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fandomcalendar Jan. 29th, 2026 08:00 am)
casemod posting in fandomcalendar Jan. 29th, 2026 08:00 am)Finally managed to write some fills for the threesentenceficathon!
1. MCU, Valkyrie
https://threesentenceficathon.dreamwidth.org/6398.html?thread=14482686#cmt14482686
any, any, “Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to.”
( Valkyrie )
2. Oasis RPF, Liam/Noel
https://threesentenceficathon.dreamwidth.org/6398.html?thread=12601086#cmt12601086
Any, any, soft underbelly
( Gallaghercest )
3. The Long Walk - Stephen King, Stebbins
https://threesentenceficathon.dreamwidth.org/6398.html?thread=14502654#cmt14502654
The Long Walk (book), Stebbins, ghosts
( The Long Walk )
threesentenceficathon!1. MCU, Valkyrie
https://threesentenceficathon.dreamwidth.org/6398.html?thread=14482686#cmt14482686
any, any, “Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to.”
( Valkyrie )
2. Oasis RPF, Liam/Noel
https://threesentenceficathon.dreamwidth.org/6398.html?thread=12601086#cmt12601086
Any, any, soft underbelly
( Gallaghercest )
3. The Long Walk - Stephen King, Stebbins
https://threesentenceficathon.dreamwidth.org/6398.html?thread=14502654#cmt14502654
The Long Walk (book), Stebbins, ghosts
( The Long Walk )
What I Just Finished Reading
Kate Seredy’s The Open Gate. Driving toward their destination for summer vacation, a New York City family pauses at a farm auction. No one is bidding on the farmland itself, so Granny cunningly suggests to Dad, “Why don’t you bid? Just to get things started?”
“DON’T YOU DO IT, BOY!” I shouted, but as so often happens, the characters ignored my wise advice.
Of course Dad wins the farm. Of course, the family has to stay the night, and having stayed one night, they have to keep on staying. And then Granny goes to another farm auction, promising piously not to open her mouth to bid–
“YOU DON’T HAVE TO OPEN YOUR MOUTH TO BID AT AN AUCTION!” I shouted at Dad, who once again foolishly failed to listen to me. He accepted Granny’s promise, and Granny promptly rules-lawyered the farm into two cows (both pregnant) and two horses (also both pregnant) by bidding with a twitch of the hand.
I am all for people going back to the land if they want to, but I prefer stories about it to feature people who actually want to, rather than people who get bamboozled into it by Granny.
Multiple people have recommended Uketsu’s Strange Houses (translated by Jim Rion), and it did NOT disappoint. The book is a mystery based around floor plans, and I am happy to report that there are indeed MANY floor plans (I love a floor plan), which makes the book an even zippier read than you might guess from its size.
Now, do I think the mystery is “plausible” or “makes psychological sense”? Well, no, not really, and if it took longer to read that might have bothered me. But the floor plans and the pacing make the book fly by, and I enjoyed it for what it was, which is an amusingly bizarre puzzle box mystery with, let me repeat, enough floor plans to satisfy even my floor-plan-mad self.
What I’m Reading Now
After years of procrastination, I’ve begun Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose. Happy to report that this ALSO features a floorplan in the endpapers. All the rooms are lettered, but curiously the key only includes some of the letters, so we are left guessing just which room Q might be.
What I Plan to Read Next
Obviously I need to read Uketsu’s Strange Pictures, too.
Kate Seredy’s The Open Gate. Driving toward their destination for summer vacation, a New York City family pauses at a farm auction. No one is bidding on the farmland itself, so Granny cunningly suggests to Dad, “Why don’t you bid? Just to get things started?”
“DON’T YOU DO IT, BOY!” I shouted, but as so often happens, the characters ignored my wise advice.
Of course Dad wins the farm. Of course, the family has to stay the night, and having stayed one night, they have to keep on staying. And then Granny goes to another farm auction, promising piously not to open her mouth to bid–
“YOU DON’T HAVE TO OPEN YOUR MOUTH TO BID AT AN AUCTION!” I shouted at Dad, who once again foolishly failed to listen to me. He accepted Granny’s promise, and Granny promptly rules-lawyered the farm into two cows (both pregnant) and two horses (also both pregnant) by bidding with a twitch of the hand.
I am all for people going back to the land if they want to, but I prefer stories about it to feature people who actually want to, rather than people who get bamboozled into it by Granny.
Multiple people have recommended Uketsu’s Strange Houses (translated by Jim Rion), and it did NOT disappoint. The book is a mystery based around floor plans, and I am happy to report that there are indeed MANY floor plans (I love a floor plan), which makes the book an even zippier read than you might guess from its size.
Now, do I think the mystery is “plausible” or “makes psychological sense”? Well, no, not really, and if it took longer to read that might have bothered me. But the floor plans and the pacing make the book fly by, and I enjoyed it for what it was, which is an amusingly bizarre puzzle box mystery with, let me repeat, enough floor plans to satisfy even my floor-plan-mad self.
What I’m Reading Now
After years of procrastination, I’ve begun Umberto Eco’s The Name of the Rose. Happy to report that this ALSO features a floorplan in the endpapers. All the rooms are lettered, but curiously the key only includes some of the letters, so we are left guessing just which room Q might be.
What I Plan to Read Next
Obviously I need to read Uketsu’s Strange Pictures, too.
Finished the Scott Pilgrim graphic novels by Bryan Lee O'Malley, technically for the first time— I've read bits and pieces out of order when encountering the different installments at bookstores or libraries, but this was my first time reading the whole series from front cover of book one to back cover of book six. I enjoyed this a lot, partly out of teenage nostalgia for the 2010 movie and for living in Toronto - which is so specifically the setting that I recognized multiple specific locations, even excluding the obvious landmarks - but also in its own right as a somewhat meandering coming-of-age story with a high Nonsense Quotient/casually bonkers world-building (the league of evil exes! subspace highways! the University of Carolina in the Sky!). Other than just having a lot more time and space to explore other characters/plotlines than the movie adaptation, I feel like the big difference is that the 2010 movie was taken (presented?) more at face value and so there's this tendency for people to be like Scott is the protagonist but he actually sucks?? like it's some sort of retrospective gotcha, while the comics are like yeah, no, Scott suuuuucks and he needs to grow the hell up. That's literally just the plot!
Re-read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald for the whatevereth time, in an attempt to mentally reboot with an actual, physical book and something short and familiar, because my brain has been sliding off of everything else I tried to read. This evidently worked, and now I'm reading Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay, a 1935 murder mystery set at the fictional Persephone College, Oxford— making, assovay pointed out, for two women's colleges of Thinly Fictionalized Oxford which were the scene of criminal investigations in 1935, alongside Sayers' Shrewsbury College in Gaudy Night. (The scandal!)
Re-read The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald for the whatevereth time, in an attempt to mentally reboot with an actual, physical book and something short and familiar, because my brain has been sliding off of everything else I tried to read. This evidently worked, and now I'm reading Death on the Cherwell by Mavis Doriel Hay, a 1935 murder mystery set at the fictional Persephone College, Oxford— making, as
sovay pointed out, for two women's colleges of Thinly Fictionalized Oxford which were the scene of criminal investigations in 1935, alongside Sayers' Shrewsbury College in Gaudy Night. (The scandal!)Tags:
(nverland posting in recipecommunity Jan. 28th, 2026 04:35 am)
nverland posting in recipecommunity Jan. 28th, 2026 04:35 am)
Maple-Walnut Layer Cake With Easy Maple Frosting
For the cake:
Ingredients
1-1/2 cups walnut halves, plus extra for garnish
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for pans
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed light-brown sugar
3 large eggs
3 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups cake flour, plus extra for pans
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream
( Read more... )
I honestly never did finish the last season of 9-1-1 Lone Star because I didn't like it as much after the cast change, and the new stories weren't grabbing me. Then I changed streaming services, and couldn't be bothered to find it another way.
But I was looking at what was on Crave, since I have that right now, and saw that there was a new show called 9-1-1 Nashville, and thought I'd give it a whirl.
Boy, whatever new direction notes they got, were not my thing. It's all about some rich guy and his sons fighting with each other, and a scheming baby mamma, and we basically don't meet any of the other characters in the pilot. How on earth did they talk Chris O'Donnell into this nonsense? He can't be that hard up!
Plus the rescues were just very silly. And this is by standards of the 9-1-1 franchise, which is already extremely silly. This girl gets carried into the air by a kite! Not like a special kite, just a... regular one. A tornado is bearing down on a country music festival and they save it with the power of heart!
I vaguely considered watching the second half of the pilot before deciding there's got to be other trash shows I'd enjoy more. When is the new Stargate show happening?
I think if you're interested in foe-yay half brothers who want to fuck, you might be in business?
But I was looking at what was on Crave, since I have that right now, and saw that there was a new show called 9-1-1 Nashville, and thought I'd give it a whirl.
Boy, whatever new direction notes they got, were not my thing. It's all about some rich guy and his sons fighting with each other, and a scheming baby mamma, and we basically don't meet any of the other characters in the pilot. How on earth did they talk Chris O'Donnell into this nonsense? He can't be that hard up!
Plus the rescues were just very silly. And this is by standards of the 9-1-1 franchise, which is already extremely silly. This girl gets carried into the air by a kite! Not like a special kite, just a... regular one. A tornado is bearing down on a country music festival and they save it with the power of heart!
I vaguely considered watching the second half of the pilot before deciding there's got to be other trash shows I'd enjoy more. When is the new Stargate show happening?
I think if you're interested in foe-yay half brothers who want to fuck, you might be in business?
Tags:
I want to try making this Melt the ICE hat, which of course knits in the round. I haven't done that, so I looked up a couple tutorials on how to knit with double pointed needles. They both said, "these will come in sets of five." The pattern says, "divide evenly on 4 DPNs" (which I assume implies the existence of a fifth needle to work with).
Every single one of the many sets of DPNs I got from Mom comes in a set of four.
Why?
Every single one of the many sets of DPNs I got from Mom comes in a set of four.
Why?
The sequel to The Darkness Outside of Us. I enjoyed it! It's both interestingly different from the first book and is satisfying on the level of "I want more of this," which is exactly what one wants from a sequel.
Literally everything about this book is massively spoilery for the first one, including its premise. I'll do two sets of spoiler cuts, one for the premise and one for the whole book.
( Premise spoilers )
Stop reading here if you don't want to be spoiled for the entire book.
( Entire book spoilers )
Well I haven’t gotten very far with my pile of graphic novels from the library, and in fact I’ve put holds on even more of them so the pile is only getting bigger. But did finish enough things that it feels worth posting another media roundup.
Goat Magic by Kate Wheeler—Another graphic novel, this one with very cute goats. The art for this one was so cute and charming. I did feel a little bit frustrated with the politics, where there was some confusion about bad people vs bad systems. Also the romance kinda came out of nowhere (It didn’t help that I thought one of the main characters was like 12) Still a pretty fun book overall.
The Two Towers—Watched this with the kid and R, who as mentioned have recently finished reading the books. It’s fun to discuss the changes between the book and the movie with the kiddo! Also I forgot how good the armor details are in this! However a three hour movie with some chatting is a lot for me – at the end I was hitting sensory overload and needed to go sit somewhere quiet by myself for a while.
The Legend of the Demon Cat (2017)—I watched this movie with my group watch. It’s about a cat demon but also features Tang dynasty poet Bai Juyi and various other historical figures. It was really good, though I’m having a hard time explaining why. It has a really big emotional range – some bits are creepy (and there is a bit of gore), some bits are sad, but some bits are really fun. And Bai Juyi’s character in this is great!
Unboxing Libby by Steph Cherrywell—My kid’s school is doing an optional book club, and this was the most recent book. I’ve been reading the books along with the kid and this is the third book this year. It’s about robots made to be kids toys who end up being used to simulate a human community on Mars. I really liked it! the friendship stuff was complicated and good!
Remember how I was all like “I guess I don’t read much original fiction anymore but I’m at peace with it” in my post about my 2025 media? Yet somehow I have read 10 books this month? They are mostly graphic novels which are quicker and easier for me, but still books are books. I don’t really expect to keep this up but it's nice for now.
Goat Magic by Kate Wheeler—Another graphic novel, this one with very cute goats. The art for this one was so cute and charming. I did feel a little bit frustrated with the politics, where there was some confusion about bad people vs bad systems. Also the romance kinda came out of nowhere (It didn’t help that I thought one of the main characters was like 12) Still a pretty fun book overall.
The Two Towers—Watched this with the kid and R, who as mentioned have recently finished reading the books. It’s fun to discuss the changes between the book and the movie with the kiddo! Also I forgot how good the armor details are in this! However a three hour movie with some chatting is a lot for me – at the end I was hitting sensory overload and needed to go sit somewhere quiet by myself for a while.
The Legend of the Demon Cat (2017)—I watched this movie with my group watch. It’s about a cat demon but also features Tang dynasty poet Bai Juyi and various other historical figures. It was really good, though I’m having a hard time explaining why. It has a really big emotional range – some bits are creepy (and there is a bit of gore), some bits are sad, but some bits are really fun. And Bai Juyi’s character in this is great!
Unboxing Libby by Steph Cherrywell—My kid’s school is doing an optional book club, and this was the most recent book. I’ve been reading the books along with the kid and this is the third book this year. It’s about robots made to be kids toys who end up being used to simulate a human community on Mars. I really liked it! the friendship stuff was complicated and good!
Remember how I was all like “I guess I don’t read much original fiction anymore but I’m at peace with it” in my post about my 2025 media? Yet somehow I have read 10 books this month? They are mostly graphic novels which are quicker and easier for me, but still books are books. I don’t really expect to keep this up but it's nice for now.
Tags:
The Newbery Project is BACK, baby! Yesterday, the American Library Association announced the 2026 Newbery winners, which means I’ve got five hot fresh Newbery books to read.
After winning a Newbery Honor in 2018 for Piecing Me Together, Renee Watson went for gold this year with All the Blues in the Sky. I quite liked Piecing Me Together, so I’m hopeful I’ll enjoy this new one as well.
Daniel Nayeri is also a familiar Newbery name: he got an honor in 2024 for The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams, which I thought was pretty mediocre to be honest. But perhaps I’ll be more impressed by The Teacher of Nomad Land: A World War II Story.
Although this is Karina Yan Glaser’s first Newbery, I’m familiar with her Vanderbeekers series, which is a sort of modern-day version of the Melendys. I read the first book and thought it was okay, but not so okay that I wanted to read on… so we’ll see how I feel about The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli.
Finally, two books by new-to-me authors: Aubrey Hartman’s The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest, and María Dolores Águila’s A Sea of Lemon Trees: The Corrido of Roberto Alvarez. The title of the first is giving me flashbacks to Scary Stories for Young Foxes, which was perhaps the Newbery’s first foray into horror. Fox horror possibly its own genre now? Will report back as I learn more.
After winning a Newbery Honor in 2018 for Piecing Me Together, Renee Watson went for gold this year with All the Blues in the Sky. I quite liked Piecing Me Together, so I’m hopeful I’ll enjoy this new one as well.
Daniel Nayeri is also a familiar Newbery name: he got an honor in 2024 for The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams, which I thought was pretty mediocre to be honest. But perhaps I’ll be more impressed by The Teacher of Nomad Land: A World War II Story.
Although this is Karina Yan Glaser’s first Newbery, I’m familiar with her Vanderbeekers series, which is a sort of modern-day version of the Melendys. I read the first book and thought it was okay, but not so okay that I wanted to read on… so we’ll see how I feel about The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli.
Finally, two books by new-to-me authors: Aubrey Hartman’s The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest, and María Dolores Águila’s A Sea of Lemon Trees: The Corrido of Roberto Alvarez. The title of the first is giving me flashbacks to Scary Stories for Young Foxes, which was perhaps the Newbery’s first foray into horror. Fox horror possibly its own genre now? Will report back as I learn more.
The following pinch hits are due at 11:59pm EST, Saturday 21 February. To claim, please reply with your AO3 name, and let me know which recipient/PH number you want. You're also welcome to claim by emailing [email protected].
Minimum requirements: An art gift must be a completed comic at least 10 pages or 40 panels long; a fic gift must be a story at least 10,000 words long. You can also fulfil a pinch hit by giving two complete half-length works, if your recipient has opted into that for the fandom(s) you are creating in. Any work must be for a fandom your recipient has requested and one character/relationship/worldbuilding tag requested in that fandom, and must avoid their DNWs.
Pinch hits can now be claimed in 5k or 20-panel increments if the recipient has opted into receiving half-length works. Please say in your claim if you're claiming a pinch hit for 5k (fic) or 20 panels (comic), and for what fandom.
( Pinch hit #53 - art, fic - Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Cartoon), Star Wars: Ahsoka (TV), Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: Resistance (Cartoon), Crossover Fandom [Star Wars Sequel Trilogy/Star Wars: Ahsoka] )
( Pinch hit #55 - art, fic - Invisible Inc. (Video Game), Betrayal at Krondor (Video Games), Neverwinter Nights: Mask of the Betrayer (Video Game), Sunless Sea, Tactical Breach Wizards (Video Game), Citizen Sleeper (Video Games), Original Work, Crossover Fandom [various] )
( Pinch hit #56 - art, fic - 9-1-1 (TV), 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga), Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types )
( Pinch hit #57 - fic - Stranger Things (TV 2016) x2, Cool Runnings (1993), Real Genius (1985), Bandom, Good Omens (TV) )
( Pinch hit #58 - art, fic - Call of Duty (Video Games), Baldur's Gate (Video Games), Final Fantasy XV, Alex Rider (TV 2020), Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, DCU (Comics) x2, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023), The Witcher (TV) )
( Pinch hit #59 - art, fic - Crossover Fandom [various], DCU (Comics), Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Original Work, Final Fantasy XV, Avatar: The Last Airbender (Cartoon 2005), Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, Alex Rider (TV 2020), House M.D., Call of Duty (Video Games) )
( Pinch hit #61 - art, fic - Fire Emblem: Soen no Kiseki/Akatsuki no Megami | Fire Emblem Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn, Leverage (US TV 2008), 幽☆遊☆白書 | YuYu Hakusho: Ghost Files (Anime & Manga), Crossover Fandom [various] )
( Pinch hit #62 - art, fic - 少年歌行 | The Blood of Youth (Live Action TV), 莲花楼 | Mysterious Lotus Casebook (TV), 琅琊榜 | Nirvana in Fire (TV), 伪装者 | The Disguiser (TV), 少年白马醉春风 | Dashing Youth (Live Action TV), 杀破狼 | Sha Po Lang - priest )
( Pinch hit #63 - fic - The Murderbot Diaries - Martha Wells, Wolf 359 (Radio), Baldur's Gate (Video Games), Hermitcraft SMP, Life Series | 3rd Life SMP Series )
Pinch hit #54 - fic - Angel: the Series, Black Widow (Movie 2021), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV), Crossover Fandom [various] x2, DCU (Comics), Gothika (2003), The Locked Tomb Series | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir, Original Work, Thunderbolts (Movie 2025)
Pinch hit #60 - fic - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling x4, Superman (Movie 2025), Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, True Blood (TV)
Minimum requirements: An art gift must be a completed comic at least 10 pages or 40 panels long; a fic gift must be a story at least 10,000 words long. You can also fulfil a pinch hit by giving two complete half-length works, if your recipient has opted into that for the fandom(s) you are creating in. Any work must be for a fandom your recipient has requested and one character/relationship/worldbuilding tag requested in that fandom, and must avoid their DNWs.
Pinch hits can now be claimed in 5k or 20-panel increments if the recipient has opted into receiving half-length works. Please say in your claim if you're claiming a pinch hit for 5k (fic) or 20 panels (comic), and for what fandom.
( Pinch hit #53 - art, fic - Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Cartoon), Star Wars: Ahsoka (TV), Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: Resistance (Cartoon), Crossover Fandom [Star Wars Sequel Trilogy/Star Wars: Ahsoka] )
( Pinch hit #55 - art, fic - Invisible Inc. (Video Game), Betrayal at Krondor (Video Games), Neverwinter Nights: Mask of the Betrayer (Video Game), Sunless Sea, Tactical Breach Wizards (Video Game), Citizen Sleeper (Video Games), Original Work, Crossover Fandom [various] )
( Pinch hit #56 - art, fic - 9-1-1 (TV), 名探偵コナン | Detective Conan | Case Closed, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga, Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga), Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types )
( Pinch hit #57 - fic - Stranger Things (TV 2016) x2, Cool Runnings (1993), Real Genius (1985), Bandom, Good Omens (TV) )
( Pinch hit #58 - art, fic - Call of Duty (Video Games), Baldur's Gate (Video Games), Final Fantasy XV, Alex Rider (TV 2020), Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, DCU (Comics) x2, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023), The Witcher (TV) )
( Pinch hit #59 - art, fic - Crossover Fandom [various], DCU (Comics), Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Original Work, Final Fantasy XV, Avatar: The Last Airbender (Cartoon 2005), Six of Crows Series - Leigh Bardugo, Alex Rider (TV 2020), House M.D., Call of Duty (Video Games) )
( Pinch hit #61 - art, fic - Fire Emblem: Soen no Kiseki/Akatsuki no Megami | Fire Emblem Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn, Leverage (US TV 2008), 幽☆遊☆白書 | YuYu Hakusho: Ghost Files (Anime & Manga), Crossover Fandom [various] )
( Pinch hit #62 - art, fic - 少年歌行 | The Blood of Youth (Live Action TV), 莲花楼 | Mysterious Lotus Casebook (TV), 琅琊榜 | Nirvana in Fire (TV), 伪装者 | The Disguiser (TV), 少年白马醉春风 | Dashing Youth (Live Action TV), 杀破狼 | Sha Po Lang - priest )
( Pinch hit #63 - fic - The Murderbot Diaries - Martha Wells, Wolf 359 (Radio), Baldur's Gate (Video Games), Hermitcraft SMP, Life Series | 3rd Life SMP Series )
Click for links to claimed pinch hits!
Pinch hit #54 - fic - Angel: the Series, Black Widow (Movie 2021), Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV), Crossover Fandom [various] x2, DCU (Comics), Gothika (2003), The Locked Tomb Series | Gideon the Ninth Series - Tamsyn Muir, Original Work, Thunderbolts (Movie 2025)
Pinch hit #60 - fic - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling x4, Superman (Movie 2025), Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, True Blood (TV)
Tags:
The following pinch hits are due at 11:59pm EST, Saturday 21 February. To claim, please reply with your AO3 name, and let me know which recipient/PH number you want. You're also welcome to claim by emailing [email protected].
Minimum requirements: An art gift must be a completed comic at least 10 pages or 40 panels long; a fic gift must be a story at least 10,000 words long. You can also fulfil a pinch hit by giving two complete half-length works, if your recipient has opted into that for the fandom(s) you are creating in. Any work must be for a fandom your recipient has requested and one character/relationship/worldbuilding tag requested in that fandom, and must avoid their DNWs.
Pinch hits can now be claimed in 5k or 20-panel increments if the recipient has opted into receiving half-length works. Please say in your claim if you're claiming a pinch hit for 5k (fic) or 20 panels (comic), and for what fandom.
( PARTLY CLAIMED - Pinch hit #4 - art, fic [varies by request] - 전지적 독자 시점 - 싱숑 | Omniscient Reader - Sing-Shong, Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends, Thor (Movies), Hannibal (TV) )
This pinch hit can be fulfilled by one 5,000-word story or one 20-panel comic, for some requests - please check individual request details
( Pinch hit #18 - fic - Nantucket Trilogy - S.M. Stirling, Crossover Fandom x2 [Grimm TV/Guardian TV, Grimm TV/Christabel - Coleridge], 长公主在上 | Zhǎng Gōng Zhǔ Zài Shàng (Web Series), 绅探 | Detective L (TV) )
( Pinch hit #28 - art, fic [varies by request] - Hazbin Hotel (Cartoon) x2, Overwatch (Video Game), Slow Horses (TV), Brew Solves - Fandom, Dangan Ronpa Series, Death Note (Anime & Manga) )
( Pinch hit #30 - fic - 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, The Fall of the House of Usher (TV 2023), 成化十四年 | The Sleuth of the Ming Dynasty (TV), Among Us (Video Game), F1 (Movie 2025), One Piece (Anime & Manga), 重启之极海听雷 | Reunion: The Sound of the Providence (TV 2020) )
( Pinch hit #32 - fic - Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (TV), Murder She Wrote, Jem and the Holograms (Cartoon), G.I. Joe (Cartoon), Voltron: Lion Force (1984) )
( PARTLY CLAIMED - Pinch hit #39 - fic - Stargate Atlantis, Kolja | Kolya (1996), Cesta do pravěku | Journey to the Beginning of Time (1955), Jurassic Park Original Trilogy (Movies) )
This pinch hit can be fulfilled with one 5k story.
( PARTLY CLAIMED - Pinch hit #41 - fic - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen, DCU (Comics, Numb3rs (TV) )
This pinch hit can be fulfilled with one 5,000-word story
( Pinch hit #45 - art, fic [varies by request] - Dragon Age (Video Games), Breaking Bad, Succession (TV 2018), The Owl House (Cartoon), Falsettos - Lapine/Finn )
( Pinch hit #49 - art, fic [varies by request] - NoPixel (Web Series), Crossover Fandom [various], 文豪ストレイドッグス | Bungou Stray Dogs, Video Blogging RPF, 薬屋のひとりごと | Kusuriya no Hitorigoto | The Apothecary Diaries (Anime), Sakamoto Days (Anime), Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (Video Blogging RPF) ここは今から倫理です。| Koko wa Ima Kara Rinri Desu | From Now On We Begin Ethics (Manga), 吸血鬼すぐ死ぬ | Kyuuketsuki Sugu Shinu | The Vampire Dies in No Time (Anime), Bandom )
Minimum requirements: An art gift must be a completed comic at least 10 pages or 40 panels long; a fic gift must be a story at least 10,000 words long. You can also fulfil a pinch hit by giving two complete half-length works, if your recipient has opted into that for the fandom(s) you are creating in. Any work must be for a fandom your recipient has requested and one character/relationship/worldbuilding tag requested in that fandom, and must avoid their DNWs.
Pinch hits can now be claimed in 5k or 20-panel increments if the recipient has opted into receiving half-length works. Please say in your claim if you're claiming a pinch hit for 5k (fic) or 20 panels (comic), and for what fandom.
( PARTLY CLAIMED - Pinch hit #4 - art, fic [varies by request] - 전지적 독자 시점 - 싱숑 | Omniscient Reader - Sing-Shong, Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends, Thor (Movies), Hannibal (TV) )
This pinch hit can be fulfilled by one 5,000-word story or one 20-panel comic, for some requests - please check individual request details
( Pinch hit #18 - fic - Nantucket Trilogy - S.M. Stirling, Crossover Fandom x2 [Grimm TV/Guardian TV, Grimm TV/Christabel - Coleridge], 长公主在上 | Zhǎng Gōng Zhǔ Zài Shàng (Web Series), 绅探 | Detective L (TV) )
( Pinch hit #28 - art, fic [varies by request] - Hazbin Hotel (Cartoon) x2, Overwatch (Video Game), Slow Horses (TV), Brew Solves - Fandom, Dangan Ronpa Series, Death Note (Anime & Manga) )
( Pinch hit #30 - fic - 人渣反派自救系统 - 墨香铜臭 | The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System - Mòxiāng Tóngxiù, The Fall of the House of Usher (TV 2023), 成化十四年 | The Sleuth of the Ming Dynasty (TV), Among Us (Video Game), F1 (Movie 2025), One Piece (Anime & Manga), 重启之极海听雷 | Reunion: The Sound of the Providence (TV 2020) )
( Pinch hit #32 - fic - Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (TV), Murder She Wrote, Jem and the Holograms (Cartoon), G.I. Joe (Cartoon), Voltron: Lion Force (1984) )
( PARTLY CLAIMED - Pinch hit #39 - fic - Stargate Atlantis, Kolja | Kolya (1996), Cesta do pravěku | Journey to the Beginning of Time (1955), Jurassic Park Original Trilogy (Movies) )
This pinch hit can be fulfilled with one 5k story.
( PARTLY CLAIMED - Pinch hit #41 - fic - Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen, DCU (Comics, Numb3rs (TV) )
This pinch hit can be fulfilled with one 5,000-word story
( Pinch hit #45 - art, fic [varies by request] - Dragon Age (Video Games), Breaking Bad, Succession (TV 2018), The Owl House (Cartoon), Falsettos - Lapine/Finn )
( Pinch hit #49 - art, fic [varies by request] - NoPixel (Web Series), Crossover Fandom [various], 文豪ストレイドッグス | Bungou Stray Dogs, Video Blogging RPF, 薬屋のひとりごと | Kusuriya no Hitorigoto | The Apothecary Diaries (Anime), Sakamoto Days (Anime), Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (Video Blogging RPF) ここは今から倫理です。| Koko wa Ima Kara Rinri Desu | From Now On We Begin Ethics (Manga), 吸血鬼すぐ死ぬ | Kyuuketsuki Sugu Shinu | The Vampire Dies in No Time (Anime), Bandom )
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Like several other people on my reading list, including osprey_archer (post here) and troisoiseaux (post here, I was compelled by the premise of I Leap Over the Wall: A Return to the World After 28 Years In A Convent, a once-bestselling (but now long out-of-print) memoir by a British woman who entered a cloister in 1914, lived ten years as a nun, decided it wasn't for her, lived another almost twenty years as a nun out of stubbornness, and exited in 1941, having missed quite a lot of sociological developments in the interim! including talking films! and underwire bras! and not one, but two World Wars!
Obviously Baldwin did not know that WWI was about to happen right as she went into a convent, but she does explain that she came out in the middle of WWII more or less on purpose, out of an idea that it would be easier to slide herself back into things when everything was chaotic and unprecedented anyway than to try to establish a life for herself as The Weird Ex Nun in more normal times. Unclear how well this strategy paid off for her, but you can't say she didn't give it an effort. Baldwin was raised extremely upper-class -- she was related to former Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, among others -- but exited the convent pretty much penniless, so while she did have a safety net in terms of various sets of variously judgmental relations who were willing to put her up, she spends a lot of the book valiantly attempting to take her place among the workers of the world. And these are real labor jobs, too -- 'ex-nun' is not a resume booster, and most of the things she felt actually qualified to do for a living based on her convent experience (librarianship, scholarship, etc) required some form of degree, so much of the work she does in this book are things like being a land girl, or working in a canteen. She doesn't enjoy these jobs, and she rarely does them long, but you have to respect her for giving it the old college try, especially when she's constantly in a state of profound and sustained culture shock.
Overall, Baldwin does not enjoy the changes to the world since she left it. She does not enjoy having gone in a beautiful young girl with her life ahead of her, and come out a middle-aged woman who's missed all the milestones that everyone around her takes for granted. She does, however, profoundly enjoy her freedom, and soon begins to cherish an all-consuming dream of purchasing a Small House of her Very Own where she can do whatever the hell she wants whenever the hell she wants. After decades in a convent, you can hardly blame her for this. On the other hand -- fascinatingly, to me -- it's very clear that Baldwin still somewhat idealizes convent life, despite the fact that it obviously made her deeply miserable. She has long conversations with her judgmental relatives, and long conversations with us, the reader, in which she tries to convince them/us of the real virtues of the cloister; of the spiritual value of deep, deliberate, constant self-sacrifice and self-abegnation; of the fact that it's important, vital and necessary that some people close themselves away from work in the world to focus on the exclusive pursuit of God. It is good that people do this, it's spiritual and heroic, it's simply -- unfortunately -- the only case in which she's ever known the church to be wrong in assessing who does or does not have a genuine vocation after the novice period -- not for her.
Baldwin is a fascinating and contradictory person and I enjoyed spending time with her quite a bit. I suspect she wouldn't much enjoy spending time with me; she will keep going to London and observing neutrally that it seems the streets are much more full of Jews than they were before she went into the convent, faint shudder implied. At another point she confesses that although she'd left the convent with 'definite socialist tendencies,' actually working among the working people has changed her mind for the worse: 'the people' now impressed me as full of class prejudice and an almost vindictive envy-hatred-malice fixation towards anyone who was richer, cleverer, or in any way superior to themselves. Still, despite her preoccupations and prejudices, her voice is interesting, and deeply eccentric, and IMO she's worth getting to know. This is a woman, an ex-nun, who takes Le Morte D'Arthur as her beacon of hope and guide to life. Le Morte! You really can't agree with it, but how can you not be compelled?
osprey_archer (post here) and troisoiseaux (post here, I was compelled by the premise of I Leap Over the Wall: A Return to the World After 28 Years In A Convent, a once-bestselling (but now long out-of-print) memoir by a British woman who entered a cloister in 1914, lived ten years as a nun, decided it wasn't for her, lived another almost twenty years as a nun out of stubbornness, and exited in 1941, having missed quite a lot of sociological developments in the interim! including talking films! and underwire bras! and not one, but two World Wars! Obviously Baldwin did not know that WWI was about to happen right as she went into a convent, but she does explain that she came out in the middle of WWII more or less on purpose, out of an idea that it would be easier to slide herself back into things when everything was chaotic and unprecedented anyway than to try to establish a life for herself as The Weird Ex Nun in more normal times. Unclear how well this strategy paid off for her, but you can't say she didn't give it an effort. Baldwin was raised extremely upper-class -- she was related to former Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin, among others -- but exited the convent pretty much penniless, so while she did have a safety net in terms of various sets of variously judgmental relations who were willing to put her up, she spends a lot of the book valiantly attempting to take her place among the workers of the world. And these are real labor jobs, too -- 'ex-nun' is not a resume booster, and most of the things she felt actually qualified to do for a living based on her convent experience (librarianship, scholarship, etc) required some form of degree, so much of the work she does in this book are things like being a land girl, or working in a canteen. She doesn't enjoy these jobs, and she rarely does them long, but you have to respect her for giving it the old college try, especially when she's constantly in a state of profound and sustained culture shock.
Overall, Baldwin does not enjoy the changes to the world since she left it. She does not enjoy having gone in a beautiful young girl with her life ahead of her, and come out a middle-aged woman who's missed all the milestones that everyone around her takes for granted. She does, however, profoundly enjoy her freedom, and soon begins to cherish an all-consuming dream of purchasing a Small House of her Very Own where she can do whatever the hell she wants whenever the hell she wants. After decades in a convent, you can hardly blame her for this. On the other hand -- fascinatingly, to me -- it's very clear that Baldwin still somewhat idealizes convent life, despite the fact that it obviously made her deeply miserable. She has long conversations with her judgmental relatives, and long conversations with us, the reader, in which she tries to convince them/us of the real virtues of the cloister; of the spiritual value of deep, deliberate, constant self-sacrifice and self-abegnation; of the fact that it's important, vital and necessary that some people close themselves away from work in the world to focus on the exclusive pursuit of God. It is good that people do this, it's spiritual and heroic, it's simply -- unfortunately -- the only case in which she's ever known the church to be wrong in assessing who does or does not have a genuine vocation after the novice period -- not for her.
Baldwin is a fascinating and contradictory person and I enjoyed spending time with her quite a bit. I suspect she wouldn't much enjoy spending time with me; she will keep going to London and observing neutrally that it seems the streets are much more full of Jews than they were before she went into the convent, faint shudder implied. At another point she confesses that although she'd left the convent with 'definite socialist tendencies,' actually working among the working people has changed her mind for the worse: 'the people' now impressed me as full of class prejudice and an almost vindictive envy-hatred-malice fixation towards anyone who was richer, cleverer, or in any way superior to themselves. Still, despite her preoccupations and prejudices, her voice is interesting, and deeply eccentric, and IMO she's worth getting to know. This is a woman, an ex-nun, who takes Le Morte D'Arthur as her beacon of hope and guide to life. Le Morte! You really can't agree with it, but how can you not be compelled?
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fandomtrumpshate is running again this year, and signups are open! Details hereSignups end on February 08th.
I'm really looking forward to seeing what the offers are this year. This is the 10th year it's run, and I have a feeling it'll be a big year.
In case there are any who don't know what it is: FTH is a multifandom charity auction in which people sign up to offer fanwork (art, fic, beta reading, etc). Others bid on them. The money raised is donated directly to charity.
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I get quite a few mailorder things delivered and the couriers know to just leave packages by my door if I'm not immediately available, but this morning I was right there, door open and all. So I was baffled, then annoyed, when the NZ Post courier van just sat in my driveway and tooted at me. What the fuck? I finally located my crocs and went outside and made a WTF gesture, and the driver reluctantly got out of his cab and thrust a package at me then quickly scrambled back in and took off.
I turned around and whoa, there was a stray dog behind me standing up looking over into my neighbour's patio which is edged by a short bit of picket fence. Then I heard it start yelping in distress and pain and realised its front legs had slid down between the pickets and gotten stuck with its paws being too wide to pull back horizontally through the gaps. It was a largish dog, what we call a huntaway here, and it was really worked up so I didn't feel safe approaching it from behind to try and lift up its legs, right next to its mouth - seemed like a good way to get bitten. But luckily while I was dithering and trying to figure out what to do it accidentally freed itself - it had been sagging down on its haunches which only trapped it worse, but it must have stood up again. I shooed it away and could see it had a white muzzle so quite an old dog. I hope it's ok, but I wasn't able to check its collar for owner details.
Having had a chance to look up what to do in that sort of situation in future, there really isn't anything*. It was too minor for the police and not a dangerous dog per se, and not an animal being mistreated so not the SPCA's area, although if it had stayed stuck I'd have called them for advice.
Another unexpected start of the day story!
*having calmed down and thought it through I should have got my broom and lifted its feet up that way, but I was in a panic-brain state at the time.
I turned around and whoa, there was a stray dog behind me standing up looking over into my neighbour's patio which is edged by a short bit of picket fence. Then I heard it start yelping in distress and pain and realised its front legs had slid down between the pickets and gotten stuck with its paws being too wide to pull back horizontally through the gaps. It was a largish dog, what we call a huntaway here, and it was really worked up so I didn't feel safe approaching it from behind to try and lift up its legs, right next to its mouth - seemed like a good way to get bitten. But luckily while I was dithering and trying to figure out what to do it accidentally freed itself - it had been sagging down on its haunches which only trapped it worse, but it must have stood up again. I shooed it away and could see it had a white muzzle so quite an old dog. I hope it's ok, but I wasn't able to check its collar for owner details.
Having had a chance to look up what to do in that sort of situation in future, there really isn't anything*. It was too minor for the police and not a dangerous dog per se, and not an animal being mistreated so not the SPCA's area, although if it had stayed stuck I'd have called them for advice.
Another unexpected start of the day story!
*having calmed down and thought it through I should have got my broom and lifted its feet up that way, but I was in a panic-brain state at the time.
.
