally as Qifrey and Olruggio get up to cooking. From Kodansha USA.

Savage Alice by Hwang Jungeun

There’s been big trends for South Korean literature over the last few years. This 2013 novel with drag queen in a Hedwig vein between the big city of Seoul and a smaller hometown will be translated to English by Janet Hong.

Star Clock Liddell by Uchida Yoshimi

Did someone say older philosophical Japanese girls’ comics? Indie publisher Glacier Bay Books has licensed this 1980s haunting three volume comic series.

#anticipated books #japanese comics #new manga #danmei novel #sff books #korean literature #2023 books

[kunosoura]

got a list of sff reccs?

Non-exhaustive lists:

Science Fantasy

Science Fiction

Fantasy:

I had a whole list of fantasy recs that went down with my previous blog, so here are some interesting ones off the top of my head:

The Iron Dragon's Daughter. I know it's on the Science Fantasy list also. Idc. I want more people to read it. It's got two sequels which are pretty good, but this first book is the breadwinner for me.

Wheel of Time: Don't read these books. If you do though come talk to me about them so we can be mean to them together.

The Winternight Trilogy - A really interesting series taking place in Late Medieval Russia, right as Christianity is beginning to encroach into the country's furthest regions, and the tensions arising between Christian bigotry and the native beliefs. Featuring a second book which bizarrely deviates into "transmasc equestrian" story and a hot (cold) demon.

the Earthsea trilogy. Obligatory mention. I'm frustrated with the very ending of the series (Not the short story Le Guin wrote just before her death but The Other Wind) but the rest of it is a really smart and heartfelt fantasy story, critiquing the genre's tropes and attitudes decades before they reached their apex without turning into a necessarily "deconstructionist" work.

If you have a taste for longer books, check out The Brightest Shadow by Sarah Lin. It's a progression fantasy book, which is like if LitRPG had a sense of embarrassment, but I still really enjoy it. The first book takes a while to warm up and is a little on the nose, but I've really enjoyed it from the second book on. Even in the first book, I enjoy the scenes where the narrative takes a break and the characters just talk with each other, practicing and learning and growing together, as they discuss the subjective histories and philosophies they were raised in or were later tutored by.

The Green Bone Trilogy is like... I'm ultimately a bit disappointment with how it played out because it never quite makes it to critiquing the intentional hypocrisy at the core of the narrative, but it's still good action packed fun if you want something simple. Has the honorable distinction of being the only book to ever have me blushing scarlet at work. Here there be sex scenes, some of them gay.

I didn't include The Locked Tomb in science fantasy because it doesn't really have science fiction themes, and it also probably doesn't need my endorsement, but it's really good.

Speaking of Worlds-That-Are-Secretly-Our-Own-But-With-Necromancy-As-A-Metaphor-For-How-Capitalism-And-Imperialism-Controls-Bodies, Check out The Craft Sequence.

The Queen's Thief's first book is incredibly YA with a plucky young protagonist, if a bit graphic when describing the impact of being locked in a pre-modern prison. The second book is a wild swerve exploring trauma, destiny, grief, and disability. The rest of the books get smarter and more varied in their themes from there.

Oh speaking of YA esque novels I'll deign to recommend, I read the Scholomance recently. Mostly because the morally tormented protagonist with incredible powers is my favorite junk food, but also because I think it handles the themes of young adult stories (interrogating and challenging a kind of shitty world) in a better than average way.

And some standalone recs/miscellanea:

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is an immaculate recreation of a really dry old British book, only it was written a couple of decades ago, is about Wizards, and features a really good take on The Fair Folk. It also assures you very early that you don't have to worry about the morality of the protagonists, because both of them are shitty, evil, and at times insane.

The Goblin Emperor is a really fun and heartfelt story about a far flung, unkindly-treated noble kid getting thrust into a royal title by a massive assassination of everyone in front of him. Despite being a story about a Monarch, it ends up being weirdly based about it.

Mushi-Shi is an anime that is incredibly evocative, poignant, and fantastic. I don't watch or recommend anime much but I strongly recommend this.

Honestly, I don't often recommend video games for their fantasy worlds because so few do much particularly interesting with them. That said: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is a mediocre game set in a world with an absolutely immaculate fantasy atmosphere. Genuinely feels like you're in an old gaelic storybook. Don't get the remaster, it adds voiceover work which DESTROYS this.

Pan's Labyrinth has a good deal of horror elements, but the backbone is a faerie story about seeking the fantastic in a world growing increasingly dark and grim.

Honestly, I don't often recommend video games for their fantasy worlds because so few do much particularly interesting with them. That said: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is a mediocre game set in a world with an absolutely immaculate fantasy atmosphere. Genuinely feels like you're in an old gaelic storybook. Don't get the remaster, it adds voiceover work which DESTROYS this.

The Years of Rice and Salt is primarily an alt history novel about a world where Europe was completely devastated by the Black plague. But underneath that is a story about reincarnation, destiny, and love. Maybe a bit more magical realist but I love it so it gets a rec anyway.

Here's some of rapid fantasy movie recommendations: Stardust, The Princess Bride, The Last Unicorn, The Seventh Seal (this one's a little bit higher brow than the others mentioned here)

#I held back a good chunk of like games and cartoons and anime/manga etc #it's just like. it feels like a completely different discussion to this. idk how to explain it.

[kestrellady]

Book Riot's 2024 Read Harder Challenge

Ongoing 7/24 Challenge Link

6th year with this "get out of your comfort zone" reading challenge. Full list under the cut.

1. Read a cozy fantasy book. The House Witch by Delemhach This is a sweet, cozy read about a young witch finding his place and coming into his power. I can tell this comes out of the fanfic community, but it's really a plus for this book. This is the first of a series, which just has volume numbers.

2. Read a YA book by a trans author.

3. Read a middle grade horror novel.

4. Read a history book by a BIPOC author.

5. Read a sci-fi novella. The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Ann Older It's so refreshing to read a take on Holmes and Watson that actually gets the dynamic right! I had a bit of a tone mismatch because I initially expected a space western (and there's a bit of that) rather than a Holmsian mystery.

6. Read a middle grade book with an LGBTQIA main character.

7. Read an indie published collection of poetry by a BIPOC or queer author.

8. Read a book in translation from a country you’ve never visited. Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura This is a bit difficult, but ultimately kind and hopeful read about friendship and the effects of bullying. It reads more middle-grade than I had expected, but I can't tell if that's just the translation or not.

9. Read a book recommended by a librarian.

10. Read a historical fiction book by an Indigenous author.

11. Read a picture book published in the last five years.

12. Read a genre book (SFF, horror, mystery, romance) by a disabled author.

13. Read a comic that has been banned. The Complete Maus by Art Spiegelman I have a really hard time with Holocaust literature, but this is one of the most accessible books I've read. Not necessarily because it's a comic, but because it's framed and paced so well that you can really feel for the people, but still get a chance to breathe and recover.

14. Read a book by an author with an upcoming event (virtual or in person) and then attend the event.

15. Read a YA nonfiction book.

16. Read a book based solely on the title. That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon by Kimberly Lemming This was a fun, raunchy, read with an interesting world and a very pragmatic heroine.

17. Read a book about media literacy.

18. Read a book about drag or queer artistry.

19. Read a romance with neurodivergent characters.

20. Read a book about books (fiction or nonfiction).

21. Read a book that went under the radar in 2023.

22. Read a manga or manhwa. In/Spectre Vol. 18 by Chashiba Katase This series is weird and I love it. It's largely mysteries where the protagonist already knows what happened and has to convince other people that it didn't happen the way it actually did. This volume wraps up a longer storyline and I loved the twists and turns and return of a side character.

23. Read a “howdunit” or “whydunit” mystery. Miraculous Mysteries edited by Martin Edwards I really enjoyed this collection of locked room murders and impossible crimes. Some of the stories definitely show their age, so be prepared for some casual racism and misogyny, but most of the stories were interesting and several were very surprising!

24. Pick a challenge from any of the previous years’ challenges to repeat!

#kestrel reads #book challenges #read harder #book riot #books #reading

[rhetoricandlogic]

Gary K. Wolfe Reviews The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain by Sofia Samatar

April 20, 2024 Gary K. Wolfe

Generation starship stories tend to come in a few distinct flavors, with distinct character types. There are the refugees, trying to keep humanity alive while escaping a dying or overpopulated Earth (the sort of wishful fantasy that Kim Stanley Robinson set out to demolish in Aurora a few years ago). There are the colonizers, out to find and take over new planets just because that’s just what humans do, and there are the hopelessly confused who have forgotten they’re on a star­ship at all, whose history is lost or corrupted or mythologized, and who are inevitably in for a rude awakening as soon as someone finds a window. But perhaps the most interesting variety are those tales in which the characters are recognizable figures from our own institutions and history – not stylized enough to be allegories, but which can hold up a mirror in the way allegory does – except with real characters.

Rivers Solomon used the setting to effectively model racism and slavery in An Unkindness of Ghosts, and much of that rigid segregation is also reflected in Sofia Samatar’s The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain. But Samatar has far more on her mind than generation starships, and the novella has as much in common with a kind of narrative much rarer in SFF: the academic novel. In addition to presenting a brutally dehumanizing social struc­ture, Samatar’s characteristically gorgeous prose also carries the undertone of someone who has sat through plenty of frustrating committee meetings, tried to introduce change to an entrenched system, or grappled with issues of equity, opportunity, and intellectual freedom in the face of corporate interference and senior faculty sinecures – all presented with a sense of realpolitik that makes it surprisingly resonant with some very real current anxieties. In fact, the key words in her tripartite title can be all read as metaphors of the promises and challenges facing educators.

The initial point of view is that of a nameless boy who labors in the bowels of a giant starship, one of a fleet operated by the powerful United Min­ing corporation, which maintains a rigid separa­tion between ‘‘the Hold’’ and the elite ‘‘upstairs.’’ Despite the backbreaking work and appalling conditions – he’s even chained to the wall, like other workers – the boy develops a talent for draw­ing by using sharp objects and even his chain to make pictures on the walls of his cell. This draws the attention of a professor, who selects him for a chance to study at the University, much as her own father had been chosen. But she’s facing her own challenges in the University, where even the textbooks must be approved by the corporation, and which divides the curriculum into the Newer Knowledge and the Older Knowledge – which will look familiar to anyone who’s been near a university in the last several decades – and she reveals her own sympathies by noting that ‘‘My father taught the skills we need to survive in the vastness of space… I teach the skills we need to humanize space.’’ Shades of humanities depart­ment budget defenses (or is it just the former academic in me having flashbacks?).

If all this begins to sound a bit like a treatise, the vivid poetry of Samatar’s descriptions and the passion of her characters turns it into a moving human drama. The boy’s utter terror at being removed from his familiar surroundings, grim as they were, is palpable, and the professor’s sometimes testy interactions with her colleagues and a seemingly intractable system are all too credible. As they begin to form an unlikely al­liance, the boy shares what he has learned from the prophet, his longtime mentor in the Hold. The practice, he said, was ‘‘the longing for un­derstanding’’, and the horizon was a feature on ancient Earth which invited you ‘‘to look neither up nor down.’’ As these ideas begin to inform the professor’s central question about her profession – ‘‘Can the University be a place of both training and transformation?’’ – the two of them set in motion what might be the beginning of revolu­tionary change, or might backfire entirely. The Practice, the Horizon, and the Chain takes on a number of heavy issues for a relatively modest novella, but never loses focus on the dreams of its two memorable central characters, or on the power of its distinctive setting.

#Sofia Samatar #The Practice‚ the Horizon‚ and the Chain #mahreviews #long post

[meltotheany]

hi hi friends! today i am bringing you a little bit of a different post, all about a readathon! but this is also a post that i put a lot of work into, recommending a lot of my favorite reads of all time, so even if you don’t plan on participating, i hope you are able to add a book or two to your tbrs! but this is a readathon that i’ve wanted to do for many years now, but this seems to be the first year that i really have the time and energy to invest in the fun and i am so, beyond words, excited! 🩷 this is a bingo board book challenge hosted by r/fantasy on reddit, where you read (and maybe expand your regular reading) with reading all things speculative! you can do a regular bingo line, you can do a full blackout of the entire board! there is a regular challenge each square and then an added element to make it a hard mode challenge, if so you do wish! there is also hero mode, which basically means you review everything you read on any and all bookish platforms – which i hope to hit as well! you can also substitute one square for any challenge of a past year (this readathon has been happening for a decade now), which i am just going to wait to see if i need to do that during the year, if i am getting stumped and slumped with any particular challenge! and lastly, you can only use one book per author! this is a year long readathon (from april 2024 until march 2025) where the goal is to read a book for each square of the bingo board! and below are all the links to help you find out everything about this reading challenge! and i would love to update throughout the year my progress! and yes, i have already started setting up a bullet journal spread because i have absolutely no chill ever when it comes to being excited for a reading challenge! Announcement April Fool’s Announcement Card Recommendations 10 Year Retrospective Recommendations List on Reddit okay, let me preface this with: all of my recommendations are for the hard mode (hm) extra challenge, because that’s how i plan to participate for the readathon! but also, nothing on this tbr of things i have not read is 100% set on my tbr! i just like to give myself options that i can easily see, but i really just want this to be a fun reading experience all year, without any pressure! i read around 75% sff each year regardless, so i think it will just be a lot of fun to see how my bingo board organically comes together (with me probably purposely reading at the end to actually complete the blackout)! and i am excited to push myself a little bit (maybe with some horror) out of my comfort zone, too! okay, let’s get into the actual bingo card and the actual challenges with some recommendations from me! 💖 1) First in a Series: Read the first book in a series. ━━HARD MODE: The series is more than three books long.  ♡ recommendations i’ve already read: The Singing Hills Cycle, The Stormlight Archive, Greatcoats ☆ recommendations that i might read: Hidden Legacy, The Faithful and the Fallen, The Sun Eater 2) Alliterative Title: Read a book where multiple words in the title begin with the same letter. For example, Legends and Lattes, A Storm of Swords, Children of Blood and Bone. ━━HARD MODE: The title has three words or more that start with the same letter.  ♡ recommendations i’ve already read: This is How You Lose the Time War ☆ recommendations that i might read: The Haunting of Hill House, The Lies of Locke Lamora, Saints of Storm and Sorrow 3) Under the Surface: Read a book where an important setting is either underground or underwater. ━━HARD MODE: At least half the book takes place underground or underwater.  ♡ recommendations i’ve already read: Our Wives Under the Sea, Into the Drowning Deep, The Abyss Surrounds Us, The Deep ☆ recommendations that i might read: Dungeon Crawler Carl, Neverwhere, Fathomfolk 4) Criminals: Read a book in which the main character is a criminal. This could be a thief, assassin, someone who commits mail fraud, etc. ━━HARD MODE: Features a heist.  ♡ recommendations i’ve...

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#2024 #bingo #Book Blog #Book Recommendations #Book Reviewer #Fantasy #meltotheany #r/fantasy #reading challenge #reddit #Science Fiction #scifi #SFF

[ineedahugesticktobeatyou]

2022 Reading Challenge  - COMPLETE

- Materpost -

01. A book. published in 2022 - La ragazza dimenticata (Girl, Forgotten)

02. A book set on a plane, train, or cruise ship - Il giro del mondo in ottanta giorni (Around the World in Eighty Days)

03. A book about, or set in, a nonpatriarchal society - Fight or Flight

05. A book with a tiger on the cover or in the title - Il libro della giungla (The Jungle Book)

05. A sapphic book - I sette mariti di Evelyn Hugo (The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo)

06. A book by a Latinx author - Zorro

07. A book with an onomatopeia in its title - Qualcuno volò sul nido del cuculo (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest)

08. A book with a protagonist who uses a mobility aid - Bianco letale (Letal White)

09. A book about a found family - Rosso, Bianco e Sangue Blu (Red, White & Royal Blue)

10.An Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner - Canta, spirito, canta (Sing, Unburied, Sing)

11. A #BookTok Recommendation - Circe

12. A book about the afterlife - La condanna del sangue

13. A book set in the 1980s - It

14. A book with cutlery on the cover or in the title - I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone

15. A book by a Pacific Islander author - Kahu e la balena (The Whale Rider)

16. A book about witches - Good Omens

17. A book becoming a TV series or Movie in 2022 - Frammenti di lei (Pieces of Her)

18. A romance novel by a BIPOC author - A Holly Jolly Diwala

19. A book that takes place during your favorite season - Il senso del dolore

20. A book whose title begins with the last letter of your previous read - Torchwood: The Undertaker’s Gift

21. A book about a band or musical group - Stazione Undici (Station Eleven)

22. A book wit a character on the ace spectrum - Murderbot

23. A book with a recipe in it - Odore di chiuso

24. A book you can read in one sitting - Torchwood: Everyone Says Hello

25. A book about a secret - La spiaggia segreta (The Hidden Beach)

26. A book with a misleading title - Dodice rose a Settembre

27. A Hugo Award winner - La svastica sul sole (the Man in the HIgh Castle)

28. A book set during a holiday - Per mano mia

29. A different book by an author you read in 2021 - Torchwood: Risk Assessment

30. A book with the name of a board game in the title - Indovina chi viene a cena (Agatha Raisin, Christmas Crumble)

31. A book featuring a man-made disaster -  Mr Mercedes

32. A book with a quote from your favorite author on the cover or Amazon page - Teddy (Hidden Picyures)

33. A social horror book - Il miglio verde (The Green Mile)

34. A book set in Victorian times - Uno studio in rosso (A Study in Scarlet)

35. A book with a constellation on the cover or in the title - Una lepre con la faccia di bambina

36. A book you know nothing about - Il metodo del coccodrillo

37. A book about gender identity - Middlesex

38. A book featuring a party - Il posto di ognuno

39. An OwnVoices SFF book - Mexican Gothic

40. A book that fulfills your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge - Il giorno dei morti

#2022 reading challenge #popsugarreadingchallenge #dani reads books #personal

[the-forest-library]

2022 Popsugar Reading Challenge

A book published in 2022

A book set on a plane, train, or cruise ship

A book about or set in a nonpatriarchal society

A book with a tiger on the cover or "tiger" in the title

A sapphic book

A book by a Latinx author

A book with an onomatopoeia in its title

A book with a protagonist who uses a mobility aid

A book about a "found family"

An Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner

A #BookTok recommendation

A book about the afterlife

A book set in the 1980s

A book with cutlery on the cover or in the title

A book by a Pacific Islander author

A book about witches

A book becoming a TV series or movie in 2022

A romance novel by a BIPOC author

A book that takes place during your favorite season

A book whose title begins with the last letter of your previous read

A book about a band or musical group

A book with a character on the ace spectrum

A book with a recipe in it

A book you can read in one sitting

A book about a secret

A book with a misleading title

A Hugo Award winner

A book set during a holiday

A different book by an author you read in 2021

A book with the name of a board game in the title

A book featuring a man-made disaster

A book with a quote from your favorite author on the cover or Amazon page

A social-horror book

A book set in Victorian times

A book with a constellation on the cover or in the title

A book you know nothing about

A book about gender identity

A book featuring a party

An #OwnVoices SFF (science fiction and fantasy) book

A book that fulfills your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge

Advanced

A book with a reflected image on the cover or "mirror" in the title

A book that features two languages

A book with a palindromic title

A duology (1)

A duology (2)

A book about someone leading a double life

A book featuring a parallel reality

A book with two POVs

Two books set in twin towns, aka "sister cities" (1)

Two books set in twin towns, aka "sister cities" (2)

#let the 2022 reading planning begin! #popsugar reading challenge #2022 popsugar reading challenge #reading challenge #reading list #book recommendations #book lists #books #booklr #reading #bookish #bibliophile

[bixbiboom]

A book published in 2022

A book set on a plane, train, or cruise ship

A book about or set in a nonpatriarchal society

A book with a tiger on the cover or "tiger" in the title

A sapphic book

A book by a Latinx author

A book with an onomatopoeia in its title

A book with a protagonist who uses a mobility aid

A book about a "found family"

An Anisfield-Wolf Book Award winner

A #BookTok recommendation

A book about the afterlife

A book set in the 1980s

A book with cutlery on the cover or in the title

A book by a Pacific Islander author

A book about witches

A book becoming a TV series or movie in 2022

A romance novel by a BIPOC author

A book that takes place during your favorite season

A book whose title begins with the last letter of your previous read

A book about a band or musical group

A book with a character on the ace spectrum

A book with a recipe in it

A book you can read in one sitting

A book about a secret

A book with a misleading title

A Hugo Award winner

A book set during a holiday

A different book by an author you read in 2021

A book with the name of a board game in the title

A book featuring a man-made disaster

A book with a quote from your favorite author on the cover or Amazon page

A social-horror book

A book set in Victorian times

A book with a constellation on the cover or in the title

A book you know nothing about

A book about gender identity

A book featuring a party

An #OwnVoices SFF (science fiction and fantasy) book

A book that fulfills your favorite prompt from a past POPSUGAR Reading Challenge

Advanced

A book with a reflected image on the cover or "mirror" in the title

A book that features two languages

A book with a palindromic title

A duology (1)

A duology (2)

A book about someone leading a double life

A book featuring a parallel reality

A book with two POVs

Two books set in twin towns, aka "sister cities" (1)

Two books set in twin towns, aka "sister cities" (2)

#reading challenge #popsugar reading challenge #2022 reading challenge

[canmom]

I hate to dig into it (so please feel free to ignore this ask) but, as someone (non-white trans woman) who’s been waffling back and forth on BS for like the last several years since I got more into sff and learned about... all of that shit, what was her involvement w everything with Isabel Fall? I admit I mostly understand that BS keeps to her small circle on Twitter, and so I didn’t really see her around at all when this went down, so I’m curious (another stone to drop on my scales of justice labeled “so should I think BS is a person/artist worth investing time and emotion in or not”...)

i don't know that i necessarily want to rehearse old drama, but i did bring this up. please once again don't reblog this.

so B.S. was pretty loud in denouncing the story during the first part of the isabel fall furore. at the time one of her partners (i forget the name) wrote a 'parody' of the story on pastebin titled "CHALLENGING STORY TO BLOW YOUR TINY WOKESCOLD BRAINS WITH HOW POWERFUL AND MESSY IT IS" (not linking because i don't particularly want to propagate it) which she shared - the substance of the critique is pretty much right there in the title, conflating simultaneously the actual helicopter story, Mika/surfaces.cx genre of transgressive fiction and Felker-Martin’s whole brand of ‘queer and messy’. Tiny Wokescold Brains was a very tortured critique with lines like

Anyways, my body was filled with all kinds of additional sicknasty cybernetics, because what is a story that is intended to be pro-green without a horrified fetishization of technology as simultaneously annihilating and alluring? I was currently using them to heft an enormous fucking laser gun, which we totally have in the near future where this story is set so it seems topical. Sure, you might think that this kind of acceptance of gee-whiz shit is just a plausibly deniable form of military fetishism. But it’s not, OK? Just read this goddamned amazing, challenging, incredible story written by a fucking goddess in the flesh, someone whose brain is so vast it actually sucks the brains out from everyone else in the room.

and so on in that vein; it was just totally out of line as a criticism, even if you think there's some basis for it then it goes way further than is justifiable. no doubt the author was working through some shit but she chose a very public furore to try it at the expense of someone's first story as an out tw while missing what that story was actually doing. isabel fall never boasted about how mindblowing and messy her story is, she dropped it with no comment whatsoever; yet for the criticism to work she had to have been boasting.

anyway the reason i cite this as particularly reprehensible was that that (as she mentioned in that interview that went round) Fall, in typical early transition scrupulosity mode, went out of her way to read all criticism of the story. which, given just how vicious that 'parody' is, and how specifically it would have played on her anxieties, I find it very likely (though not directly confirmed) that she read the story and it affected her very badly. it would certainly have done a number on me in similar circumstances.

so i was disgusted by the way B.S. weighed in there because, it was so obviously her old tricks as requireshate but like, carefully calibrated to go after someone who at the time was seen as an acceptable target; it so happened that public opinion reversed a bit later and people started to twig that they'd really done a bad one here and B.S. shut up about it. just like when she used to habitually rip into 'some dude on reddit' offering (allegedly) bad writing advice before i unfollowed her; the point is to be able to spectacularly tear someone down online, no matter the consequences, and she just got better at picking her battles.

it took me so long to realise because 1. i'm an idiot cultist 2. she's very good at dressing stuff up in the sj language of the era, but she's just a garden variety bully and I would rather have nothing more to do with her. I still believe that coterie of white women sf writers did some reprehensible shit in building a whole stalker's dossier and patting each other on the back for it after B.S. dared to criticise some crappy book that a white woman wrote about thailand, but it's like... they all deserve each other basically.

at this point i basically believe the right thing to do with 'SFF' genre writing, certainly as far as concerns the mainstream publishing and fandom industry, is to extricate yourself as quickly as possible and find much less cultish avenues to write in.

and i will say one thing for surfaces.cx-brand webfiction which is that it's like, as much as it can be empty edginess and scene-performance, it's generally not trying to pretend to some false virtue as the progressive light of the future. at this point I regard all such claims with total distrust; it's all scene politics and "I dis/liked this book and want to make that legit" when you get down to it.

[signourneybooks]

2024 SFF Title Challenge | Come on Board the Title Hunt

It is that time of year and I am actually returning the SFF Title Challenge. Now you might be wondering; ‘Annemieke, you did not manage to complete your own challenge this year. Why are you making a new one? Well it is good that you ask. Because I always reflect back on things, and looking back I feel like I was a bit overambitious with some of the prompts and the amount. 25 Was a bit much…

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#reading challenge #sff title challenge #the 2024 sff title challenge

[feywildfiction]

i dont have any real reading goals but if what i read just happens to fit in one of the four reading challenges i joined on storygraph for 2022 then that's cool

i decided to join:

- January Pages Challenge: where you track the number of pages read daily for the chance to win like a prize bag i think idk, i just like the challenge of havin to read at least 1 page per day

- Storygraph's Genre Challenge: 10 genre based prompts, theres maybe just 3 prompts that i'll actually have to look for books to read

- Books A-Z: read books based on the first letter of the title, self explanatory really

- Beat the Backlist 2022: read whatever was published before 2022 and on your TBR; there's bonus prompts too for fun

- 2022 Swords & Stars Reading Challenge: 20 prompts based on sff sub genres; i'm pretty sure i have a book for each of these

#jericho.txt #2022 reading challenges

[sometimesrosy]

Do you have any tips for doing nanowrimo for the first time? Or any tips in general?

I do actually. Kind of a lot of tips. But when I have a lot of things to say about something that people would need to take action on, I like to do bullet points to organize the information so it’s easier to digest.

So.

Bullet point time.

Start now. No I don’t mean starting the story. That’s the challenge, to write all the new words in November. I mean, start THINKING about your story. Start planning. Start brainstorming. Start character development. Start backstory. Start researching. Start your writing habit. Because writing at that level take training. You have to get INTO it. It’s far too hard to start writing a novel cold if you’re not used to writing.

Make An Outline. Okay. This is a choice. Not everyone likes outlines. In nanowrimo, we say there are two types; Planners who outline their novel and Pantsers who write by the seat of their pants. This can also be called “intuitive writers.” I think there’s a third, a combo of the two. Plantsers. I like that word because not only is it a combo of pantser and planner, it also has the word “plant” in it. So you plant your garden in a plan and then let it grow however it wants, intuitively. That’s me. Anyway. If you don’t want to plan an outline because you’re a pantser, take notes on your story. Do character interviews, research back story, get excited about tropes you want to use, write short stories about the characters, take notes and make lists about ideas you have.

Start a vision board for your story. I use pinterest. Here is an example of my vision board for one of my nano novels that has already been through three drafts, so...years. I’m REALLY into pinterest do no be intimidated. I’ve been doing it a long time. Keep track of characters, settings, ideas, research, advice. It gets a different version of my brain working on my story. 

Sign up at the nanowrimo site. Choose a title, a genre, a location. Plan to attend events if you can. Okay, quarantine, but maybe digital events, i don’t know what they’re doing yet I haven’t checked. Go to the forums and engage in conversations about writing. Ask questions. Answer some. Buy some merch. Read the advice. Get involved in the community. Don’t let the community take over your writing time, but before nanowrimo? Perfect time to get involved.

Make room in your life for writing: Writing is a commitment. You have to show up to the page. You have to sit down and write. And it more or less has to be everyday, unless you’re planning on bingeing on only certain days... which is possible but harder. Plan out regular times where you will write. Carve out a schedule. It can be the whole weekend or it can be fifteen minutes here and there throughout the day. I am proof that you can write a novel in stolen fifteen minute increments. It takes TIME to write. Oh hey, while we’re on the subject, find out how long it takes you to write. How much can you write in 15 minutes? 30 minutes? an hour? How many of those time chunks will you need to get the words down. Don’t assume you write faster than you do. 

Set up your writing space. A room, a corner, a laptop on your bed, a cafe, a library, a journal. Whatever it is. Make sure you have what you need and it is reasonably organized so that you can not worry about it. ALSO, get snacks and drinks set up so you can feed your body while you write.

Tell people in your life that you will be doing this. I know that may be hard, but telling people that you are committed to this project means you are being held accountable for your goal. It’s not just a wish. The more real you make it, the more likely you’ll reach it. You want them to know that you’ll be taking time to do this. But also, support helps. If you have no one irl to support you, find groups on line, if you don’t know where to look. go look at the forums on nanowrimo.org. You can find forums for age range, life stage, interests, genre, whatever.

It turns out these are all suggestions for how to get nanowrimo going BEFORE nanowrimo. I do believe that this is important. You need to work out your writing muscles before november. This is one of the things that can help you succeed. But I have other hints for how to get it done done while you’re doing it. I’m afraid for simplicity’s sake, that needs to be another post. 

If you want to do nanowrimo... which I do suggest even if it turns out not to work for you, it helps to start earlier. Like running a marathon, you need to train to be able to go the distance. There are lots of thing to do that can get you there. These are only some of them.

Oh okay. I have one more thing. I’ve been keeping writing boards over on pinterest. I have boards both to brainstorm my novels and for writing advice. 

nanowrimo pinterest board story ideas pinterest board character ideas SFF ideas Villain ideas The Writer’s Life

Feel free to plunder and pillage my writing boards. Repin whatever you want. That’s what it’s there for as well as my own inspiration.

All my writing boards start with “to write” or most of them do. There is “the writing life” and “kids and writing.” I have a lot of boards and a lot of pins. 

also check out my writing board @rosy-writes i think at some point I’ll return this blog to a writing blog, but maybe i’ll keep rosywrites for my writing advice or something.

#writing advice #rosy-writes #nanowrimo #amwriting

[kestrellady]

r/Fantasy Book Bingo 2022

Challenge Link Bingo Card

Good if you're getting into Fantasy/SciFi

This challenge actually goes from April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023, so... I'm a little early. This was fun, mostly because I knocked it out so fast. I was hoping this would broaden my reading in my most read genre (fantasy) and give me some ideas for Science Fiction, which I'm just getting into, but it didn't really work that way. I didn't really struggle to find books and I finished the challenge in under 8 months. There were a couple of books that got bumped higher on my TBR list, but nothing that I sought out specifically for this list. I could probably add a couple more "Hard Mode" books before the challenge is up, but honestly I'm pretty happy with what I've completed. I might look at the prompts again next year, but I'm not sure I'll do this challenge again.

17/25 Hard Mode

Full list below the cut.

First Row Across:

Ruin of Angels by Max Gladstone A Book from r/Fantasy's Top LGBTQIA List: Any book on this list, including sequels. HARD MODE: A book or series that received ten votes or less.

The Harbors of the Sun by Martha Wells Weird Ecology: Story takes place in a world that is wildly different from our own and includes such things as unique environments, strange flora and fauna, unusual ecosystems, etc. HARD MODE: Not written by Jeff VanderMeer or China Miéville.

Elemental Magic, edited by Mercedes Lackey Two or More Authors: Any book written by two or more authors Anthologies count! HARD MODE: Three or more authors.

Black Powder War by Naomi Novik Historical SFF: Any book within the historical fantasy subgenre. HARD MODE: Not based in Britain or Ireland.

Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes Set in Space: A book that takes place primarily (at least 50%) off planet. HARD MODE: Characters are not originally from Earth. It is acceptable for the characters to be descendants of Earthlings as long as they are not themselves from Earth.

Second Row Across:

The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea by Axie Oh Standalone: A book that is not part of a series or a larger world. No connected novellas or short stories. HARD MODE: Not on r/Fantasy’s Favorite Standalones List.

The Heart Forger by Rin Chupeco Anti-Hero: Wikipedia describes an antihero as “a character in a story who lacks conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions that are morally correct, it is not always for the right reasons, often acting primarily out of self-interest or in ways that defy conventional ethical codes.” HARD MODE: A YA book with an anti-hero.

The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco Book Club OR Readalong Book: Any past or active r/Fantasy book clubs count (HEA, Mod, Classics, Resident Author, Feminism in Fantasy, etc.), as well as past or active r/Fantasy readalongs. See our full list of book clubs here. NOTE: All of the current book club info can also be found on our Goodreads page. Every book added to our Goodreads shelf or on this Google Sheet counts for this square. You can see our past readalongs here. HARD MODE: Must read a current selection of either a book club or readalong and participate in the discussion.

Terciel and Elinor by Garth Nix Cool Weapon: At least one main character uses a weapon with magical properties. HARD MODE: Weapon has a unique name.

The Oleander Sword by Tasha Suri Revolutions and Rebellions: A book featuring a revolution. Any overthrowing of governments, monarchs, and systems will do. HARD MODE: Revolution/Rebellion is the main focus of the plot.

Third Row Across:

Sebastian by Anne Bishop Name in the Title: A character’s first or last name appears in the title. Example: Gideon the Ninth. HARD MODE: The title has the character’s first and last name.

Nettle and Bone by T. Kingfisher Author Uses Initials: Read a book by an author who goes by their initials like N. K. Jemisin or uses initials somewhere in their name like George R. R. Martin. HARD MODE: Initials are a pseudonym and not from the author’s actual name.

The League of Gentlewomen Witches by India Holton Published in 2022: A book published for the first time in 2022 (no reprints or new editions). HARD MODE: It's also a debut novel--as in it's the author's first published novel.

Champagne, Misfits, and other Shady Magic by Meghan Ciana Diodge Urban Fantasy: A subgenre of fantasy in which the narrative uses supernatural elements in a 19th-century to 21st-century urban society. Often overlaps with other subgenres like paranormal romance and superhero stories. HARD MODE: Book has an LGBTQ+ POV character.

A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark Set in Africa: Book must either be set in Africa like Rosewater by Tade Thompson or in an analogous setting that is based on a real-world African setting like Raybearer by Jordan Ifueko. HARD MODE: Author is of African heritage.

Fourth Row Across:

Turning Darkness into Light by Marie Brennan Non-Human Protagonist: Main character must not be human or partially human. Humanoid aliens or anthropomorphic animals do count. HARD MODE: Non-humanoid protagonist. No elves, angels, dwarves, hobbits, or humanoid aliens.

A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey: Any book that deals with time not behaving as it should. Time travel, time slips, time loops, time stopping, multiple timelines, etc., all work for this square. HARD MODE: No time travel. Book involves something off about time that’s not necessarily time travel.

Lawless Lands: Tales from the Weird Frontier, edited by Emily Lavin Leverett, Misty Massey, and Margaret S. McGraw Five SFF Short Stories: Any short story as long as there are five of them. HARD MODE: Read an entire SFF anthology or collection.

Death Goddess Dance by Levi Black Features Mental Health: Story takes a strong interest in or explores themes like mental wellness and illness, self-care, and so on. Here is a list of SFF books that center mental health to get you started. HARD MODE: Not The Stormlight Archive or any books in the linked list.

Fumiko and the Finicky Nestmate by Forthright Self-Published OR Indie Publisher: Self-published or published through a small, indie publisher. If the novel has been picked up by a publisher as long as you read it when it was self-pubbed it will still count. HARD MODE: Self-published and has fewer than 100 ratings on Goodreads, OR an indie publisher that has done an AMA with r/Fantasy.

Fifth Row Across:

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon Award Finalist, But Not Won: Any book that was short-listed for an award (or multiple awards) but never received an award. You can check out this list of SFF awards at ISFDB for inspiration. HARD MODE: Neither Hugo-nominated nor Nebula-nominated (check this list for ineligible novels and novellas).

Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho BIPOC Author: Author must be Black, Indigenous or a Person of Color. HARD MODE: A book written by an Indigenous author. Check out this list of Indigenous SFF books to get you started.

Storm Echo by Nalini Singh Shapeshifters: At least one character has the ability to change their physical form. HARD MODE: Most prominent shifter is not a wolf/dog shifter.

Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim No Ifs, Ands, or Buts: Title does not include the following words: the, a/an, and, or, if, of, but. HARD MODE: Title is three words or more.

Black Water Sister by Zen Cho Family Matters: A book that features biological family ties. Sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, grandparents, and children – as long as the relationship plays a part, it’s welcome for this square. HARD MODE: Features at least three generations in a single family.

#kestrel reads #books #book challenges #r/fantasy's book bingo #fantasy #science fiction

[virtual-lara]

Collection of Information from the official Tomb Raider 1 Website

If you've ever gone back in Web Archive history for the official Tomb Raider website, you may have come across the front page for Tomb Raider 1, but due to the age, any links have been lost and many pages are now inaccessable. After searching for very, very old fansites, we've come across 3 that have filled in these blanks. The following post will go through these lost pages. Hopefully you will find this as interesting as we did.

The left above image is dated Dec '96, the right above image is dated Jan '97. Note how 'Lara's Page & Calendar', 'Features' and 'Contests' is added in just over a month. The websites that I will be referring to are: the official Tomb Raider website and the following fansites: Saint Francis Folly C. 1996-1997 | Robert Wheeler's Tomb Raider Archives C. 30/11/1996-2001? (later hosted by Croft Times) | Tomb Raider Unleashed 1997-1997

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lara's Page

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- OFFICIAL LINK - Dated as early as Jan 1997 | SFF | TR Unleashed | TR Archives

We believe that this included the very first draft of a biography for Lara. Sadly it does not appear, so we can only ever be 99% certain but the information was saved due to the very early fansites - TR Archives especially as he created pages using exact/very similar titles to the official website. All three listed fansites give the same details:

========================

NAME: Lara Croft

DATE OF BIRTH: 14th February 1967

PLACE OF BIRTH: England

HEIGHT: 5'7''

WEIGHT: 8 Stone, 11 lbs (about 55Kgs)

FIGURE: 38" Bust, 22" Waist, 34" Hips

HAIR: Brown

EYES: Brown

BACKGROUND: Lara the daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft, was raised to be an aristocrat from birth. After attending finishing school at the age of 21, Lara's marriage into wealth had seemed assured, but on her way home from a skiing trip her chartered plane had crashed deep in the heart of the Himalayas. The only survivor, Lara learned how to depend on her wits to stay alive in hostile conditions a world away from her sheltered upbringing. Two weeks later when she walked into the village of Tokakeriby her experiences had had a profound effect on her. Unable to stand the claustrophobic suffocating atmosphere of upper-class British society, she realised that she was only truly alive when she was travelling alone. Over the eight following years she acquired an intimate knowledge of ancient civilisations across the globe. Her family soon disowned their prodigal daughter, and she turned to writing to fund her trips. Famed for discovering several ancient sites of profound archaeological interest she made a name for herself by publishing travel books and detailed journals of her exploits.

DISCOVERIES: 1993 - The Lost Ark of the Covenant. 1996 - The Alantian Scion.

========================

VL Thoughts: The inclusion of a discovery date for the Ark is very interesting. Perhaps the developers felt that they needed to date the item in the mansion. Other than that, nothing's too surprising.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Calendar

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- OFFICIAL LINK - Earliest capture: Jun 1997 | TR Archives

You could visit the Calendar page each month (starting from Jan 97) to see that month's page, featuring clickable links to wallpapers, new sounds and details of any upcoming releases, including other Core/Eidos games. Check out the TR Archives link just above to see 6 months of the calendar. A later capture of the TR Archives fills in the remaining 6 months, but only December works now and the design starts to change, ready for TR2!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Storyline

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- OFFICIAL LINK - Earliest capture: Jun 1997

No need for any fansite on this one as this page is available!

========================

Lara Croft has just returned from a hunting trip in the Himalayas where, having bagged a 12-foot tall yeti, she's itching for a new challenge. While enjoying a little R & R, she's contacted Jacqueline Natla, a conniving business woman who convinces Lara to recover a mysterious artifact from the tomb of Qualopec in Peru.

Wasting no time, Lara sets out on her quest to find one of the three pieces of the ancient Atlantean Scion, a talisman of incredible power. After disovering the fragment things get ugly, Lara finds herself face to face with one of Natla's hired goons. Using her cunning wits and athletic strenghth, Lara escapes!

As she delves into the reasons why Natla would double cross her, she uncovers a mystery that reaches back before the dawn of recorded time to the treachery that destroyed the Atlantean civilization and the disasters that struck the world when it fell.

Enter the Tomb Raider world in 15 massive 3D environments within four lost civilizations:

- Vilcabamba... A civilization that flourished for hundreds of years in the Peruvian rainforests of South America. Guide Lara through the lost Incan city while battling wolves, bats, bears, raptors, and more.

- Labryinth...The Golden Age of Greece, and later Rome. Here Lara battles lions, alligators, crazed monkeys and more as she explores ruins of this ancient civilization.

- Egyptian...Where the vast power of Egypt rose with the pyramids. Explore buried pyramids and a hidden sphinx while fighting pumas, crocodiles, and some surprising mystical monsters.

- Atlantean...The pyramid of Atlantis where the mystery unfolds. Play and see!!!

========================

VL Thoughts: There are a couple of cool things. Firstly, here is an early source to date Lara's escapade for Bigfoot, but later in 2003 when the AOD Official Companion book is released, it is dated to 1995. But a location is mentioned - the Himilayas and Bigfoot is incorrectedly called a Yeti, the latter would be geographically more accurate. Secondly, the locations of the levels are broken up into zones, as mentioned in an early '96 draft recently released by Paul Douglas. Note the Labryinth levels. It was not an accident that St Francis Folly includes a mix up of Norse/Greek/Roman characters.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Features

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- OFFICIAL LINK - Earliest capture: Jun 1997

No need for any fansite on this one as this page is available!

This page contains a listing of elements about the game, camera, enemies and levels etc. It also includes various 3D patches and demos, too much for us to list here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Extra pages

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

- OFFICIAL LINK (Sounds) - Earliest capture: Jun 1997 | OFFICIAL LINK (Wallpapers) - Earliest capture: Jun 1997 | TR Archives

There were wallpapers, soundbites and even movies available on the official website but they're not listed on the front page. We believe that these pages would have been linked to via the calendar pages. Tomb Raider Archives lists out the sounds and even the movies. To avoid making this post any longer, check out the link above. We have a little bit of info on the wallpapers. In TR Archives' fansites list (dated 4th June 97), there is a fansite called Game Schtuff's Tomb Raider page. This particular website says that there are 8 wallpapers (backed up by TR Arc) but this site shows them. Sadly only two images load.

VL Final Thoughts: We couldn't find the 'Contests' or 'Screenshots' pages, and although most of this data is now known, it's nice to see it on the official website with an early date. If you've reached the end of this article, we hoped that you've enjoyed looking back in TR1 history as we have raiding the archives!

#Tomb Raider 1 #TR1 Web Art #VL Articles #VL Posts #TR History

[haich-slash-cee]

Is the print publishing world picking up online/fandom terms? How they are using them? How do we feel about this?

So this is... attention-getting, for folks who like to follow publishing and meta stuff.

https://twitter.com/sapphicxrey/status/1215065948677443584

https://twitter.com/TorDotComPub/status/1233391556750647299

(2nd tweet -- TW, mentions of non-con)

Are we seeing the beginnings of book publishers directly borrowing from online/fandom culture in promoting their books? How do we feel about these examples?

More below cut.

Exhibit #1: screenshots of Bonds of Brass promo from Jan 8 2020. (Which is probably going to have reactions of “haha, cute” at most.)

Transcript of blurb: 

“If you like... 

forbidden romances, “there’s only one bed”, cityships, weaponized umbrellas, powersuits, secret princes, best friends, best friends PINING, fake dating between PINING best friends, tactical streaking, the minivan of starships, cigar-chomping cyborg ladies, scary empress moms, galactic-level bisexual disasters, LEGACY (WHAT IS A LEGACY?), rooftop hopping, golden trios, rumblin’ drums, bootleg fireworks, BIG SPACE BATTLES PEW PEW, a surprisingly functional public transit system, mob trouble, one hell of a pilot, the inherent DRAMA of empire, a nice interlude in a river, smoking a joint that’s been on the floor, sick stunts, slick grifts, hiding in a dumpster, or any combination of the above,

 Then you might like 

BONDS OF BRASS”

The Twitter responses seem to be generally enthusiastic. (And also, “FinnPoe! FinnPoe!”)

Personally, I’m intrigued from a meta-view of “oh so that’s definitely pulling from online world and fanfiction world, interesting. I wonder how much fanfiction culture is starting to influence print book culture and promotion.” Maybe I’ve got some questions like, “Ok so moneymaking companies such as Penguin are now using culture developed by the not-moneymaking-world of fanfiction? How do we feel about this?” Anyway, the book looks cute, I’m interested enough and I might get it from the library.

I suspect many people’s reactions are along the lines of “hm, interesting”, “sounds like a lark”, or “haha they’re using AO3 tags as promo”, etc. 

Exhibit #2, screenshots of DOCILE promo, from Feb 28 2020 (today is March 1 2020), and screenshots of Twitter responses so far:

(*CW, non-con discussion)

Tweet transcript:

“DOCILE by @KMSzpara:  

-Dubcon/Noncon 

-Dramatic Trillionaire Content 

-BDSM and then some more BDSM and then a lot more BDSM

 -Hurt/comfort and hurt/no comfort

 -Cinnamon roll of steel 

-The most scandalous kink: love 

-Courtroom, bedroom, & Preakness drama

[Tor book website link]”

So this is getting mixed reactions on Twitter. All dozen or so reactions, so far. Here’s text transcripts and bio info from repliers, below. I’m being a little obsessive, mostly to show that there’s a mix of queer, book-ish people in the replies (including the author).)

Noncon is nonconsentual sex, rape. Even in fandom it's a content tag, not a promotional term. I can't imagine being a rape survivor and seeing this come across my TL. -- @WriteSomeGood [queer rainbow] [Cis queer homemaker, aspiring author, maker of incredible cinnamon buns. She/her] [has a Tumblr page]

I’m not a survivor but it was an instant “no thank you” from me. And I was sincerely looking forward to this prior to. This is the most immediately off-putting marketing push I’ve seen for a book in a long damn time. -- @AGAWilmot [Author, editor, artist. Co-EIC of @anathemaspec. @SFU alum. The Death Scene Artist/W&W 2018. Ace/enby. They/them. Horror is my comfort food.]

Whichever intern wrote this tweet, deserves a full time job. With benefits. -- @simeontsanev [Aspiring writer, post-aspiring musician, and overall geek  He/Him /[queer rainbow]/ To the world we dream about, and the one we live in now! http://simeontsanev.com]

Idk why everyone thinks it’s always an intern writing copy and not a team comprised of extremely skilled social media experts, editors, publicists and marketers, and their assistants  I worked on those tags with my editor and a good friend!! -- @KMSzpara [Kellan. [queer rainbow]  Speculative fiction writer. Queer agenda.  Hugo & Nebula finalist.  DOCILE 3/3/20 from Tor Dot Com Publishing.  He/him.  Rep @suddenlyjen] *The author, bio page and twitter page.

this is CUTE! -- @MSSciarappa  [queer rainbow] I do books. he/him.

I am Extremely Ready for this content thank u -- @JessicaBCooper [Journo ☽ Writer of faerie, villain fuckery & cruel desires ☽ Lestat & Loki's love child ☽ Aleksander Morozova's side-hoe ☽ Rep'd by Kate Testerman @ktliterary]

I’m listening -- @MerynLobb [Government worker. Weightlifter. Nihilist. Aspiring cult leader. Avid user of words, often bad ones. #AMM R6 Mentee. she/her]

Soon! Soon!! -- @castrophony [Geek. Gamer. Cosplayer. Bibliophile. Scientist. She/Her.]

[happy reaction gif] -- @TorDotComPub [Providing a home for writers to tell SFF stories in exactly the number of words they choose. All our titles are available globally in print and DRM-free ebook.]

[throwing stuff in dumpster, unhappy reaction gif] -- @cursedgravy  [name's xavi, im a transman and i like to daydream about making content] 

For more context, here’s the blurb from the author website. Below is the blurb from the publisher’s site:

“Docile

K.M. Szpara

K. M. Szpara's Docile is a science fiction parable about love and sex, wealth and debt, abuse and power, a challenging tour de force that at turns seduces and startles.

There is no consent under capitalism.

To be a Docile is to be kept, body and soul, for the uses of the owner of your contract. To be a Docile is to forget, to disappear, to hide inside your body from the horrors of your service. To be a Docile is to sell yourself to pay your parents' debts and buy your children's future.

Elisha Wilder’s family has been ruined by debt, handed down to them from previous generations. His mother never recovered from the Dociline she took during her term as a Docile, so when Elisha decides to try and erase the family’s debt himself, he swears he will never take the drug that took his mother from him.

Too bad his contract has been purchased by Alexander Bishop III, whose ultra-rich family is the brains (and money) behind Dociline and the entire Office of Debt Resolution. When Elisha refuses Dociline, Alex refuses to believe that his family’s crowning achievement could have any negative side effects—and is determined to turn Elisha into the perfect Docile without it.

Content warning: Docile contains forthright depictions and discussions of rape and sexual abuse.”

So that’s a lot of info and reactions.

Personally: at first glance, I absently skimmed the tweet and “hurt/comfort” popped out, and I was like “What? Mainstream publishing is cool with this now? I was wondering if ‘hurt/comfort’ would one day become commonly used in publishing [related post]. But this is way sooner than I thought.” And then I read the rest of of the tweet and thought, “Wait, what?” 

And then I started reading through the tweet replies and thought, “OK, at the risk of getting a bunch of Tumblr drama, I want to bring this to the whump community and see how people feel."

As for myself, one of my squicks is non-con, and I’m not really interested in hurt/no comfort. So just from the tweet, I know the book is not for me. The official blurbs confirmed that. In this sense, this is like skimming Ao3 tags on a fic and saying “pass” on a story.

However, I have questions about the specific promotion of the book. So the official blurbs are pretty standard. What about that tweet, which Tor (and the author, who helped put it together) put out? Because I think an official publisher’s Tweet comes with different context than Ao3 tags.

First, the different internet spaces. You can filter tags on Ao3 and Tumblr. I know you can mute words on Twitter, but is that the same thing? Also, would people be expecting these tags on Twitter? Compared to Ao3 or Tumblr or Tumblr Whump spaces?

Within the Tumblr Whump community, from what I’ve browsed, the community attitude (guidelines?) seem to be “Write and discuss what you want. Be sure to tag it, use content warnings, or otherwise clearly communicate if you have things that may be triggering. Respect people’s squicks/triggers. Walk away from what you don’t like.” Like, tumblr whump has a very specific culture of trying to balance discourse/stories about potentially very dark stuff, but also wanting to make sure the IRL people and Tumblr users are okay. There’s always posts going around about how to do this, are we doing this in the right way, ethics, so on. Also -- and people can correct me -- the whump tumblr space might be where tags are content warnings for people to stay away, and also what people might actively look for. So if any space is going to discuss if this promotional tweet checks out, I feel like it’s this space. 

Also, to note again, Tor Tweets are in the money-official-publisher-world, not unpaid-tumblr-people or unpaid-fanfiction-fandom-world.

Maybe I just want to ask, “Hey those first two tweet responses, does they have a point? Tor using ‘noncon’ as official promotion? On Twitter?” I mean, I’ve previously written, “The CW and TW tags that Ao3 writers use, I really wish those were used with published books as well.” But somehow, the Tor tweet was not quite what I was expecting. Maybe for reasons similar to that first tweet response. (I guess one could debate if a tweet is really promotion or just information... you know what someone can correct me, but I’m gonna say that a Tor.com tweet is promotion, compared to information like Ao3, and that tweet was there for promotion.)

Those tags operate within specific Ao3 and Tumblr cultures and infrastructure. I don’t hang around Twitter for whump stuff, IDK what the culture is. Anyway, does dropping these tags into a promotional tweet from Tor.... translate?

The tweet is evidently gathering the people who are there for it, and the people who aren’t there for it are quickly realizing that they are not there for it. But personally, the Tor website blurb does a better job at that, using writing that I’d expect from a publisher for communicating fictional non-con situations. (Maybe the blurb content warnings are what I wanted more of, when I said I wished for CW and TW in books.)

Anyway, there’s no huge drama about that Docile book promo on Twitter, as far as I can tell. So this is a niche thing, right now. But. The promo for Bonds of Brass and for Docile might be the beginnings of a trend of well-known book publishers borrowing from online writing / fandom culture and terminology in order to promote or categorize their books. These two promos might set a precedent or have other significance.

So if anyone has discourse on the tweets or potential future trends... 

#meta #discourse #publishing #bonds of brass #Docile #publishers #future trends #maybe #non-con #trigger warnings #content warnings #fanfiction #ao3 #tumblr #whump #hurt/comfort #hurt/no comfort #books