Nerd Church - Dude, Siblings Are a Pain

Siblings, can't live with 'em, can't live witho- ...actually, no, sometimes it'd be easier to live without 'em. Not to say we don't love 'em - we. love. them. But they do tend to complicate things - just ask Katniss Everdeen, Thor and Loki, the Weasleys (ahem, Percy,) and the Pevensies (Chronicles of Narnia.)


church image courtesy of debspoons/FreeDigitalPhotos.net


Let's face it, it's not a new theme to literature - King Lear has the warring sisters, Pride and Prejudice is made infinitely more boring complicated by the ins-and-outs of the Bennett sisters (I'm not an Austen fan unless there's zombies or ninjas - sorry,) and myths/religious stories from Cain and Abel to Horus and Set are constantly describing the warring of brothers and the duality of man (etc. etc.)

Being a little sister myself, I often wonder about the only-children of literature. Sure, Harry Potter has Dudley - but he's a cousin, and not a very nice one; if he'd had a sibling, would his life pre-Hogwarts have sucked quite so badly? And does anyone else find it odd that Hermione and Draco also have no siblings? You don't find all that many only-child families. To have three such important characters with no siblings, while Ron has siblings falling from the ever-loving rafters, is quite interesting... can you imagine Draco with a brother, or Hermione with a sister? And of course, there's Lily and Petunia - without whom Harry would never have been sent to the Dursley family in the first place. We're given very little glimpse into the Evans sister's lives pre-Harry, but that familial link is still important, isn't it?

I might come back to this topic and try to straighten out my thoughts a bit more, but I hope that's given you something to moral/thematic/phisololphical (philosophical) to chew over this week in Nerd Church (cue cheesy grin and sweeping thumbs up motion.)

Friday Fics Fix! (In Which Tony and Loki Have a Little Something)

This week's Fics Fix rec is a 17-chapter Frostiron fic (Frostiron is where Tony Stark and Loki are in some sort of relationship):

Bedroom Hymns by Midnight_Ophelia

This is a Loki-is-a-prostitute fic (of which there are more than you'd imagine, but perhaps less than you'd want/fear.) So, Loki is human, and Tony, not realising he's a gentleman of the night, ends up taking him in (for many reasons, of which his hotness is most definitely one.)

This involves sex so nobody under 18 - you hear me? M audience only. It gets more than a little steamy (blushes.)

There are the usual spelling and grammar errors - but c'est la vie folks, this is fanfiction. The emotional heart is there. And it managed to keep me coming back for more, so there must be something to it - it's actually quite enjoyable.

So, that's it for this week's Fics Fix, because even though I only highlighted one fic, it has seventeen chapters (so don't be greedy.)

If anyone has any recs, or wants to attempt to drag me from my current Frostiron reading spree, just leave a link in the comments (please, not too disturbing, and no real people - characters only.)

The Writer Diaries (or Heaven Knows I'm Busy Now)

Busy? Me? Pshaw! Ha, I just wrote the word pshaw (ok, so I may've just finished a cup of coffee...)

Anyway, it's not like I'm busy...I just have a blog to keep up, two beautiful kitties who want to play, a little thing called a job to do (alright, I'm self-employed, but that just means I have to make myself do everything for my business - there is no delegating here folks,) and numerous pieces of writing that I want to fit in, as well as reading to do (because that's obviously a necessity.) If I miss anything out, it'll be the reading and the writing - which I don't want to do. Because even though I need cash in my pocket and am a one-woman self-employed business-machine (who is terminally skint,) you gotta have time for your other passions too (don't get me wrong, my business is one of passions - I just am not willing to give up on something that is a fundamental part of me (i.e. reading, writing,) on behalf of limited financial gain. To paraphrase an admirable pirate, it's a good thing I'm crazy, because otherwise this'd never work.)

So, I have a cunning plan Mr B (ok, too much vintage comedy for me,) - I'm going to squish and squash the writing and reading into the secret moments. There will be audiobooks while I work. There will be writing exercises where I use a prompt for ten minutes with little to no plan for what to do with the sh** on the page when I've finished. There will be determination! And if I fall, I'm not going to look at the negatives, I'm going to focus on the positives - because what I've achieved is amazing! (Positive... yeh... let's see how long this lasts folks... still, you've gotta hit the depression with a hammer somehow...)

Nerd Church - Closed for Whovian Holiday

Hey my nerds. I've decided to take a Nerd Church break this week as I try to figure out whether the first episode of the new Doctor Who series was excellent or rubbish. I know that many of you will be doing the same. At the moment, I think I liked it - but I may be in the minority here. And there were some things which, as a pretty-much life-long Whovian (albeit only semi-practising as opposed to devout,) worry me about the future of the series. You can understand that I need some time to process, and also to wonder why the hell UNIT would care what Clara thought about anything, because she isn't the brightest penny in the jar (sorry, I know a lot of people like her.)

I'll see you for Nerd Church next week - although, this post seems to have got much longer than I intended, so I suppose you could argue this was Nerd Church... I don't know, the amount of rugby on the TV in my house right now has melted my brain. I'm Welsh, and I don't care about rugby; just like I'm British and I don't drink tea. I'm lucky to be alive to be honest.

Friday Fics Fix! - Diving into Johnlock

Hello my lovely and nerdy peoples! I have two Johnlock (BBC Sherlock Holmes in a relationship/romantic situation with John Watson,) recs (recommendations,) for you this week. And they're not overly-disturbing! It's a good week all round!

John Finds the Johnlock Fanfics by Watermelonsmellinfellon.

This is a tad naughty - so no-one under 18! I mean it! I'm wise to you! This is a bit fic-ception-y: where the fics within the fic start affecting the fic. Don't know what I mean? To be honest, neither do I. Just read it if you like slightly awkward romantic moments between John Watson and Sherlock Holmes from BBC's Sherlock.

Johnlock One-Shot by Everything_Fangirl

This is also a bit naughty - but less so, so its OK for about age 14+. This is a typical Johnlock fic folks - both want each other, neither knows how to declare their love. The difference here is that it's actually well-written. I know, I nearly fell off the chair! It's sweet and considered and actually quite good. Either the apocalypse is coming or I've finally reached the point of no-return when it comes to reading fanfiction, and need to be carted off for my own safety.

Reviewing the Evidence Time Again - Charm by Sarah Pinborough

Title: Charm (US Link)
Author: Sarah Pinborough
Genre: Fantasy, Fairy Tale, Romance
Series: Tales From the Kingdom (#2)

A few starting notes:

Even though this is the second book in Sarah Pinborough's Tales From the Kingdom series, it's not really a sequel as such. Oh, I'm sure there are elements which tie-in with the other books of the series, but I haven't read any of the others, and can confirm that this can certainly be taken as a stand-alone book.

Premise:

Handsome prince? Check. Magic? Check. Ball? Check. Fairy godmother? Urm... there's a bit more to that one. Cinderella? Well, yeah... but she's a bit... different. So, come to think of it, are the step-sisters, and the happily ever after deal is quite complex... This is a fairy-tale, sure, but are you ready for it?

Best bits:

I love the whole inter-weaving fairy-tale world that Sarah Pinborough has created - it's full of magic, but also a creepy gothic-ness that creeps into everything.

I also really admire anyone who can bring a zing of freshness to a tale that's been told so many times - and Pinborough does, by showing that even in fairy-tales, reality is different to what you were expecting.

The illustrations give a welcome portion of gothic pizzazz to the mix, and the book is most definitely readable. I finished it in a matter of days, and found it oh-so-easy to pick up and read, and not so easy to put down again.

Not so great bits:

A lot of people will find the degree of naughtiness going on here jarring when compared to the squeaky Disney-clean image of Cinderella et. al. they were provided with in childhood. Some may even find it distasteful - I'm honestly not all that bothered, since it didn't really get in the way of the plot, but a lot of people won't like Cinders erring towards debauchery!

I know this is fantasy - own world, own rules, etc. But, the main thing that bothered me here was that I felt I couldn't get a good enough feel for the setting - was this medieval levels of technology and styles of fashion, or closer to Victorian? I just couldn't get a handle on it.

Verdict:

Ahhh, this is a book for the ladies (and the men who are secure with their identities.) Grab a cuppa, a cat, and a blanket (and maybe some chocolate? Yes?) and enjoy the hell out of it.

The Writer Diaries (Or, Feel the Fear, and Write it Anyway)

Like many an erstwhile reader and blogger, your dear Reading Addict dreams of one day being called a writer. Except it's more than a dream, isn't it? If you've been there, then you know that it is.

I've moaned about my life before now and in the course of that post (which was a lot less self-pitying than I make it sound here, honest!) I mentioned that one of the reasons I started this blog was because I've always wanted to be a writer. And it's true. I can't stop writing sh**.

I also love reading. Love it, love it, love it (as you've probably guessed from the books blog...) I know I'm a reader - and I don't make any money out of that either, so why does it feel so weird to call myself a writer? I write loads - and not just e-mails like most people I know. I pretty much write anything and everything. But, aside from blogging etc., and a few things I wrote a million years ago for kiddies competitions, I'm unpublished. Is that my problem? Is that why I can't bring myself to call myself a writer; I don't call myself an artist either, and I draw and paint a sh**-load too. I call myself a knitter, a card-maker, a crafter - and I don't do any of those professionally.

Is it a case of acceptability? If you call yourself a writer, an artist, a painter, a singer, a musician, then you're revealing a part of yourself to the world - a deep-seated part that feels more than a little vulnerable to the criticism you receive, not only for your work, but for the very fact that you have work. Being a knitter, a reader, a dancer, whatever somehow seems more socially acceptable, because a lot of people have those hobbies and it's considered 'normal' - something that anyone can do if they have the time and the inclination (even if that's only true to a greater or lesser extent.) Being a writer is something you're born with - I'm sorry, but it's true. I can't remember a time when I didn't write - literally. (And I'll let you in on a little secret - if you want to be a writer, then you are.)

Should I give up? Never write another word? Even the idea is making my anxiety flare up!

But then, what can I do about the fear of being judged because of who I am - a writer, albeit an unpublished one? I acknowledge it (never ignore your feelings people - it's not healthy,) and then, what I need to do, is to say screw it and write anyway! I know that this is easier said than done. But I have a secret weapon - I love writing. There is nothing like that feeling - just like there's nothing like the feeling of reading, or the feeling of drawing, or the feeling of painting... All of these things are different, and all are so amazingly absorbing that you know when they're for you.

That's not to say that every moment of it will be pleasurable - far from it! I veritably turn the air blue with my swearing (and that's just the stuff I don't type!) and I doubt that people who play tennis enjoy slipping on the court; I doubt that people who collect sh** enjoy it when they can't find that limited edition - or when they drop and smash that prized possession. But goddamnit I'm writing anyway! If you enjoy something - do it! (Within legal and moral parameters people please, I'm not going to be blamed for a crime spree.)