天地訢合

All the Writing I Did in 2015

Wed, 17 Feb 2016 05:29:05 GMT

I see this meme everywhere, but I have no idea from whence it originated? Let me know if you know! I fiddled with the format a tad...

For once I did enough writing to actually justify a foray. I slaved over these projects, so I really wanted to indulge myself by talking about them, despite that no one asked. Note my cutoff corresponds to the Lunar calendar--but anything I wrote after the 8th of February will go into the 2016 review, if it happens. I didn't write anything until about April, I think. Watch how I don't give a straight answer to anything! May add/alter stuff later.

All this is very long-winded, and often tangential. I choose to believe those are some of my charms.

( Excelsior! ...or, Geronimo? )

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"Yon, Thither, and Hither" notes~

Sun, 14 Feb 2016 12:43:46 GMT

I exhausted myself writing this fannovella (after the Mimi wo Sumaseba behemoth) for the itty bitty Castle in the Sky fandom, but I learned a lot about a lot in the process, so I can't say I regret it! The reason the notes are so belated is because since I posted the story I've been madly writing a Mononoke Hime fic, the last one before I go an indefinite hiatus. It's all done (I'm, uh, still editing it though) at last! Which means original fic can finally happen! I mean, it could have happened at any time, but I had so many mental blocks towards starting without finally getting all the most pressing WIPs out of the way. I read YHT again last night and made some little edits, and thought it was high time I wrote down the notes, since I'm beginning to forget all the things I wanted to say.

( Without further ado, notes below that are maybe even more pretentious than usual: )

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"Terrella" notes!

Sat, 28 Nov 2015 17:28:43 GMT

Ooooooh dear, I did it. Erm, er, I wrote another pieca Mononoke Hime erotica here??? I'm kind of sorry I'm not sorry?? In any case, she is called "Terrella" and I shall discuss her in greater detail under the cut if you too (actually yours truly, hiding behind your fists--yes! yes, I see you--a whole decade later) would also like a taste of my special brand of randy absurdity.

Been meaning to post this for ages, but got majorly sidetracked tying up loose ends for the semester, so here it is now!

( Somewhat NSFW text, but also some potentially useful quotes from 'Turning Point 1997-2008' )

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Yuletide 2015

Mon, 26 Oct 2015 16:11:13 GMT

Gentle writer,

First of all, my apologies for the belated letter! I have been under the duress of the semester's exam rush and writing up a helpful letter has unfortunately slipped my mind. I have requested FFVI, Kiki's Delivery Service and The Last Story before, and what I've asked for them in previous exchanges still applies now. Kindly check my "exchange" tag for a bit more specificity.

If your offer was The Tarot Cafe: I admittedly haven't reread the series in quite some time, so I'm looking forward to revisiting it for Yuletide, although I realise my prompts may not be very useful right now because of this. I don't have any specific requests in mind, but I really love the series in general: it's gorgeous and moving and heartbreaking. You can't go wrong with casefic if you prefer to write the gen, but I'm fine with shipper, sexier fiction too: I'm also very, very curious as to how Pamela and Belus' relationship developed after the ending. If you're comfortable with both types of story maybe a casefic that leads to insight about the Pamela/Belus thing? Tarot lore is fascinating to me, so you could incorporate that vein of imagery and schema into the fic if you felt so inclined.

General dos: POST-SERIES (oh my god); descriptions of scenery; descriptions of food; sensory descriptions in general; slice of life; characters aspiring to goodness/compassion; pastiches of the source canon's style. All things described in past letters also apply.

General don'ts: rape, AUs, crossovers, character bashing, mpreg.

Whatever you end up writing, please have fun and make sure it is as rewarding as possible for you. I will coo and fawn over the final product, I promise! If you need more information feel free to contact the mods again.

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"To Treasure" notes

Thu, 15 Oct 2015 15:06:54 GMT

I finished a 57K+ Mimi wo Sumaseba fic here! Here are some overlong and incoherent notes to it, kept for your eyerolls and the refreshment of my future self. Warning: image heavy!

( Click here for an obscene excess of omphaloskepsis! )

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Parallels 2015 Yields

Mon, 24 Aug 2015 09:09:43 GMT

I hadn't finished writing anything creative for over year and a half, so I decided to sign up for an exchange this year to give myself the push I needed to get back into a steady writing rhythm. It's been working all right so far.

I received the lovely Final Fantasy VI fic, Weaving the Future. Anyone familiar with canon and/or textiles should read it!

I wrote Masquerade of Suns and have some things to say about it:

( Notes )

In other news, I have been writing a Mimi wo Sumaseba post-canon fic, about Shizuku and Seiji's adventures in Western Europe, because I finally got to do some field work in my February holidays to the region.

It's 24K now, after some editing, but I refuse to post a word of it until it's all done. I get the feeling the end length will be somewhere around 30K, and I'm setting a tentative release date for the 8th of September.

I think it's hilarious that I have put such an inordinate amount of effort into this fannovella, when probably less than half a dozen people will likely read it.

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Parallels 2015 Letter

Mon, 29 Jun 2015 07:30:58 GMT

Dearest you,

In advance, thank you for the gift. I promise I will love and gush over whatever you create. Please have all the fun you can. You can read my past few exchange letters in the "exchange" tag for more information about my likes and dislikes. I requested two films, so feel free to watch and fall back on them should the video game requests take you too much time. Some source-specific ideas for this event:

Tokyo Godfathers: I've been rewatching Satoshi Kon films for the last few weeks and wonder why they're not seen more often. The film is very good with sensitive and diverse representations, so I'd like you to continue in that vein. Post-canon fic with the three protagonists figuring out life and their problems from the ending on would be more than wonderful. Backstories would also be interesting to explore.

Also, while Hana does refer to herself with the term "okama" , it's clear she's trans. Note her reactions on being called "jiji", desire to have been DFaB and a mother, etc. Don't misgender Hana like some of the subtitles for this film might and do. Avoid perpetrating anything that ends in -shaming or -phobia.

Castle in the Sky: My OTP in this is so young and yet ripe for adventure, of course I would gobble up all the post-canon fic. I also love Dola and would love to read anything about her. Emprise, discovery (internal, external and interpersonal), fantasy, and detailed scenery would really delight me.

Final Fantasy VI: I beat the game for the first time earlier this year and was very impressed with how well it aged and the vividness of some of the locations and characters. Assuming a full party, I'd love to learn what everyone decided to do after getting off that airship. What the hell ever happened to Shadow? How will Locke and Celes develop their relationship? What about Edgar's sex life? Where is Maria? How will Mog deal with being the last moogle in the world and Cyan with being a widower, etc.

Final Fantasy IX: This is such a large game, and there's so much you could attempt to do with it. Two of my concerns are with the mini-Vivis, and Vivi in general, because I love him. I also am pretty enthusiastic about Steiner and Beatrix and would love to know what they got up to post-ending. Bear in mind I feel deeply for all the party equally (except Amarant probably) so it's really up to you what you want to write about them.

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Meme!

Thu, 13 Mar 2014 12:04:26 GMT

I had planned to post this earlier, but was forestalled by exhaustion thanks to the new daily commute to and from university. Here's the meme as taken from nintendoh!

Here's a meme for us to get to know each other a little better. If you're interested and have the time that is. If you don't that's fine, I'll still love you. (Old friends welcome to give it a go too.)

1. Leave me a comment saying "love love umbrella".
2. I'll respond with 5 questions.
3. You'll update your journal with my questions and your answers.
4. Include this explanation.
5. You'll ask five questions to anyone who wants to be interviewed ♥

Alternate for 3-5: just reply to my comment with your answers and we'll keep it between us.

1. What was one of the the most influential stories (book, comic, show, game, etc. the format doesn't matter) from your childhood?

Just before emigrating to Australia, Mama bought me a VCD collection of a 1999 西遊記 (Journey to the West) cartoon adaptation! VCDs, DO YOU REMEMBER THOSE? Apparently the West released the show as Journey to the West – Legends of the Monkey King. Many of the discs are either lost or scratched beyond watchability now, but the whole series is amazingly available in Mandarin on Youtube. Linky! Bless Youtube for all the gems it makes accessible!

I used to watch the show on repeat, back when I didn’t know any English, and I think it affected me deeply in ways I’m not totally aware of now. My dependence on animation and picture books as a child probably explains my longstanding fondness for those mediums, as well as the dabbling in visual arts thing.

I didn’t have many friends at the time, so the adventure and the characters kept me company instead. I was totally immersed in the epic journey of Tang Seng and his three tudi. The pretty white horse that bears Tang Seng around is a shapeshifted dragon, by the way. That’s the tip of the iceberg, though. One of the most important things is that I became familiar with Buddhism and Taoism and learned lessons about being selfless and good and brave that have stayed with me to this day. My knowledge of and love for the text also acts as conduits for kinship between myself and fellow Chinese people. I also probably had some sort of inappropriate toddler crush on this particular rendition of The Monkey King. He rocks that tigerskin skirt tbh.

2. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

In an ideal world, I would live in a superpowered houseboat on a stateless sea, so I could live as a waterborne wanderer with the ability to visit family and friends and explore all kinds of places around the globe. Also, gazing at sunrises, sunsets, and all other celestial objects at various times would be glorious. We don’t quite live in an ideal world, however, so I am happy and grateful to be living in Australia! If the option ever becomes viable, though, I would like to reside in each continent for at least a year.

3. What's your favourite rainy day activity?

Ah, a tough question. This one’s probably tied between: one, watching films or shows I really love while eating warm food; two, playing video games; and three, reading in bed.

4. Do you have any guilty pleasures?

Consuming bad media with the knowledge that what I am consuming is probably perpetuating some commercialist and/or morally repugnant/insidious shit. Yanno, this can range from watching cheap male gazey Hollywood blockbusters to sporadically skimming through the often amusing and always evil trollery of tabloids. This question has only made me realise how shameless I am when it comes to almost everything else, ahaha

5. What's your favourite breakfast food?

I’m more of a brunch person nowdays, and I usually have leftovers or whatever’s lying around, but in terms of actual breakfast food, I really enjoy the occasional bacon and egg sandwich paired with fresh orange juice crushed at home. I would love to be able to eat fried dough, 豆腐脑 (dunno how I would describe it in English) and soy milk at least once per week, though.

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Kaze Tachinu!

Fri, 28 Feb 2014 07:44:18 GMT

We went for a bit of pasta before stepping into the cinema. I had some pesto penne and Dad ordered a large bowl of marina spaghetti. We both had some garlic bread, too. I drank some 1up, but couldn't finish it for the life of me.

The session room seemed about four times smaller than commercial/mainstream ones, but it was nice and cosy. No wonder the tickets for the nightly session were sold out on the day!

Most of the moviegoers seemed to be university students in their early to late twenties. At seventeen I was either the youngest or one of the close-to-youngest attendees; there were no teenagers or little ones. At fourty-five my dad was one of the older audience members; there didn't seem to be anyone above the age of fifty-five. The demographics were quite surprising! Though I guess tech-savvy uni students are probably most likely to watch foreign movies on release at indie cinemas?

Then we sat down and waited for that eponymous wind to blow us awaaaaay...

( Here's the overlong review! )

Kaguya-hime no Monogatari is a folktale I've been familiar with since I was little thanks to Chinese picture books. Takahata's could be the better film. It seems to have received unanimous praise, with Takahata himself stating that it is perhaps his best work. I really can't wait to see it this November! I'm sure it'll be screened at Dendy, too.

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Sun, 16 Feb 2014 09:03:45 GMT

My hair now reaches my thighs! When I don't braid or ponytail all those locks I do tend to accidentally sit on them quite a bit, so the length is eluding practicality as well as demanding unreasonable volumes of shampoo. I'm well-known now by family, friends, and amazed strangers for rocking the black cascade or braid but I really need to go to a salon and get the hair cut waist-length this week. That's still extremely long for most people, but you do develop a certain fondness for your own hair once you really grow it out? You get irrationally sad if it goes. The stuff grows super fast for me anyways; I think it's only been something 2-4 years since I've cropped my hair anywhere above my shoulders (though I have regularly trimmed my fringe myself).

Since this is the year for which I have promised myself to do more of nothing than I have any other year, I've been doing pretty good so far, going with the flow and trying not to worry too much. I recently played and beat Shadow of the Colossus, which is a gorgeous game I prefer over Ico, and I cannot stop thinking about it or reading fanworks for it!

( Thoughts on Fumito Ueda )

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films about death

Sun, 05 Jan 2014 14:54:00 GMT

Through Friday to Saturday I coincidentally watched four films of East Asian origin about senescence and moribundity. I cried during ALL OF THEM.

( Thoughts on 'A Simple Life', 'The Ballad of Narayama', 'Wonderful Life', and 'Departures' )

I've also been going through Roger Ebert's archive of film reviews. I miss him a lot. Despite his entertainingly ignorant views on video games, he was a fantastic critic when it came to his actual field. His writeups of all the films mentioned in this post are all great! Though he gets a few minor narrative facts wrong in his review of Spirited Away, I am in emphatic agreement with him through the whole review, especially when he says, "The living light pole is not necessary. It is a gift from Miyazaki."

Also, does anybody have any recs for new good films they've watched? The standard Hollywood formula has been getting really boring as of late.

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2013 Writing Roundup

Sat, 04 Jan 2014 13:35:57 GMT

Ten-ish pieces in total. A good year overall!

( Stats n' rambles )

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'The Thousandth Fathom' notes

Thu, 02 Jan 2014 07:27:11 GMT

I wrote The Thousandth Fathom for Yuletide. It was one of the most draining yet most personally satisfying things I have written so far.

( Catalogue of references )

( Research notes )

( Personal commentary )

All in all, the fic was a lot of hard work, much like Chihiro’s journey, and carries an immense amount of emotional/sentimental value for me, so I’m glad to have stuck with it till the end!

I also wrote From Life, a Kiki's Delivery Service fic, in TWO DAYS, which is the fastest I've written in yeeeaaars!

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yuletide 2013, part II

Sat, 28 Dec 2013 06:14:38 GMT

More things I read and liked:

WALL-E: Re-designation
Kiki's Delivery Service: How Kiki Bought Home Every One of Ursula's Paintings
Xenoblade Chronicles: time and tide wait for no man
The Fifth Element: Life Important

Aaaand at this point I think I've gone through every fandom I'm interested in? Will keep an eye on recs that are not my own till reveals.

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Yuletide

Thu, 26 Dec 2013 09:43:32 GMT

I did NOT default (thank goodness) and finished two fics, to my surprise! I exceeded my projected wordcount for both of them, though, and am very proud of what I've written. This came at the expense of decent sleeping hours and all relaxation time. I don't think I've panicked so much about posting something before! While writing, there were several times where I felt teary and/or queasy, bc of nervousness and blah blah blah. It's difficult for me to distance myself to whatever I am writing, so being aware of the fic exposure Yuletide offers just applied more pressure to me, I guess. The results and the experience of the process, I think, are still worth the work. I'm also incredibly grateful for the wonderful friend who beta-read for me a few days before story reveals!!! She was very efficient in dealing with all the typos and errors I perpetuated between 12AM and 9AM over many nights haha.

Symbiosis is the beautiful Omoide Poro Poro fic gifted to me. It makes evocative use of first person to follow Taeko from her late twenties into middle age. I love the sweetness and rustic romance of Taeko's family and the bucolic scenery porn so!

Other things I really enjoyed reading so far, in no particular order:

Uchouten Kazoku: Wishing Well, The Tanuki Special
Zhuangzi: On Bigness
My Beautiful Laundrette: Make and Mend
Invisible Cities: Isaura's Gods, The City of Wells
Wreck-It Ralph: The Honey Glow
Millennium Actress: Gold, Red, Black, White

There are things I put on my TBR list for tomorrow or before I sleep tonight. But the latter scenario is unlikely as I'm fucking exhausted from all the intense synchronised writing and worrying sessions, wow. Good night, everyone!!!

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loot

Fri, 08 Nov 2013 15:41:02 GMT

Because I remembered I'd have to upload images on separate a hosting site in order to embed 'em within this post, I thought I'd better stick to preexisting links.

Things I got:

Futofuri Kaeru To

This beauty came in the first package along with Shuna no Tabi. I think it took less than fourty eight hours to get to Australia. I was amazed and still am! And let me count the ways in which I love love love this artbook! It's a sturdy hardcover with nice thick heavy pages. IMMEDIATELY BROWNIE POINTS. Kondou had deft hands, too; his line and contour were effortless and his colouring soft and impeccable. He never skimped on details and was so good with capturing emotion and warmth. The book's display of technical skill isn't its only merit, though.

Futofuri celebrates the big and the small, the young and the old. It radiates love and compassion for humans from all walks of life. The diversity of faces, bodies, circumstances, and temperaments depicted in the pencil-coloured sketches were incredibly delightful and refreshing to see, as were Kondou's cute little captions. I always squeal when I see the picture of the kindergartners in adorable yellow raincoats being trollied off by their parents. The caption reads 'Ame ni mo makezu', which also delighted me as I am a great Miyazawa aficionado! The pictures are all infused with the tenderness, intimacy, insight, and everyday magic that Mimi wo Sumaseba is one of the best films out there.

I teared up while poring over the images because I was so moved by them. Koudou was only fourty seven when he passed away. What kind of age is that to die? It's a depressing pattern Satoshi Kon followed when he went at fourty six. Still, I am more than glad for all he did in his too short life. Hiroko, Takahata and Miyazaki were too.

Shuna no Tabi

Won't link to this one because there is an accessible scanlation of it floating around the internet. I just wanted my own copy to admire in all its fully watercoloured glory! The book is a 'pocket bunko' and very small; I've heard it described as postcard-size, which is about right.

Shuna no Tabi should be very familiar to Miyazaki fans. Yakkul from Mononoke Hime was probably begotten from the Yakkul in this universe. There are forests and beings of the ilk of those in Laputa. Shuna's hometown I at first mistook for the Valley of the Wind. Thea resembles Nausicaa a lot. Then again Nausicaa is sort of the ur-heroine of Miyazaki works (this is arguable if you count Lana and Clarice, though!). It's interesting to note that some pages are very Moebius/Jean Giraud-influenced. My mental image of Earthsea showed up a few times, too! Basically Shuna is a conglomeration of my tastes to a T. It's also a beautiful tale very much worth the read.

Sekai no Mannaka no Ki

While I was reading Miyazaki's Starting Point, I came across the afterword he wrote for the new picture book drawn and written by this Ghibli animator he was praising. I learned that Makiko Futaki had animated many of my favourite Ghibli scenes, including my current icon! I was curious as to what her book, Sekai no Mannaki no Ki was about. Googling yielded seven search results. Then I took matters into my own hands and began planning to order direct from Amazon.

The book is a Tokuma/AM JuJu pocket bunko like Shuna no Tabi. It is also in full colour. The art is delightful and would be right at home in a Ghibli film. Plus, there is scenery porn everywhere. This seems like a great fantasy adventure like Laputa or Shuna, so I would love to do a (slow) translation of the book over the holidays. It might work out in the end because I could read the first two sentences without any difficulty at all!

BRUTUS Magazine (Studio Ghibli Edition)

There's so much stuff packed in this magazine issue! I'm tempted to cut out these trading card type character profiles at the back of the book. I died when I saw the heading 'RENAI' plastered above an image of Ashitaka and San... haha...

Aoi Kiku/Les Chrysthanthemes Blues

I have always wanted to get my hands on Hatoyama Ikuko's work since a friend over the internet kept mentioning her and providing samples of her work. Her complete anonymity in English-speaking circles only increased my interest. I haven't gotten to read or look through the book very thoroughly so far, but I might post impressions later. The book, like everything in this list, is stunning. Hatoyama has the most 'delicate' artwork of all the artists on this list. Fine lines breathe life into frail boys with rosebud lips languishing amongst ephemeral blossoms. Chapter/story covers and in this are textured and garnished with tiny pictures, articles, frames, recipes, and afterwords. There is a whole section in red ink in orbit around the illustration of objects such as kaleidoscopes and zoetropes. Again very much to my tastes. The book would be something I'd love to try reading, and I'm sure I'll seek out more of Hatoyama's works in the future!

Hachigatsu no Soda Sui and Suikon Kiko

I discovered Komatsu Shinya in the recommendation box whilst adding Hatoyama Ikuko's Aoi Kiku into my cart. Boy, am I glad I did. They're both artists serially published in Ax, which is apparently the go-to magazine for alternative comics in Japan. Now, Komatsu's style in some respects resembles 30s cartoons. And yet his meticulous artwork is deeply fantastic, dreamy, surreal and whimsical. He draws people with fishbowl heads on monocles! On top of that, wondrous steampunk cities and lots of zeppelins and airships! I am a sucker for this sort of stuff. The Diary of Tortov Roddle, anyone?

Okay, so, Soda. The review on the obi has the words 'dokoka natsukashii' in it. That was definitely how I felt about Soda Sui. It's another gorgeous hardback full-colour manga, steeped in lots of cyan and azure and aquamarine. The main story is about a little violinist called Lisa, who lives by a magical seaside. In episodic chapters she encounters an alternate universe inside the glass bead of a Ramune bottle; a walking lighthouse; an umbrella pilot from a distant town; a derelict village in which paintings spring to life; and a fellow violinist from under the sea! The second section is a number of smaller, sparsely panelled comics about the everyday adventures of a boy and his talking cat. The layout is very pretty, from the obi to the chapter headers and enders. I love the little parasol and flying bird in either inner flap of the dust jacket. Moreover, I was overjoyed when I realised I could actually read the book with the help of a dictionary and IME pad. Aaah, and the fact the book passes the Bechdel test is awesome!

Suikon Kiko is a collection of his short manga, which I presume were published in Ax. I haven't examined them closely yet, but they seem just as good as Soda Sui. I was annoyed that Amazon's lack of bubble wrap caused the first three pages to get little tears in them. TBH, though I don't need to presently, I'd be happy to buy another copy to support such a new and original artist as Komatsu Shinya. I think he's already published in French? I'm surprised no one in English-speaking circles has heard of him! Some of the stories in Suikon Kiko are textless. I guess obscurity comes with being associated with alternative comics. Also: this piece is so charming it hurts! The images in the link aren't mine; the print version of this story, I later realised, is in monochrome.

Hatsuai 1~2

I bet the people who packaged my order at this point had a moment where they put their hands down and asked, 'what kind of girl reads both H and boys love?!?!' Since Amazon Japan can't ship adult material to international addresses I guess these two volumes are technically not porn. They are still damn hot. I'm super enthusiastic about Tanaka Yutaka's work; he writes/draws slice-of-life erotica about love and sex in an extremely heartening way. You know. He smacks the 'awww' and 'awww yeah!' switches at the same time. I mean wow, the people in his manga communicate!!!!! And actually love each other!!!!! And care about pleasing each other!!!!! If you do not warm up reading this stuff you are possibly a vampire. TY's inner monologues are unusually sensitive and intermittently poetic. Also, his art is very comely and the ladies and gentlemen he renders are adorable. Aphrodisiac for the soul, harhar. While I'm at it, I would heartily recommend Itoshii no Kana!

Akita Asobi no Fukei

Kazuo Oga is the artist that does the exquisite backgrounds for many of Ghibli's most beloved films. In this artbook he illustrates his memories of his bucolic childhood home in northern Japan. Everything is achingly nostalgic and sublime. DO I EVEN NEED TO SAY MORE??? I would do well to begin collecting all of his artbooks.

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dreams and observations

Thu, 07 Nov 2013 12:44:19 GMT

I am too busy poring over the second box from amazon.co.jp to take pictures and record thoughts just yet! The things I ordered are super gorgeous, though, and I'm sure I'm going to treasure them forever.

Notes I've been accruing in sticky notes:

I had a fascinating dream this year in which a winged man was brandishing a spear astride a saddled polar bear. I keep trying to remember what else happened during that dream. Unfortunately, I know I can't, and that's the only thing I recorded about it in my sticky notes. Another sticky note just says,'wedding on the beach / tree trunk / sheer cliffs'. I still recall this one, albeit distantly. The one I can't figure out at all is the one that reads, 'opalescent moon dilating and retreating UFO'.
In witnessing a spectacular cloudscape I put down, 'grey all day / dusty apricot at dusk / dragon's breath / phoenix wing'. It really was an amazing view, though. The clouds seemed so low you could almost touch them, and soft and textured and yet sinuous in shape. The colours were gentle but vivid and peachy. I'd love to see something like that again.
After the tragedy of the NSW bushfires the city was smazed and the sun one day looked as if it were mirroring fire. I'm not being hyperbolic. There was such a thick layer of dust and smoke between the ground and the sky that you could gaze at the whole sun without even blinking. Usually it's so bright it hurts to look at. Yet that day the sun was a perfect, red-gold glowing circle.
All the Chinese restaurants I've been in since I was a child have attracted a particular kind of visitor. Usually, an older person will come in on Friday nights with their own magnum of cheap wine, and order one dish, or two, if they're hungry. They'll sit alone. Sometimes they'll talk to themselves or to thin air. I've encountered so many people of this like. Human loneliness is such an collective experience.
One night whilst walking the dog I came across a shadow scurrying across a lawn. I thought it belonged to a cat! Upon closer inspection, though, it was a wandering possum. Most possoms will dart away from you if you get close, but this one didn't, and even circled around my feet and walked over my shoes! I wanted to feed it some fruit and wrap it up in a blanket. It seemed very eager to get somewhere, but it didn't seem to know where it wanted to go. This happened some weeks ago. I hope the cutie's reached its destination by now.
I'm recently been getting all nostalgic for toys! I want to collect hundreds of pretty beads and make dozens of my own glittery kaleidoscopes and go plaster painting again, like I did with Dad when the people who organised those events used to show up every weekend to the local mall. I still keep heaps of the ones we painted together at home.

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Yuletide 2013

Mon, 14 Oct 2013 08:42:57 GMT

Dearest darling Yuletider,

Thank you so much for deciding to sign up and spread the holiday cheer this year! I will for sure adoringly purr over whatever you end up creating. Having a good time whilst writing something you feel passionate about is the most important thing! Hopefully you'll be patient with me; this is my first Yuletide and I am no stranger to blundering!

Yes, please!: Scenery porn, sensory detail, food porn, ladies being marvelous, slice-of-life, post-canon narratives, magic (if applicable), families, adventure, bildungsromans,friendship, and gratuitous dream sequences, both figurative and literal. Het, (fem)slash, and gen are all welcomed!

No, thank you: character bashing, non-con, lugubrious darkfic, crackfic, arbitrary crossovers, alternate timelines, and extreme deviation from canon. I don't dislike AUs, but I would prefer not to receive them for Yuletide.

Seaward - Susan Cooper
For some reason I only got around to reading any Cooper this year. I finished the lovely, dreamy book with a very shippy aftertaste that would not go away! Aaaand I'm not gonna lie. I'd love me some sexy Callie/Westerly reunion fic; if you were looking to write porn, by all means do so! I do see Westerly as being of South Asian descent in my head, by the way.

Breath of Fire IV
I love fic that explores video game mechanics! I also find it fascinating how writers interpret digitally represented worldspaces, so I look forward to seeing the gorgeousness of BoF IV envisioned in your prose. I would like to read anything from the party going shopping at a scorching desert city to a day at the faerie village to ponytail-tugging, wing-ruffling Ryuu/Nina fluff. How about the characters just chillaxing and fishing? The relationship between Fou-lu and Mami affected me, and I would also be interested in fic exploring it as well. 'Where are they now' post-canon fic would be likewise be absolutely wonderful (bear in mind that this applies to pretty much all of my requests)!

2046
WKW's films are fiercely cinematic and quite impressionistic and any fic in that vein would make more more than happy. I am partial to anything about Gong Li's portrayal of the Singaporean Su Lizhen, but anything goes. If you are feeling particularly ambitious, why not try writing snippets of Chow's 2046/7? Or adapt Doyle's cinematography and WKW's non-linear story telling? Maybe Chow tries to reconnect with the women from his past. Maybe he doesn't, which leads to the quintessential WKW scene wherein there is much sulking and pining for lost love and time to cigarettes, booze, and smooth 60s tunes. All the more power to you if you can somehow incorporate all the characters of the film into one fic.

Fragile Dreams
Oh my stars, did this game break my heart perfectly and utterly (spoilery prompts ahoy!). It is devastating and gorgeous and I could gush on all day about how amazing Fragile is, but I will restrain myself. I will bask in any scenery porn you would be kind enough to offer. I really want the fic about Seto's quest to restore PF and/or Seto? But a story spun from any of the memory items would be awesome, too (though I would appreciate the inclusion of the story(ies) in your fic, as I can't guarantee that I've found all of the items). Anything goes, though, because I do adore all of the characters. P.S. I would weep for joy if this fanart ever fructifies in fic form.

Omoide Poroporo/Only Yesterday
I remember being a young girl and deeply identifying with adult Taeko, as I did and still do identify with all Ghibli protagonists. Now, as a young woman a decade her junior, I start to wonder how she transitioned from high school into university and do feel very curious as to how her future with Toshio will unfurl. Flashbacks and flights-of-fancy would be very apt, I think. I'd also like post-canon stuff about Taeko dealing with family and romance and growing older and wiser--an adult bildungsroman, basically. You could even experiment with first person, as I found Taeko's voiceover to enhance the film's emotional texture. Again, a 'where are they now' sort of thing would be great. Nice big swaths of bucolic imagery would be a heavensend.

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Booklogging: June

Tue, 02 Jul 2013 11:51:39 GMT

( Nineteen books, plus notes. )

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Booklogging at last! (April + May!)

Tue, 02 Jul 2013 11:09:05 GMT

The past few months have been great for me on the reading front. But if I don't do this thing now, I'll never get around to it. So!

( Nooootes )

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Parallels 2013

Sat, 29 Jun 2013 07:48:08 GMT

Dear beloved paralleler,

Thank you so much for venturing to take on any one of my requests! I'm sure whatever you end up making will be wonderful. This is pretty much my first time participating in an exchange of any sort, so profuse apologies in advance for any blunders I may make throughout this event. I'm also very sorry for the lateness of this letter! Hopefully it'll still be helpful to you in some way...

Optional details are optional, haha; the most important thing is that you enjoy what you write! Let your passion for the source canon run wild and free. Have fun with your project; I'll be sure to squee at whatever you come up with when you're done!

However, I'd appreciate it if you could avoid instances of non-con, character bashing, extreme deviation from canon, and excessive angst.

Across the board, sensory details and scenery porn are sure to make me happy. You can look through my AO3 bookmarks (or works) to see the kinds of things I like. Here are some more notes, in case you're unsure where to start:

The Last Story
I love or at least am interested in each and every character in the game, so this is a free for all! I'm especially partial to the idea of Syrenne/Lowell in the context of post-canon hijinks, but I really would like fic about anybody in the cast. Lazulis Island has some fantastic worldbuilding going on; I'd love to read fic where that aspect of the game is explored!

Wolf's Rain
In all honesty, I think the fic I want most is anything set post-canon (reunion fic perhaps?!?!). Also, I'm extremely partial to Hige/Blue. But feel free to come up with something that doesn't include either of those things. An ethereal atmosphere like the one in the show itself would be fantastic.

Majo no Takkyuubin/Kiki's Delivery Service
Aaaah, I adore Miyazaki and his films and worlds and women. I would be elated to see something starring Ursula in particular! But I'm game for fic about anyone, so long as it corresponds to canon and has got ladies being awesome in it. As such, please veer closer towards canonical relationships. It would be lovely if you could keep the mood and charm of the source intact as well. Bechdel pass preferable. Addendum: SCENERY PORN PLZ.

Mushishi
How about case fic? Since most of the episodes are standalone, anything goes. The only thing I would like to mention is that it'd be nice to see an emphasis on scenery, since I feel it's such an integral element of canon.

And that's all! I hope those notes weren't too tiresome to read. Good luck. Please have fun with the exchange! ♥

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The Intro Post (alternatively, let's friendship!)

Thu, 07 Mar 2013 13:16:44 GMT

Hello, circle! Despite my absence in commenting on your posts I have been checking my reading list regularly, but have mostly lurked due to a lack of familiarity with the mores of the DW community. I've been meaning to make this intro post for some weeks now! It's mostly been stalled due to the fear that I might embarrass myself in some way, buuuut I figured I'd probably done so inadvertently already. Thus, the belated introduction (with dot points!):

I am rather young; I seem to be at least a decade behind the majority of the people on this site. This is both daunting and educational for me! I apologise in advance for any faux pas I might make, and all the other absurd and/or obnoxious things usually associated with youngsters my age.
Based in Sydney and born in Beijing.
The icon probably hints at the fact that I am a fervid Ghibli/Miyazaki fan! At the moment it's more or less my fannish home and hearth and heart. I'm a little sad to see that there isn't really an organised fandom for the studio, or much fic out there for its films. I hope to rectify this somewhat through fandom exchanges and occasionally contributing myself.
Other things I am passionate about include, but are certainly not limited to: writing, international cinema, Wong Kar-wai films, animation, comics, sensational Japanese RPGs. reccing, anthropology of any sort, and noodles!
I love forming friendships even if I am terrible at them! Please talk (ah, type?) at me!

Aaaand I made this DW journal mostly because I wanted to explore an area of fandom I found through lots of link-jumping around AO3. So many cool writers and fandom-goers seem to like hanging around this side of town! Turns out I was a little late to the party, though, and I am admittedly a bit lost! If anyone has any tips for navigating fandom on this side of the net, or questions for me, please share them here! And I'd love to read and respond to fellow introductions ...M-Might any of you be kindly willing to whip one up?

tl;dr, hello, I'm glad to meet your acquaintance!

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山の木霊; Notes!

Mon, 31 Dec 2012 08:57:44 GMT

So I caved into writing a 14K ficthing starring Ashitaka and San!

( notes notes notes )

All in all it was a fic that was fun to research and challenging yet satisfying to write (sexy otp forest times will always be fun to write). Pretty cathartic to work on the basis of: if you can't find it, write it.

Edit: Version 2.0 of the fic is up as of January 11, 2013. Made minor adjustments and additions attempted to remove some errors/typos lurking within.

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