Book piracy survey

Have you ever pirated a book? I want to hear from you! Never pirated a book in your life? I want to hear from you, too!

Book piracy is a real hot potato of a topic right now, what with the IA Open Library appeal, and there are A Lot of opinions flying around on all sides, some of which are informed, some are uninformed, and some raise very interesting and oft-overlooked points. A lot of the conversation I see happening comes from a very USA/UK-centric perspective too, and I'd like to get a wider range of input, as well as trying to better understand the culture (and cultural influences on) book piracy.

Here's the survey:

Provisional deadline to complete the survey is 5th of April 2023 (depends on responses; I might extend)

The survey takes about 5–15 minutes to complete, depending on how many questions you choose to answer and whether or not you go into greater detail. Only the first section has required questions; the rest is all optional.

As for what I'm going to do with the survey results, I'm either going to present the data in a blog post, or write a full article-style post on the topic (again, depends on the volume of responses, and also my own time and energy).

Thank you in advance to everyone who contributes, be that by filling in the survey or by reblogging this post / otherwise sharing the survey. If you have any questions, or if something is unclear, please let me know.

Mistborn

Struggling out of an art block

My comfort duo

INPRNT

My comfort trio 😩

POV you’re a big bison in a confusing world

So I’ve had a lot of Appa feels recently, and they made me question something: does Appa know what the heck is going on during AtLA?

I mean imagine you’re a 10 ton flying bison, just chillin in the SAT, until one night your favourite human friend seeks you out and you sneak away to go on an other adventure! But there’s this huge scary storm at sea and you can barely see and the winds are blowing harder than you can bend them and oh no now you’re in the water where’s your human what’s that glow-

-and then you wake up in a big bowl of ice. That’s weird. but at least your friend is still there (Aang is such a great friend you’re so lucky he’s the best human companion you love him so much) so it’s all fine and hey new friends!

What’s with all the fireballs?!

Oh you know those mountains you’re going back home! And the new friends are coming with! It hasn’t been that long but you’re still exited there’s no place like home after all and maybe the kind second-favourite human who is old but knows all the right spots to scratch has some yummy fruit for you!

Where is everyone? Why does everything smell so… wrong wrong empty wrong burned? wrong wrong… where are your bison buddies? Where are the humans? Why is it so quiet?

Aang found a lemur friend! He seems sad though, must feel the wrongness of this place that isn’t home you’re glad when you all leave and continue on your adventure

You’ve never seen this many fireballs on an adventure before seriously what’s up with that? 

You travel the world with your new friends, adding another small shouty one, you get the feeling something very big and bad might be going on with the world every time you can smell the fear and panic of your human friends who know more then you, encouraging you to fly just that bit faster, higher, further…

But you have your Aang, your very own human companion and as long as you’re together everything is fine

Keep reading

After finishing Legend of Korra, can I just... express some disappointment? I don't necessarily hate it, I simply think it fails to live up to ATLA, and it fails to deliver on some of its potential.

Case in point, Season 4. I've seen countless posts stating our current villain Kuvira should be representing fascism and while I see the parallels...

((INSERT A CROWD SHOUTING "ALL HAIL THE GREAT UNITER" HERE))

...it's not enough. Until the last fight, Kuvira never gets a chance to truly follow through any of her threats, truly show how she takes her ideology to the extreme.

Zaofu joins the Earth Empire rather peacefully. With the civilians pledging allegiance to Kuvira, they seemingly are integrated as normal citizens of said empire. The Beifong family who refused to bow down are simply imprisoned.

There are several mentions of "re-education camps" that... mean prison camps. We never see the places, but we're supposed to believe they're really, really bad.

While Kuvira brings peace and prosperity to the Earth territories, after her train moves on, life stops looking so rosy. How? We don't learn about it firsthand, Opal just brings it up and Bolin tries to get the information from Kuvira. Neither of these instances gives us any details as to how life under this particular dictator is terrible.

There's the thing about the Empire purging its land from people without pure Earth Kingdom ancestry... Or maybe it was with inherited bending that isn't earth? Because otherwise Bolin should've been taken care of, honestly, as he has a fire nation mother. We see it through several people running away from the "re-education camps" and saying they were persecuted for their ancestry.

This bugs me so much, especially considering that it could've been written better. The narrative could've pushed in such a direction, so that we could explore these issues with more showing and less telling. Imagine an episode of the Korra team (or some members of it, Bryke honestly had a habit of splitting that team up) stumbling upon a miscellaneous Earth Empire village. Maybe that could've been Varrick and Bolin who already betrayed Kuvira and were on the run. They try to blend in, maybe put on disguises, resupply. In the background you could see the discrimination against non-Earth Kingdom natives. A firebender could try to defend himself against the regime by fighting back, his waterbender and non-bender friends with distinctly not earth characteristics join in. One messy fight later, Kuvira's soldiers sent them to the re-education camp to cure them from their bad bending habits. At this point Bolin might decide to get them out of it. However, when he succeeds, one of the new characters says they have family over in that camp. The fight was a rouse so they could reunite with their closed ones and pull them out of that sticky situation. And the mission changes and this newly formed squad storms a highly secured re-education camp...

...

But what do I know about it. I'm just a tumblr user with too much free time complaining about a show that finished airing six years ago.

It's weird, I never thought it could be Ozai. I can't ever imagine him showing such affection to his kids.

My heart 🥺

book 1 zuko is a beautiful bald boy but what if he never had to shave his head. that is all i have to say goodnight

I'm just here to say, we do see less than exceptional benders at times. For example, the average fire nation soldier is far from the skills Azula has, they just throw a fireball or two... and that's the extent of their firebending proficiency. There's the students of... I always forget his name, that earthbending teacher dad Beifong hired to bring Toph back. They get to occasionally move a rock. Pakku had one waterbender student that was completely destroyed by Katara. And we could assume the airbender kids that struggled with Aang's air scooter weren't exactly prodigies either.

Yet no bender in the series struggles as much as you described in your last sentence. We need to have the main characters strong and their opposition competent. Any side characters that practice bending usually take on jobs that heavily rely on it, so they have to be at least somewhat competent.

Though, at the end of all this rambling, I have to agree. It'll be interesting to see a normal citizen who can physically bend, but... barely. They can move a pebble or something, but they're not that good at exercising for whatever reason, so no way they're doing any of these stronger earthbending moves.

I wish we had seen more mediocre benders in atla. It would have accentuated how talented everyone in the gaang actually is. I am sure not every bender would have a talent for martial arts, right? I’d like to see earthbenders who are terrible at aiming and can’t throw a single rock, or waterbenders who freeze water every time they try to bend it, or firebenders with respiratory problems, or airbenders with with a fear of heights

only justice will bring peace 🍃

Zuko will definitely be the kind of father that’s obnoxiously proud of his baby. 4yo Izumi dodges her babysitter and runs into the council room in the middle of a meeting to show her dad her drawing, and Zuko tells her how amazing it is, and then holds it up and shows it to the assembled ministers and admirals and makes them praise his toddler’s drawing.

Because fuck “propriety” and “court etiquette” and whatever bullshit reason Ozai used to keep him quiet and subdued as a kid. Zuko probably has a wall of Izumi’s drawings in his fancy Fire Lord office. He loves his baby and he never, ever wants her to doubt that.

OH GODS, I FORGOT THE DRILL.

Anyway, two scenarios:

Ba Sing Se's military force couldn't protect against the drill, as they didn't think of destroying it from the inside and hung on to their wall. The Outer Wall fell and the Inner Wall followed soon after. The city fell before the comet arrived. Even if Azula were sidelined at the final invasion, she wouldn't have her mental breakdown, since Mai didn't have a reason to betray her (Zuko didn't return home).

Ba Sing Se defeated the drill anyways! It could've malfunctioned, a lucky rock may have fallen on a weak spot, the military may have figured out a way to sidetrack or destroy it. Events would proceed as I previously described.

Without Azula chasing Zuko and Iroh + the Gaang, it's not clear if she'd be in the drill, but... You know what, I think that wouldn't change. The war minister might let her lead the mission still.

The Fire Nation without the avatar's return.

((gifs by them))

If it weren't for Katara's outburst revealing the iceberg, Zuko would have continued scouring the world, looking for the avatar. He would've investigated every unnatural light on his path, would've visited and revisited the air temples millions of times. He would've hung around the water tribes, hoping that the avatar cycle would come to its next step, he would've trekked the Earth Kingdom with the same hopes.

Maybe he would've become exhausted of his search sooner, maybe he would've let Iroh's wisdom get to him earlier, letting him start a humble life away from the Fire Nation...

No, that's unlikely. With Sozin's comet approaching so soon, Zuko simply wouldn't have the time to let go of the love he harbors for his country, unless stripped of all the tiny conveniences he had on his ship (something that likely wouldn't happen without the avatar's appearance setting the plot in motion). By the next summer, Zuko would still wander, all for the sake of getting his father's acceptance back, of getting his right to the throne back.

It's unclear if Azula would enlist her banished brother's help, especially since he would be so insignificant in the grand scheme of things without an avatar to capture. In fact, without Iroh and Zuko becoming traitors, it's unclear if Azula herself would leave her father's side.

Would she conquer Ba Sing Se without the Gaang giving her the tools to do so? After all, before their appearance in the city, there wasn't a clear path to invading it, since the Kyoshi warriors weren't deemed friendly yet (and without the Gaang visiting Kyoshi Island earlier, the Kyoshi warriors wouldn't have been near the impenetrable city either). Though perhaps she'd be tasked with taking the city during the comet.

There wouldn't be an invasion during the Eclipse without Sokka seeking out information about it and charting a plan. It would've been just 8 minutes of mild inconvenience for the Fire Nation. Only Bumi might affect something by taking over his city, but without Aang, the Fire Nation would regain it later anyway.

During the comet, Ozai's incineration force would be the same. Though Azula would greet Ba Sing Se instead of the White Lotus. Together they'd achieve world domination.

Ozai would be crowned Phoenix King. Azula would be his Fire Lord.

Depending on his luck, Prince Zuko might become a casualty of war, incinerated by his own people. His banishment might instead extend to the entirety of the planet, as every land would become Fire Nation soil (except, maybe, the Northern pole). Or the Phoenix King would let his son chase around that mythical avatar, just for the heck of it. It's not like an avatar would be able to reverse all this damage, but it's not like he wants his elder son back either.

In the best case, of course, there's the royal family pardoning Zuko, yet not restoring his titles. But I find the chance slim.

Though with Iroh being a good person, there's the scenario of him committing treason to thwart his brother's plans, once he learns of them. That would put both him and his nephew in a hot spot, increasing the chances of their banishment or death sentences.

To sum all of this up, a world without Aang's return would be really, really miserable and that's just covering the impact he had surrounding the Fire Nation's military conquests and the Fire Nation's royalty. Without the avatar setting on his belated journey and bringing his gang together, by chance or circumstance, the world would remain stagnant, suffering from its endless war. From a writing standpoint, it is great that the characters had such a lasting impact on their world! That's how stories should work!

It's still depressing to think what it would be like if they didn't set on their adventure though.

The Fire Nation without the avatar's return.

((gifs by them))

If it weren't for Katara's outburst revealing the iceberg, Zuko would have continued scouring the world, looking for the avatar. He would've investigated every unnatural light on his path, would've visited and revisited the air temples millions of times. He would've hung around the water tribes, hoping that the avatar cycle would come to its next step, he would've trekked the Earth Kingdom with the same hopes.

Maybe he would've become exhausted of his search sooner, maybe he would've let Iroh's wisdom get to him earlier, letting him start a humble life away from the Fire Nation...

No, that's unlikely. With Sozin's comet approaching so soon, Zuko simply wouldn't have the time to let go of the love he harbors for his country, unless stripped of all the tiny conveniences he had on his ship (something that likely wouldn't happen without the avatar's appearance setting the plot in motion). By the next summer, Zuko would still wander, all for the sake of getting his father's acceptance back, of getting his right to the throne back.

It's unclear if Azula would enlist her banished brother's help, especially since he would be so insignificant in the grand scheme of things without an avatar to capture. In fact, without Iroh and Zuko becoming traitors, it's unclear if Azula herself would leave her father's side.

Would she conquer Ba Sing Se without the Gaang giving her the tools to do so? After all, before their appearance in the city, there wasn't a clear path to invading it, since the Kyoshi warriors weren't deemed friendly yet (and without the Gaang visiting Kyoshi Island earlier, the Kyoshi warriors wouldn't have been near the impenetrable city either). Though perhaps she'd be tasked with taking the city during the comet.

There wouldn't be an invasion during the Eclipse without Sokka seeking out information about it and charting a plan. It would've been just 8 minutes of mild inconvenience for the Fire Nation. Only Bumi might affect something by taking over his city, but without Aang, the Fire Nation would regain it later anyway.

During the comet, Ozai's incineration force would be the same. Though Azula would greet Ba Sing Se instead of the White Lotus. Together they'd achieve world domination.

Ozai would be crowned Phoenix King. Azula would be his Fire Lord.

Depending on his luck, Prince Zuko might become a casualty of war, incinerated by his own people. His banishment might instead extend to the entirety of the planet, as every land would become Fire Nation soil (except, maybe, the Northern pole). Or the Phoenix King would let his son chase around that mythical avatar, just for the heck of it. It's not like an avatar would be able to reverse all this damage, but it's not like he wants his elder son back either.

In the best case, of course, there's the royal family pardoning Zuko, yet not restoring his titles. But I find the chance slim.

Though with Iroh being a good person, there's the scenario of him committing treason to thwart his brother's plans, once he learns of them. That would put both him and his nephew in a hot spot, increasing the chances of their banishment or death sentences.

To sum all of this up, a world without Aang's return would be really, really miserable and that's just covering the impact he had surrounding the Fire Nation's military conquests and the Fire Nation's royalty. Without the avatar setting on his belated journey and bringing his gang together, by chance or circumstance, the world would remain stagnant, suffering from its endless war. From a writing standpoint, it is great that the characters had such a lasting impact on their world! That's how stories should work!

It's still depressing to think what it would be like if they didn't set on their adventure though.

Headcanon that shortly after Zuko’s coronation, Sokka and Suki pressure him into getting revenge on the Ember Island Players by specifically inviting them the perform “The Boy in the Iceberg” at the royal palace. This of course leads to the Players scrambling to rewrite the play to be friendly to the new regime, and it ends up just as inaccurate just in a completely different way.

Zuko becomes an infallible Gary Stu, Ozai is a harmless Loony Toons villain, Iroh ends up being a literal dragon in human form sent by the spirits to guide Zuko, who’s the REAL chosen one, and Azula is shown as the REAL power behind the throne so that Zuko can be the one to save the world instead of Aang.

Zuko is extremely embarrassed, and Sokka has the time of his life. 

Trying

Honestly, the concept of "The Boy in the Iceberg" (the Ember Island play) after Zuko's coronation is fascinating. Since it's an extremely pro-Ozai propaganda, I cannot help but speculate how it would be changed to better fit the new regime. So, here it is...

A comprehensive list of the play's alterations in no particular order:

Aang... couldn't get the actor changed to a male one. Theater goers were too attached to the girl avatar. Though the playwright scrambled to change the Zutara content to Kataang content, even if the end result was a really, really sloppy romance that went against their previously established canon. But gotta please the avatar anyway, he's an ally of the Fire Nation now.

Katara isn't a crybaby anymore. That's the one and only change to her character.

Play!Sokka uses different jokes every play, which brings great rewatchability to the whole show. How and why? Real Sokka sat down once and wrote dozens of jokes that he'd use and gave them to the actor (like it happened in the episode but on a bigger scale).

Toph stayed the same. No need to fix what ain't broken. Same goes for most of the side characters.

Zuko. Oh boy, Zuko. His character needed the biggest overhaul. A lot of his first act (=recap of first season) dialogue stayed the same, but for some reason the playwright decided it's a good idea to use that period of the Firelord's life to trash talk Ozai. Ponytail Zuko would randomly talk how his cruel father scarred and banished him to find the avatar that hasn't been seen in a century. Then, the Ozai bashing continues onto act two and three, where the prince would finally get some rest from the twisted royal family and then later would confront his father and join the right side, AKA the avatar's. During that conversation, he'd say "Father, I have regained my own HONOUR without your help. In fact, I think it's YOU who was DISHONOURABLE all along". And yes. Through all of this, the scar is still on the wrong side.

Iroh isn't presented as an airheaded (and later treasonous) uncle. Instead, all of his dialogue, to the last word, was changed to either praise of tea or, more commonly, sage advice so eloquently spoken you'd think it was written by Zuko trying to imitate Iroh.

Azula is the same.

Ozai is a cheap caricature of a cartoon villain. Que in the lame evil laugh (MWAHAHHAHA) and moustache twirling, because the current ruler thinks Ozai was in the wrong.

The ending (what Sokka described as "the future" before Sozin's comet) now reflects the actual ending of ATLA - Zuko wins against Azula and Aang wins against Ozai. To drive home the fact Fire Nation Doesn't Like Ozai Anymore, the whole cast gathers to roast the former Firelord. That roasting session lasts more than the fights themselves, with every character getting a word in.

The play's last scene is Zuko's coronation, where he vows to "restore the nation's honour".

Feel free to elaborate and/or add your own headcanons.