#sorcery fight zine

[lesser-vissir]

txttletxle has beaten the topic to death (thankfully) but people really really **really** underestimate how fucking horrible Gygax was, as by extension how horrible the D&D community was in general up until roughly 2013.

Not that it's gotten that much better but the blatant racist racists are less a majority now.

Anyways, I was reading a zine published Summer 2008 called Fight On! [Volume 2 specifically] which has an article titled "The Wilderness Architect, Parts I-II" by Victor Raymond.

Within which the author references an older work by the name of "Sturmgeschutz &Sorcery -or- How Effective is a Panzerfaust Against a Troll, Heinz?" Which was published in The Strategic Review Vol 1 No 5 in December of 1975. It was written by one Gary Gygax.

I present it to you in full:

I would draw your attention to the line "but who can trust a stupid orc?"

Not only was Gygax at bare minimum enamored with the propaganda surrounding the supposed military wundertech if Nazi Germany (if not with their politics) he was most certainly clear about how he felt "lesser" races in D&D were to be treated.

AND the author of the article quoting him takes no problem with that. Rather he, and several other authors in the issue, are blatantly misogynist, antisemitic, and racist.

Here's some fun stuff from other articles.

This is from 2008, and while some articles merely detail rules for falling from a startled mount, many more contain horrifically bigoted ideals and politics.

[martiwikiwi]

HAPPY ARO WEEK!!

Today’s prompt for the @acesincomics​ event are aroace characters in comics so here I am to talk about my nb aroace visually impaired sorcerer Prince Fireopal.

Prince Fireopal is a sweet child who likes fairies and dragons and crystal sorceries. They get easily frustrated when they can’t find the words for explaining themselves. They used to have an easy life studying sorceries until one day they dreamt of a unicorn who came from the future! And now they are on a quest with their father to fight the system and kill the gods.

I’m still working on the script for that comic project but Fireopal is also the main character of my latest zine FOUND FAMILY that features four short stories about their found family relationships. You can get a copy of the zine on my Ko-fi btw, both in digital and printed edition.

Another aro character I have is my Hazelnut-eyes Cleric. She hetero but aro as fuck and the main character of my comic FIGHTING NIGHTMARES AND FEARS a dark fantasy feminist comic about a young cleric who is devoted to fighting the system of a world ruled by violence and fear. Lots of Dark Souls vibes because of reasons. You can read FIGHTING NIGHTMARES AND FEARS for free on ComicFury (CW: Graphic violence and occasional frontal nudity)

#acespec comic share #ace creators #original comics #queer comics #my art #webcomics #aromantic #fantasy

[gontijolab]

Throne of mud, hearts of stone

That's the title of my first adventure for Into the Bronze, a sword-and-sorcery-and-sandals OSR game I've published 2 years ago. I'm currently writing it in my own language so the thing goes faster. Right now 40% is written already, but as soon as I finish it I still have to translate it into English, pre-edit it and then send it to the editor. Yeah, a lot of work ahead of me, but honestly I'm having tons of fun in the process and I guess that's what matters in the end. This adventure was playtested several times back then in 2020 when I've also published the game in Brazil. Curiously, writing is such a bittersweet task to me. It's super hard, but also so rewarding. It feels like the text is looking at me from the screen and revealing opportunities I was not seeing while the module existed only in my head (and in a few doodles on an old notebook).

Adding ideas

It was inevitable to add some ideas that were not on the original thing, but would 100% make the material shine brighter today. A few puzzles here, a complex relationship balance there and tons of new aesthetic details to help players and GMs to visualize and immerse themselves into a mythical bronze age Mesopotamia.

Fiction as a hook

One of my ideas was to write a prequel flash-fiction short story as the adventure hook. Instead of a section called

"why the PCs had to go to this island?"

I've decided to write some pages with actual fiction. In my opinion it's a bit better to get the GM on track when they're landing on a new adventure. I feel maybe we're losing an opportunity here neglecting fiction inside our RPG zines and books. Our public is essentially enthusiastic about fiction, afterall.

Solitaire potential

It wouldn't be me if I didn't say a word or two about solo gaming here. The module is being written newbie-first. In other words, I'm designing it as easy as possible for a new GM to run it. By helping the newbies I also make it better for everyone else, experienced GMs included. I'm saying that cause the text guides the GM in a way quite similar to the classic fighting fantasy gamebooks

If the group goes west, then...

If the group goes east, instead, then...

You can imagine I'm already tempted to transform the adventure on s choose-your-own-adventure style gamebook later right? Who wouldn't? The main challenge here is that Into the Odd (the system my game is based on) has a very diegetic approach to combat. It's not your usual try and error combat from most fantasy games. For example, there's a famous rule that "attack always hits". It implies the players will have to deal with the consequences of causing damage to some NPC or creature if they choose that path. Pretty interesting, right? Well, unless you want to fit it into a gamebook. In that case, it can be tricky to do it without changing the system into something else. As I'm still writing the main module (the one for GMs and groups, I mean) I'm still not diving too deep on this game design challenge of the future. But I hope to do it as soon the module is published. Maybe the gamebook could be a thing for the second semester. Hoping for the best.

See you next time

Gontijo

#text #ttrpg design #osr #fantasy #ttrpg campaign #solo rpg #game design

[arinavah]

I added jujutsu kaisen zine in my store!

Please check it out!

>>>etsy

#Jujutsu kaisen #Jjk #Sorcery fight #Itadori yuji #Nobara kugisaki #Fushiguro megumi #Satoru gojo #Maki zenin #Inumaki toge #yuta okkotsu #Nanami kento #Zine #Fanart #Merch

[theawkwardterrier]

Chill Book Recs

It’s a tense time (obvious) and for all those who are social distancing (which should be as many people as possible!!) as well as those who are out there keeping essential services running and caring for those who need it (thank you!!), sometimes we need a chance to relax with a book that’s somewhat low stakes. So I’ve put together some of my faves which are light and funny (and, not coincidentally, often romantic and/or tropey - not sorry!) for you to download as ebooks or audiobook, or order from a bookstore (especially recommend that you check if your local indies are still shipping, or look at Biblio, or the Bookstore at the End of the World collective). Not saying that all the selections below are without obstacle or issue, but I’ve tried to keep it pretty upbeat and noted what I can. Feel free to add your own faves like this, and happy reading!

(Sorry for the abundance of parentheses.)

(No, I’m not.)

Analee, In Real Life by Janelle Milanes (fake dating, MMORPG, Latinx MCs, own voices, family drama, YA)

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (boarding school, friends to romance, Paris, cancer cw, YA)

The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge by M.T. Anderson (humor, fantasy, enemies to friends, fantasy political intrigue, illustrations, confusion!, middle grade)

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell (semi epistolary, company approved spying, early 2000s, newspaper, best friendships, Getting Yourself Together, very good food descriptions, miscarriage cw, romance, adult)

Bet Me by Jennifer Crusie (enemies to romance, chicken marsala, a familial yikes but very good friends, did you adopt the cat or did the cat adopt you, snow globes, shoe descriptions, fat MC, this is my favorite romance tbh, adult)

The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan (Scotland, power of books, side romance, small town, precariously balanced large vehicle, running your own small business, misunderstanding the role of libraries but I’ll overlook it, job loss cw, adult)

Bossypants by Tina Fey (humor, short chapters, memoir, “Mrs. Fey's change of life baby,” Jimmy Fallon getting owned, adult)

Boy Meets Girl by Meg Cabot (epistolary-ish, baking, complaining about NYC real estate, labor disputes, eating disorder cw, romance, adult)

The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal (historical fiction/alternate history, math/physics/science, supportive husband, Jewish MC, awesome women, worldwide catastrophic event cw [I know but try it], side romances, adult) 

A Countess Below Stairs/The Secret Countess by Eva Ibbotson (historical fiction, WWI/Russian Revolution trauma cw, eugenics cw, quirkier Downton Abbey, romance, YA/adult) 

A Curious Beginning by Deanna Raybourn (historical mystery, side sexiness, butterflies, I keep talking about this series, adult)

Don't Date Rosa Santos by Nina Moreno (Gilmore Girls but make it Florida, Latinx MC and LI, bi MC, family curses, own voices, character death cw, romance, YA)

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (fantasy/fairy tale retelling, classic, curses, you’re allowed to like the movie I guess but read the book for real, romance, middle grade)

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes (small town Maine, overcoming past trauma, spousal death cw, depression cw, The Yips, friends to romance, adult) 

The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone by Jaclyn Moriarty (fantasy, cool aunts, journeys, middle grade)

Faking It by Jennifer Crusie (con men/people, messy family, murder?/fleeing the scene/technically I’m homeless, delicious sounding muffins, art theft, romance, adult)

Field Notes on Love by Jennifer E. Smith (train journeys, sextuplets, romance, YA)

The First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Pérez (zines, music, Latinx MC, middle grade)

Heartstopper by Alice Oseman (graphic novel/available as a webcomic [@heartstoppercomic], cute, gay MC, bi MC, school uniforms, bullying cw, romance, YA)

How Not to Ask a Boy to Prom by S.J. Goslee (fake dating, gay, bad boy?, YA)

I Wanna Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest (dance, road trips, Black MC and LI, dog, parental death cw, own voices, enemies to romance, YA)

The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang (statistics, autism/Asperger’s, escort, Asian/biracial MC, family owned restaurant, own voices, romance, adult)

Louisiana's Way Home by Kate DiCamillo (quirky small town, funnier than she knows narrator, a little bittersweet, middle grade)

Lucky Caller by Emma Mills (radio programming, family drama, neighbors, banter, contest mistakes, romance, YA)

The Morning Gift by Eva Ibbotson (marriage of necessity, Holocaust/WWII cw, Jewish MC, scientific sheep, paleontology, quirky side characters, romance, YA/adult)

My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger (epistolary-esque, Boston, gay MC, Asian MC, Latinx MC, musical theater, friendships!, baseball, romance, YA)

The Next Great Paulie Fink by Ali Benjamin (multiple POV/semi-epistolary, new girl in school, contests, small town, middle grade)

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang (graphic novel, fake fantasy but make it fashion, genderfluid MC, middle grade)

The Princess Bride by William Goldman (uncategorizable, funny, classic, fake politics, satiric genius is at its fullest flower, fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles, etc., YA/adult)

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston (politics, royal family, Texas, Latinx/biracial MC, bi MC, gay LI, everyone’s already talking about it but I listed it anyway, enemies to romance, adult)

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald (pen pals, small/rural town, translated, character death cw, power of books, side romance iirc, adult)

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson (graphic novel, roller derby, friendship, finding yourself, middle grade)

Sorcery & Cecelia, or The Enchanted Chocolate Pot by Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer (historical fantasy, Regency, cousins, side romances, estates, The Season, epistolary, middle grade/YA)

The Summer of Jordi Pérez (And the Best Burger in Los Angeles) by Amy Spalding (fashion, burger bros, lesbian MC, fat MC, queer LI, Latinx LI, own voices, romance, YA)

To All the Boys trilogy by Jenny Han (fake dating, baking, sisters, Asian MC, own voices, romance, YA [I mean, if you’ve seen the movies...])

To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan (epistolary, enemies to friends, matchmaking youth, gay dads, sleepaway camp, middle grade)

#books #book recs #p.s. feel free to send me an ask if you’d like other or more specific recs #or if you’d like help figuring out what you can access through your library/library network

[rpgsandbox]

Each game of MAZES begins as you are about to set out into the darkness. You and your stalwart companions peer down the stairs winding into the abyss, or lifting a rusty portcullis into a secret passage, or opening a door into a labyrinth where they say power and glory lies…

The MAZES RPG combines the look and feel of classic, dungeon exploring RPGS with cutting edge game play and mechanics. Designed for short session play in an episodic, novella style.

Each player has a different role to play within the party, and that role is DEFINED as a single die. You only ever roll your die - so, What do you want to do in the game?

MAZES and Polymorph System use the same YOU ARE A SINGLE DIE mechanic

MAZES ZINE EDITION is an introduction to this brand-new RPG – and the first game published with 9th Level’s exciting new POLYMORPH SYSTEM. MAZES makes it easy to play episodic, narrative heavy RPGs about dungeon exploring, monster fighting, and tales of sword and sorcery.

#ZINEQUEST

When Kickstarter announced ZINE QUEST, we knew that we had to be a part of it! Besides being game designers, we are also huge fans of ZINES and ZINE culture. In fact, our first game “Kobolds Ate My Baby!” was a Zine 20 YEARS AGO! (And we just completed a ZINE QUEST Kickstarter to deliver a reprint of it : Check that out here.)

We completely rejiggered our 2019 schedule and decided to introduce you all to POLYMORPH with this 1979 style ZINE EDITION of MAZES.  

MECHANICS OF MAZES

In MAZES, you always roll a die that represents your role in the party (the Vanguard is a D6, for instance). When you take an action, you are rolling against one of the 4 Actions - BOOKS, BOOTS, BLADES, or BONES (see the character sheet below) - and you are trying to roll one of the target numbers for that action. So, if you are running away from a Razorbear you would roll your die and try to roll a 3, a 4, or a 5 (since those are the numbers for BOOTS).

Each player has a class (reminiscent of basic/BECMI D&D). If you roll a 1, and it is something that your CLASS can do - you also succeed. Your class also gives you a number of EDGES - edges are like skills or abilities that allow you to gain ADVANTAGE on rolls.

                                   MAZES basic Character Sheet

OSR Emulation and Trilemma Adventures

Since MAZES is designed to feel like a game from 1979, but play like a game in 2019 - we have included a set of simple rules for translating OSR compliant game material for use with MAZES - so you can play using all of those great, old, DND modules, or all of the great, new, Old School Renaissance modules.

But, making adventures just for MAZES is easy too! The MAZE zine includes a host of ways to cook up a quick adventure for a night of gaming.

To help you get going quickly, we've included a set of three mini-adventures created by TRILEMMA ADVENTURES (100% ready to play with MAZES ).

FOUR ZINES FOR MORTALS DOOMED TO DIE

This Kickstarter is to create 4 small booklets that will detail a complete old-school style game – featuring everything a group needs to jump in and start adventuring!

SWORD contains the primary player facing rules of the game, including: how to create characters, fight monsters, and do cool stuff. This is the book that you need if you want to play the game. Sword also includes tiny solo adventures for you to learn more about the game!

SORCERY introduces magic, tools, and retainers to the game. It has everything that you need to wield magic, and information about the assumed world of the game. This is a player facing book. Together SWORD and SORCERY contain everything that a player needs.

MAZE is the core rulebook for the Maze Controller - the MC - the player that runs the game. It features all the rules for creating adventures and commentary on running games, creating obstacles, and a collection of quick play adventure episodes.

MONSTER is a bestiary of the horrible denizens that are waiting in the darkness to devour the players when they descend into the maze. MAZE explains how to control “The Darkness” a running clock that keeps the players moving forward.  

ONE GAME TO RULE THEM ALL

While POLYMORPH and MAZES are new – the 9th Level team is not. We have been making RPGS for 20 Years (yes, TWO DECADES). The Polymorph System is the result of countless games we've run all over the world – distilled down to create something fresh and exciting. We hope that you will join us on this journey as we start exploring the edges of what is possible with Polymorph – starting where we always start – BACK IN THE DUNGEON!

ONE GAME TO FIND THEM

Anyone that backs this campaign will also receive an invite to the BETA Discord Channel for MAZES and POLYMORPH. We will use this channel as a forum, and hopefully, as a place for people to play and share POLYMORPH and MAZES games.

9th Level will be supporting MAZES throughout the year with convention play opportunities and actual play videos. You can be a part of that through this Discord.

9th Level Games will be at Dreamation, Emerald City Comic Con, PAX East, Origins, DexCon, GenCon, PAX Unplugged, and more in 2019!

AND IN THE DARKNESS BIND THEM

BESIDES being huge RPG NERDS, Chris and Heather at 9th Level Games are huge zine and design nerds. We're just as excited about the look and feel of the zines as we are about the content!

Each zine will be solid black printing on bright white, matte 80lb Text weight acid free paper, with 111 lb. 300gsm rich colored vellum cover stock, all gloriously saddle stitched. Our zines will be produced by FIREBALL PRINTING in Philadelphia, PA.

These are some badass looking zines! Each book will be approximately 36 pages (we think, but don't quote us on that). We've gone with bold, shadow style art that looks amazing.

THERE WILL NOT BE A DIGITAL VERSION of MAZES at this time. However, the next iteration of MAZES will include a complete digital experience.

Kickstarter campaign ends: Thu, February 28 2019 11:30 PM UTC +00:00

Website: Ninth Level Games

#RPG #kickstarter #Mazes #Ninth Level Games

[growingupgerudo]

Do you have a character guide or something like that

Here’s a list! Also, our zine has a more in-depth character guide if you’re interested! 

Characters so far: Link - Ganon’s adopted son. Stubborn but sensitive. Has a nervous quirk of hiding the Mark of the Hero on his hand. Doesn’t speak out of shyness, but gradually comes out of his shell with the help of Sika. He enjoys animals (especially his pet Helmaroc, Bow-Wow), puzzles, and sweets. He hates spicy food and hats.

Ganondorf  - Gerudo King. Has a hard time focusing on his work, but tries to do what’s right. He has a crush on Nabooru, but he’s just as stubborn as her. He enjoys gardening, singing, and tea. 

Nabooru - Strict, stoic, and stubborn. She’s the Second in Command and she works hard to keep that title. She does care for Link, but she’s awkward with kids and has a hard time emotionally bonding with him. She enjoys a good glass of wine and smoking her pipe on her downtime after a good session in the training grounds. 

Aveil  - Sika’s mom, warrior but does sewing on the side. Her, Nabooru, and Ganon were childhood friends, plus Nabooru is her cousin. She mostly deals with sneak and stealth tactics unlike Nabooru. She’s a relaxed person who sees Sika less like a child and more like a friend.

Oska - Ganon’s older sister and Vridi’s mom. She has selective mutism and acts as the blacksmith to the tribe. She was previously the Second in Command until she lost her leg fighting ReDead in the Spirit Temple. 

Vassu - Vridi’s other mom. She is the soft-spoken, delicate jeweler of the tribe. Her and Oska are married, hence their ceremonial tattoos. She has a pet Burmese python named Aria who just sleeps most of the time.

Vridi - Vassu and Oska’s son. Shy Gerudo boy who wants to talk to Link. He loves snakes, reading and geology. He will also be the future Dragmire, or king of the Gerudo. Eventually learns magic under the Twinrova, twin witches who take young Gerudo kings under their wing to learn sorcery. 

Sika - Aveil’s only daughter. While she can be brash and abrasive, she does eventually become best friends with Link. She loves sewing and spiders. 

Midna - Twili Princess and Link’s friend. She can be spunky, cunning yet clingy to Link. She has a fondness for dolls, especially the one Link gifted to her when they first met. Bread is her favorite food. 

Ghirahim - Demon Lord and servant to Demise. He watches Ganondorf at every moment and tends to get into his personal space a lot. He’s flamboyant and cunning, and plans things out meticulously. He loves compliments yet hates having his hair touched. 

Zelda - Princess of Hyrule. She loves astronomy and her pet owl, Copernicus, and aspires to be the Legendary Hero, not at all caring for her chosen role as the princess and Hylia reincarnate. She’s snooty, bold and intelligent. 

Just a quick run-down, but someday we’ll make a more polished list! 

#refs #growing up gerudo #legend of zelda

[pussymagicuniverse]

You Never Grow Out of Being a Witch

Creative Non-Fiction by Maggie Edinger

My twelve-year-old self danced in the woods behind my creepy neighbors house, in long pastel dresses that I would find in cardboard boxes at garage sales. I would gather my supplies of love notes written on white college ruled paper, stolen coffee grounds from my mother's morning fuel and a lighter... you always need a lighter. I also always brought my mom’s old paper prayer books. They reminded me of the Riot Grrrl zines, the way they had stories of archangels and women who were burned at the stake for their ideas, their beliefs, their dreams. I would trace my finger over the pencil drawings of saintly women and wonder what they had wished for, because my spells were just fancy wishes. They always had the same two themes--boys and wishing for my mom’s happiness. 

One spell would be a love potion for the boy next door, sticky red and full of sweet smelling perfume, bubbles popping on the surface like kisses. The other one was a feeling, an almost desperate plea to end the curse of sadness that landed on my mother and buried itself into her hair. I used fortune cookies for my happy spells. They seemed to hold such drama in the black words scrolled across small, white tabs of paper, with lucky numbers and symbols. Sometimes I would eat them and swallow my magic like a pill, letting it soak in and travel through me hoping that the next time I touched my mother I would infect her with my fortune.

•

My seventeen-year-old self still did the witch dances, just more secretly. The woods were darker, the spells filled with more lust and insecurity than before were still being said. My witch wishes for my mom felt more hopeless. I started to think she was a witch too. How else could she repel my spell for so many years? Her darkness was deep, and isolating. Her brewing storm was a war against what was real and what was only in her head. I burned sage on altars of dead tree logs and held hands with other girls in pastel hues whose parents had lost their powers. When no one notices that you carry prayer books full of scrap paper and harvest people's hearts for blind love you can hide in plain sight. No one knew I had secret powers that were tucked inside my pockets, filled with dead flowers and garlic.

My hiding places were hang outs--the simplicity of having friends that believed in the same craft. We braided each other's snarly hair and whispered of romances we had not felt yet. They made me feel alive. Alive with a twirling of my stomach when I tried to do a handstand without one of them holding my legs, alive with the promise of lips actually feeling love, not just speaking of it. We practiced the art of never feeling alone. Loneliness was my enemy, I had seen it wreck havoc on my mom. I could not and would not allow loneliness to steal my soul. I only felt powerful when I was around the other girls--I fed off them; I loved them; they were my icons, my sisters, my true coven. My own cure for breaking the cycle that I was now fighting against. My physical saints, with real hearts and good grips.

•

My twenty-three-year-old self lost track of my childhood spells, misplaced my paperback books, and was trapped in the real world. My relationship with the most important woman in my life was so fragile that if I breathed too hard, too close to it, it could unravel in a million, trillion, tiny specks spread across our past lives. Mental illness is a spell itself. It's sneaky and smart; it gathers your pieces and mixes them with dust; it confuses you and misplaces everyone around it. I forgot my mission to wish away her sadness and moved away from what scared me. She scared me. I wanted to understand her, I wanted to help her, I wanted my love to save her, but it didn't and it wouldn’t no matter how many goddesses held my hand and recited words that were born from cookies. She was my connector to the feminine, the rope holding my spirit; she was casting secrets to the same woods, with the same creepy neighbors. I had to learn that she and I had different struggles: as I was trying to fit in, she was trying to tune out. Our genes had split...she went one way and I went another.

•

My thirty-one-year-old self found my old pastel pink dress. Everything was still there, smeared on top of tulle. Old dirt, grass stains, ash--it smelled like coffee and when I closed my eyes, I saw my mother. I saw my saint-girls, and my circles of rituals. Magical powers swirled around my eyes. I missed her, I missed them all. My curse to entice happiness had exploded in my hands. I watched her grow older, not happier. Depression seduced her like a child lured into a car with promises of candy. I was tempted to forget my witch that lived inside, but it was my animal guide, it was a part of me, it's the only part that danced. My paranormal double life made me question if I was doing enough to help her; what else could I do, when I had tried it all. I had outgrown the dresses--I would need new ones if I was going to wake up the witch. I was going to need supplies and the woods and a lighter...can’t forget the lighter. I was going to have to startle her awake so she would pop up quickly and not have time to reflect or second guess. I was worried she might never wake up...what if she never woke up? I had to try, I had to try one last time to see if it might work with older and blacker magic. But the most important thing I needed to do was find what each girl had given me in the past and track those traits down in myself. I had been away for so long, would they remember me? I would track them down one by one, asking each trait to help me. They came, like true blood, never missing a beat, pumping life into the trees like rain. I was back to being superhuman, back to drawing circles in the dark and lighting candles for the living to talk to the dead.

I needed my mother, but she wasn't there. I think she wanted to be but emotionally and mentally could not be. I saw her as Joan of Arc, having visions of archangel Micheal instructing her to support Charles VII and recover France from England's domination late in the Hundred Years’ War. My mother saw visions, heard voices, felt panic. She was trying so hard to fight, but in the end it was too hard. Her sorcery was poison, mine was freedom. Magic can come in many forms, many feelings, many shapes. I loved her and my love would be my spell, the only one that can survive this. I would hold on tight, close my eyes and sage the shit out of my bedroom, chanting for the right words to fill my mouth so I could finally get her to see that I love her. I have always loved her. A witch's love never dies--it swirls. It lingers in a bright cloud above our heads, feeding us at the right time.

Just because my charms did not work didn't mean they were broken. I wasn't a kid who only wished for love at first sight and sweet kisses, I had darker spirits to chase out of my family. In the end I knew I didn’t need the physical charms, or the pastel rainbows...I had to embrace what my spells could not make disappear. I had to give my mother room to live, in whatever world that was. As an adult I still needed cosmic spirits, I still needed caldrons of hot love brewing secretly in my basement.  Only this time, the wishes were for hope--not a cure for sadness--but a small, glowing orb of hope, that mixed together with the steamy air like smoke in hopes that it would make its way to my mother's breaths. In. Out. Releasing my connection to her, giving it to her again and again...never giving up. I never grew out of being a witch.

Maggie Edinger has a BA from Columbia College Chicago, where she majored in Art Entertainment, Media Management and minored in Woman’s Studies She published her first body of work last March called Bubble and the Invisible Ghosts, a journal. She has been published in the Remington Review and is currently working on her second book, a memoir. In 2010 she started Lipstick Dinosaur, which she owns and operates, a web based fashion brand that has been featured in Nylon magazine, Time Out Chicago, WGN News and many more. Maggie lives in Philadelphia with her husband, daughter and pit bull Bubble.

#maggie edinger #short story #women who write #creative writing #creative non-fiction #CNF

[hermanwatts]

Sensor Sweep: 10/7/2019

Culture Wars (Monster Hunter Nation): Here’s a fascinating demonstration of just how stupid and backwards the political gatekeepers in fiction really are. This week author Dan Simmons wrote a post about Greta the Climate Scold, and because his opinion went against left wing orthodoxy, a bunch of virtue signalling morons threw a fit.

Historical Fiction (DMR Books): Swords are a recurring feature of Talbot Mundy’s stories, as we will see as we continue our look at his work.  This is especially true of his tales set in central and southern Asia, but before we begin discussing yataghans and chooras, let’s take a look at four of the blades that would have been used the armies of Rome and her enemies in Tros’s time.  Keep in mind that swords that were used on the battlefield were quite different from the swords that are commonly seen in anime, comics and cover art.  For one thing, they must obey the laws of Physics.

Robert Heinlein (PR News): One of the year’s most significant science

Robert A. Heinlein

fiction releases is a new novel by Robert A. Heinlein, a rediscovered manuscript titled The Pursuit of the Pankera. Heinlein is, arguably, one of the best-known writers of science fiction, with titles like Starship Troopers, Stranger in a Strange Land and The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Known as the “dean” of science fiction, he died in 1988 but his books continue to sell worldwide and are often made into movies and TV series.

Robert E. Howard (Adventures Fantastic): Kane and another man, calling himself Gaston l”Armon, have stopped at an isolated inn somewhere in the Black Forest.  The innkeeper isn’t a friendly sort, but he serves them a meal and then shows them to their room.  A room down a dark corridor.  A room with no bar for the door. Kane and l’Armon go looking for a bar in one of the other rooms, neither trusting the innkeeper.  They stumble upon a secret closet in a room at the end of the corridor, where they find a skeleton chained to the floor.

D&D (Blog That Time Forgot): The Beithir is one of many serpentine creatures one can find in the folklore of Scotland – all the more unusual, since the moors & glens aren’t exactly the ideal habitat for reptiles. The fact that one beast devoured seven horses (which I hinted towards in the illustration) suggests it was a mite larger than Scotland’s modern reptiles, like the adder or the slow worm.

Science Fiction (Best British Fantasy): It took me over 10 years to find all 33 books in the Dumarest of Terra series, a far-ranging and rollicking set of science fiction novels by Edwin Charles (E.C.) Tubb, concerning Earl Dumarest, formerly of Terra, who stowed away as a child on a spaceship and now, as an adult, finds himself very far from home and wanting only to return. Earl possess genetically superior luck and is inordinately fast with his reflexes when he chooses to be (mostly to the detriment of those whom he reluctantly kills who barely have time to gasp “too fast, he was just too fast….” before they die of a chest wound).

Writing (Mad Genius Club): We’re all familiar with the terrible trope of action movies (and cop shows) where a guy takes a bullet, and then in the end of the episode, he has his arm in a sling, but he’s all better by the end of the movie / very next episode. In the really real world, people don’t end up with a little artistic bruising or smudge of blood or soot, and walk, run, and fight perfectly…acrobatically and dramatically.

Art (DMR Books): Wollheim’s instincts for spotting promising artistic talent were second to none in the entire history of the field. In fact, I considered just typing, “Frank Frazetta and Michael Whelan. Mic drop.” While Don always had an eye for a pretty picture, it was during the long decade betwixt 1962 and 1975 that he consistently kept hitting it out of the park as an art director, giving artists new to the field—and soon to be legends in their own right—their first shots at doing cover work for the American paperback market.

D&D (Skulls in the Stars): CB1: Conan Unchained (1984), by David Cook. As a company, TSR was not immune to the allure of making more money by licensing deals.  Later, I’ll discuss some products that will blow your mind! One of the more obvious choices was to take advantage of the popularity of a certain barbarian, and the actor who played him!

Hard Boiled (Rough Edges): I first encountered Frederick Nebel’s work in the iconic 1965 anthology THE HARDBOILED DICKS, which made me a fan of hardboiled pulp crime fiction ever since. Editor Ron Goulart included one of Nebel’s Kennedy and MacBride stories, and I enjoyed it quite a bit. But then for years after that, I didn’t read much by Nebel since there just wasn’t a lot available. Half a dozen of his stories were collected in the paperback SIX DEADLY DAMES, but I never came across a copy of it.

Paperbacks (Paperback Warrior): Author David Morrell’s 1972 action-thriller “First Blood” was a runaway hit, eventually adapted to film in 1982 and kick-starting the ‘Rambo’ franchise that’s still thriving today. Attempting overnight success, many authors and publishers exploited the idea and began releasing similar novels featuring wilderness pursuits, small town sheriffs and ex-military survivalists. As good as author Brian Garfield is, I’ve got solid evidence that his 1973 Fawcett Gold Medal novel “Relentless” may have been imitating the “First Blood” literary phenomenon.

Horror (To Much Horror Fiction): Late ’80s and early ’90s horror writer Gene Lazuta was born on this date in 1959. Lazuta wrote several paperback originals under pseudonyms (as well as a mystery series), but did not continue his career as a horror author; indeed, you can see his professional bio here. While the cover art is striking and in keeping with totemic pulp horror imagery—drippy typeface, fangs, skulls, hands crawling out of eyes.

Genre Fiction (The Silver Key): If S&S is only Howard, and defined only by what he wrote, then it’s not a genre. It’s the works of a single man. Howard created sword-and-sorcery in the 1920s, but he did not consciously set out to do so. He was trying to tell entertaining stories of blood and thunder, and make a living. When he died in 1936 there were very few indications sword-and-sorcery would survive, let alone flourish. It had a lot more growing to do.

Fiction (Ty Johnston): This was more space fantasy than true fantasy, but it still rocked along with plenty of monsters and sword-swinging action. In the far future, Earth is ruled from another planet by the Dream Lords, semi-benevolent humans with vast powers of the mind. Yet the world of the Dream Lords is crumbling as one evil figure vies for their power. Fortunately, this evil being is thwarted by the mighty thews of our hero, an heir to being one of the Dream Lords.

Gaming (Walker’s Retreat): In short, making a hobby normie-friendly is a mistake. Gates exist. They will be kept. Either you hold those gates to keep those who do not belong out, or they will hold those gates to keep you–the rightful hobbyist–out of the very domain you made possible. To that end, having some barriers to entry is good. Uninituitive mechanics is one. Liminality is another; liminality is anathema to normies, who are too often NPCs requiring a script to execute to function, and liminality confounds that entirely.

Cinema (Unz.com): Todd Phillips’ much-anticipated new film Joker is an origin story starring Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, who becomes the Joker. Frankly, both of Ledger’s origin stories are more interesting. The question on everybody’s mind is: How does Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker compare to Heath Ledger’s?

D&D (Goodman Games): “Co-author of Dungeons & Dragons games?” What did that mean, I asked myself. I could not recall ever hearing of this David L. Arneson before and now, suddenly, here he was before my eyes, being touted as having had a hand in the creation of my beloved D&D. How was this possible? How had I never come across him before? I quickly consulted the rulebook of the Basic Set and, lo and behold, there was his name on the title page: “By Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson.”

Comic Books (Lovecraft E-zine): That said, Swamp Thing  originally came out of the gate roaring, the creation of two legends in the comics industry having a blast. The two individuals in question would be the writer Len Wein and the artist Bernie Wrightson. Len Wein wrote for every major superhero book published by Marvel and DC from the time he entered the field in the very early seventies until shortly before his death in 2017.

Sensor Sweep: 10/7/2019 published first on https://sixchexus.weebly.com/

[jujutsukaisenzine]

◠◡  ⫸ PDF PRE-ORDERS OPEN! ⫷  ◠◡

Did you miss the chance to grab a copy of Domain Expansion? Fear not! We’re re-opening our digital bundle pre-orders for the entire production period! Now you can secure a copy of the zine without fail!

50% of the proceeds from our shop will go to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund! 🤍

🖐️👅🛒 : domainexpansion.bigcartel.com

@atozines @zinefans @zine-scene @zineforall @zinefeed  @faneventshub @fandomzines @zinesubmissions @zinesunlimited Thank you as always for all of your help spreading the word!

#Jujutsu Kaisen #jujutsu kaisen zine #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #charity zine #for charity #charity fanzine #zine pre-sales #zine presales #zine pre-orders #zine preorders #sales #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #itadori yuuji #itadori yuji #kugisaki nobara #fushiguro megumi #fushiguro toji #geto suguru #gojo satoru #nanami kento #ryomen sukuna #inumaki toge

[jujutsukaisenzine]

Here's a close-up of our new acrylic charm stretchgoal! 

Didn’t @/velvet_kt do an impeccable job? 💯 It features tiger Sukuna on one side and tiger cub Yuuji on the other! 🐯😍 If unlocked it'll be added to Limitless & Malevolent Shrine bundles!

50% of the proceeds from our shop will go to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund!  

**ONE DAY LEFT for any JJK fans from the UK interested in placing merch bundle orders for our zine through the organized group order HERE! Please see the tweet and order form for further details!

🖐️👅🛒 : domainexpansion.bigcartel.com/

#Jujutsu Kaisen #jujutsu kaisen zine #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #sales #zine pre-sales #zine presales #zine sales #zine preorders #zine pre-orders #charity zine #for charity #charity fanzine #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #itadori yuuji #ryomen sukuna #fushiguro megumi #fushiguro toji #kugisaki nobara #nanami kento #gojo satoru #geto suguru #inumaki toge

[jujutsukaisenzine]

We promised a peep at the stretchgoal notepad design...

 ...and @youyuening has given us a spectacular WIP to show you! 🤩 Be it doodles, grocery lists, or to-dos, let these goons help you keep track of what's important to you! 😛✏️🗒️

🖐️👅🛒 : domainexpansion.bigcartel.com

#Jujutsu Kaisen #jujutsu kaisen zine #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #charity zine #for charity #charity fanzine #sales #zine pre-sales #zine presales #zine pre-orders #zine preorders #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #itadori yuuji #kugisaki nobara #gojo satoru #ryomen sukuna #fushiguro toji #fushiguro megumi #geto suguru #nanami kento #zenin maki #inumaki toge

[jujutsukaisenzine]

Introducing ․․․ ⫸ x e d ⫷ !   ◠◡ Page Artist 

╭━ ⋅𖥔⋅ ━━ ⌞ ༒ ⌝ ━━ ⋅𖥔⋅ ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

They will be illustrating a Maki and Megumi team-up battle with playful cloud! You can check them out at @halveablock on Twitter and Tumblr!  🐸⛓️  

╰━ ⋅𖥔⋅ ━━ ⌞ ༒ ⌝ ━━ ⋅𖥔⋅ ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

You can keep up with us through our social media platforms below!

⊱⊹⊰ Twitter ⊱⊹⊰ CuriousCat ⊱⊹⊰ Carrd ⊱⊹⊰ Instagram ⊱⊹⊰

#Jujutsu Kaisen #jujutsu kaisen zine #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #anime zine #manga #charity zine #spotlights #contributor spotlights #contributor intros #contributor introductions

[jujutsukaisenzine]

◠◡  ⫸ PRODUCTION UPDATE! ⫷ ��◠◡

A big haul today! 😍 We’ve received our character cards by @/sleepy_crayonn, cover print by @/milk_rkgk, stretch goal print by _chajing, & bundle print by @/1924KAIN!

If you missed out you can still pre-order the PDF bundle below!  50% of the proceeds from our shop will go to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund! 🤍

🖐️👅🛒 : domainexpansion.bigcartel.com

@atozines @zinefans @zine-scene @zineforall @zinefeed  @faneventshub @fandomzines @zinesubmissions @zinesunlimited Thank you as always for all of your help spreading the word!

#Jujutsu Kaisen #jujutsu kaisen zine #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #production update #for charity #charity zine #charity fanzine #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #anime zine #zine preorders #zine pre-orders #zine presales #zine pre-sales #zine sales #sales

[jujutsukaisenzine]

◠◡  ⫸ PRODUCTION UPDATE! ⫷  ◠◡

We’ve got a selection of sample photos from our manufacturers! Today’s update features charms by @/KuurimuArt & @/velvet_kt, shaker charm & foil washi by @/chumaruko, and our standee by @youyuening! Don’t they look amazing?! They will be on their way over to us soon! 

If you missed out you can still pre-order the PDF bundle below!  50% of the proceeds from our shop will go to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund! 🤍

🖐️👅🛒 : domainexpansion.bigcartel.com

@atozines @zinefans @zine-scene @zineforall @zinefeed  @faneventshub @fandomzines @zinesubmissions @zinesunlimited Thank you as always for all of your help spreading the word!

#Jujutsu Kaisen #jujutsu kaisen zine #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #for charity #charity zine #charity fanzine #production update #zine preorders #zine pre-orders #zine presales #zine pre-sales #zine sales #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #anime zine

[jujutsukaisenzine]

Take a look! 👀 

@youyuening has finished our fabulous stretchgoal notepad! You can now gaze upon its dazzling form in full color! 🤩

50% of the proceeds from our shop will go to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund!  

🖐️👅🛒 : domainexpansion.bigcartel.com/

#jujutsu kaisen zine #Jujutsu Kaisen #jjk #jjk zine #sorcery fight #sorcery fight zine #charity zine #for charity #charity fanzine #zine pre-sales #zine presales #zine pre-orders #zine preorders #Fanzine #Fan zine #fandom zine #fandom zines #zine #zines #itadori yuji #itadori yuuji #ryomen sukuna #kugisaki nobara #fushiguro megumi #fushiguro toji #geto suguru #gojo satoru #nanami kento #inumaki toge #okkotsu yuuta