starting to learn a different language that is so different from my own native language and its so crazy to me thinking how everyone grows up speaking different languages which are just so different not only in what aspects of speaking and writing the language uses/grammar but also how culture is woven into different languages and informs how we think about things.. learning another language really makes me able to imagine "what if this had been my first language..." in actual interesting clarity. this is so boring to read from my words but i feel like my brain is opening up learning new stuff.

gay hi3 moments from the top of my head (some details inaccurate) also some of these are awful and i hate them ok i need it to be known i dont like all of these.

kiana counting down how long it’s been since she’s seen mei to the minute.

the “i gain the power of 100 men when mei’s around!”

bronya seele kiss in azure waters where seele goes "i gave you my first kiss sm sm" and im pretty sure makes her promise to give one to her when they reunite

FUCK. COOKING W VALKS MANHUA WHERE SEELE GOES "the sea is so beautiful i feel like i could stare at it forever" AND BRONYA GOES "duh because the water is azure blue. just like your eyes" AND GOES LIKE AN INCH IN HER FACE.

i feel like i have to put everything in azure waters oh my god i feel sick i miss them so much.

kiana licking mei’s wound in escape from nagazora

kiana and mei in a hot spring and kiana touching mei’s boobs saying she’s been wanting to. i think also in escape from nagazora.

kiana getting unnecessarily jealous over bronya whenever mei shows her any attention

bronseele ad where bronya complains about having her license revoked and seele going “good! now i know you’re not picking up other girls”

lament of the fallen. (COME ON. COMPARED TO EVERYTHING ELSE IN THE WORLD, YOU ARE MORE IMPORTANT????)

kiana and mei being compared to a canonical m/f couple, owl and ana.

shakespeare mentions how it’s interesting to see real couples play a part and one of the couples being bianka and rita in durandal’s visual novel.

speaking of that play. biankas cgaracter makes a line about having sex w his wife (played by rita) and rita teases bianka about wanting it afterwards and bianka blushes

biankas one birthday cutscene where the narrator was talking abt how there’s this feeling she can’t put into words and how captivated she is by rita’s radiant smile ← GET A ROOM!!!!!

elysia calling her fight w mei a first date

eden saying that forever being apart of elysia makes her happy because its the most romantic ending

mei saying her favorite colors are orange and red (kiana and her's key colors)

mei coming back to the elysian realm after briefly talking to kiana and eden and elysia both notice how much happier she is and elysia goes "tell me about her" (HER.)

elysia voice. i like pretty girls.

every single elysia and kiana interaction in ch 34 idc if its mei's dream ("im so weak for pretty girls like kiana" "unless kiana prefers something more bold like purring in my arms" <- WHAT IS WRONG W HER!!!!!!!!!!!!)

natasha intenbtionally taking her hood off after mei told her that elysia says she doesnt meet natasha bc of her hood

elymei horn scene.

mei dreaming about having a japanese wedding with kiana.

kiamei matching rings named after chinese numbers symbolic of love that were given out for white day.

kiamei stigmata showing them getting married that was given out for valentines day.

reburn kiss where kiana kisses mei's battered mech while crying after i love you in german flashes on screen.

kiana going "this treasure called love" and immediately getting a text from mei.

"this is a story about love it will end with love" as kiana and mei walk with each other past durandal and rita to meet with bronya whos with seele AS CANON IN D STARTS PLAYING. YK THE FUCKING MARRIAGE CEREMONY SONG.

SAKUKALLEN KISS IN COOKING WITH VALKYRIES

theresa thinking sakura (a woman) kissed her and going "wait! im not like kiana and mei!"

kallen voice "the herrscher girl is innocent and i am in love with her"

^upon learning that kiana blushing and going "theres onthing wrong with falling in love with a herrscher!" while thinking of mei

moon shadow where kiana's heart starts racing bc she thinks fu hua's fallen in love with her and the wlw symbol is drawn behind her as she blushes and says "ive given my body and soul to mei but--"

fu hua later being teased by a coworker who suggested that hua likes kiana

sakukallen "love at first sight" line in sakura samsara

HELP THAT ONE EVENT WHERE VELIONA SLAMS BRONYA ONTO A WALL TO INTIMIDATE HER AND BRONYAS BLUSHING AND AS VELI'S YELLING AT HER, EINSTEIN WALKS OUT, SEES THEM, AND GOES, "sorry for interrupting, have fun"

also in that same event, bronya blushing and avoiding seele the next day and going "sorry bronya cant forget because thats a precious memory for bronya"

susannah fawning over durandal, rita, and sushang

susannah talking about how pretty sushang is and how she likes her voice i hate them oh my god susannah get up

tesla being jealous of welt joyce when ein teasingly gives him special attention in the visual novel

tesla getting jealous when planck (i think) hugs ein tightly and kisses ein on the head

tesla edison fingering joke after edison sniffs her neck.

bronya's bridge interactions w seele. my god i love them so mcuh.

sakura and kallen having heart reactions when you put them in bed next to each other

sakukallen "yae sakura shall fade, beloved, your kin shall live. in the far east 500 years ago where sakura blossoms bloom, yae sakura waits for her one true love"

gratitude arc where kallen loves sakura so much that protecting sakura becomes a part of the oath she genetically passes on to theresa

the 4koma on the sight where kiana and mei are told to get a room, apply for a marriage certificate(? i think), and have heart eyes towards each other while the wlw signs are behind them

kiana voice "this has nothing to do with me going lesbo!!!"

4koma kiana voice "im a lesbian everyone knows that"

elysia and aponia's "girl games"??????????? <- on thin ice but cmon no way that wasnt an innuendo

elysia's interaction w HoO mei where she talks about wanting to touch a particular thing but gets cut off by mei telling her she cant touch her horns again (SHE DOES NOT HAVE HORNS IN HER HoO SUIT)

kiana smiling when she sees mei's boobs in the anniversary vlog short thing.

the shenzhou island event where kiana points a camera at mei's boobs and goes "hehe mei is so pretty"

durarita matching earrings in their matching battlesuits

and ok im blanking now yay this is definitely not all when i say off the top of my head i really mean off the top of my head.

could you do ⏰🎶🗓 for the language asks !

⏰ for how long have you been studying your target language(s)?

mod kuu: korean it's been about 3 years now (how time flies…), chinese maybe one year?? ish?? longer but with massive breaks in between, and then japanese and vietnamese i both started like 2 months or so ago, and yiddish like one??? month ago??? and im also doing french right now which has been a journey of sometimes i do a bit and then i ignore it for the next seven thousand years since like. middle school. so i do not even know anymore hdbdjncsub

mod gessie: chinese and spanish are my oldest target languages, i've been learning them since i was a kid! i started german 8 years ago now (!), and russian 7 years ago. arabic is my newest, i started it two years ago but i've been so busy with other things that i'm still a total beginner!

🎶 favorite singer/group/band who sings in your target language(s)?

mod kuu: for vietnamese its obito!! ive been listening to him a lot lately and he just recently put out a new album which sparked SO much joy

mod gessie: my favourite singer of all time is zemfira who sings in russian!! i love her so much i got to see her in concert last year and it was so cool. my favourite german band is probaby annenmaykantereit or 01099, although i listen to a lot of different music in german. and mashrou' leila and babylone are my favourites in arabic :)

🗓 what's the next language on your radar to pick up and start learning?

mod kuu: hmmmm i think next up would be icelandic maybe??? i already did it a bit but im not really continuing it right now so i guess that'd be something id like to do again!!

mod gessie: if you don't count arabic, maybe ukrainian? but honestly i don't think i can pick up another language again anytime soon unless i need it for work, starting arabic has been so much more difficult than i expected since i hadn't started a new language in so long!

💌 languages ask game

random headcanons i have for each om! character teehee

hi it's been a while since ive posted some hcs bc uni has been kicking my a$$! luckily i only have a few papers to tidy up and im done. here r some hcs for each obey me character that ive accumulated over the past few months wink wonk

most are random but some constants you'll find are what i think they smell like, languages they can speak (other than their native (demon/angel) and eng/jp), and music tastes !

lucifer

i have a strong feeling that he showers twice a day: in the morning after waking up and at night before going to bed

his cologne is probably the type that will last in an elevator for like a week after he uses it once. i dont think this mf ever smells like anything other than his cologne

has a secret folder on his phone of semi-nudes and other scandalous pics from when he felt sexy at the time omg

aside from demon language/eng/jp he can speak french and knows latin

listens to classical stuff yea but he also listens to diavolos mixtapes (re: diavolo's section)

not a fan of sweets but will eat sweet things when craving

really bland sense of humor...borderline cringey 😭✋🏻

mammon

has gone to google images and searched for "inspirational quotes tumblr" "gold aesthetic tumblr" & "relatable crush post tumblr" then reposts it onto his socials or just taps thru them and giggles bc he relates

his cologne doesnt last as long as lucifers and probably smells common. he has to reapply a lot but it's a people pleasing smell. it's cheaper hence the constant reapplying

he probably does have an expensive bottle but is the type to totally overspray...eek

he is canonically a car guy 🥲 and probably tells the one in his room good morning & good night + kisses the hood every once in a while. has tons of car magazines

he doesnt really speak other languages but has attempted to learn spanish before

listens to whatever is on the radio. doesnt rly stan anyone but he eventually will listen to mc's playlist and mc's playlist ONLY

levi

lurks on mc's socials ALL THE TIMEEEE like he will rewatch ur stories and scroll thru ur feed and overanalyze ur tweets/rts or blog posts. if ur mc isnt the type to use sns much he still googles ur name all the damn time just to find any sites u might be on fjdjdjdjskks

probably streams on whatever youtube or twitch devildom site equivalent there is, but only has like 40 or so followers. which he is okay with!

until he sees someone else who gets more attention than him. then the envy starts kicking in bad. especially if they suck 🧍🏻‍♀️

classic gamer boy smell. you know, sweat, tears, must, and (sometimes) axe deodorant. lucifer has to do a scent check before he goes out to any event & lets him use his cologne. how sweet!

kpop stan!! more girl groups than anything and his ults are probably GIRLS GENERATION, wonder girls, twice, loona, & red velvet

cried when ioi disbanded and refused to leave his room. the only thing u could hear was downpour on loop at full blast

can also speak korean & communicate in echolocation like dolphins 😏

satan

listens to country music you cant change my mind

smells like whatever environment he is in. he doesnt really have a designated smell just throws some deodorant on and goes about his day.

he's sooooo bad at driving...gets road rage way too often so his license has been REVOKED

but hes totally a backseat driver. needs to be sedated on long trips

do not let him watch finding nemo when luke asks to watch it. it's not worth it. he will cause mass destruction.

if he was a human or lived long term in the human world he totally has the ability to be a doctor

is studying as many languages as possible, but he mostly knows latin & french & german etc etc. wants to learn all the dead languages out of curiousity

asmo

dont think this mf has ever held down a relationship. ever

he doesnt compromise much & is not willing to change his lifestyle to fit an s/o into it. you keep up with how he lives or it just isnt meant to be (but dont worry! he'll eventually learn...maybe,,,,)

has the hardest time out of everyone when it comes to breaking bad habits

his smell varies bc he uses a variety of perfumes (whatever is the most popular at the time) but he probably sticks to floral and fresh scents. he never uses generic people pleaser scents like mammon

listens to electropop, mainstream pop, & some alternative rock

as for languages he too knows french, spanish, italian, etc. in general, if it's a romance language he knows it!

opposite of lucifer in the sense where he loves sweets and will refrain from eating too many bitter things

i think we all know that asmo is the biggest rockstar of the group! he's probably been in a boy band at least once, but now he makes his own music

has tried to teach mammon how to sing once. ended up in a broken piano and bleeding ears...

beel

i feel like he is SO SHY

like unless ur close to him he will not start conversations or anything

i think he listens to r&b a lot ! and jazz 😎 maybe rock as well

smells like ur typical athlete with undertones of wet wipes. he carries them around bc he likes to clean his hands before he eats & is prepared for when theres no sink nearby

he can drive and he drives really well. no rough turns, parallel parks perfectly, and never has problems with merging

driving with beel is probably really soothing. left hand is steering the other is gripping ur thigh 😫

dont think hes really fluent in any other language but hes probably semi fluent in korean because levi wanted beel to help him out

definitely know how to order food in practically every language tho HAHAHA

belphie

he reminds me of randall from monsters inc

smells kinda musty IM SORRY but not the way levi does hes more like the kind of musty u feel or smell when it's a shitty morning

but that's only because hes so lazy, when he cleans up hes like satan

has definitely murdered multiple people before. mc is not the first 😐✋🏻

with that being said belphie has been put into prison at least twice when visiting the human world, the mf had such a strong hatred for humans theres no way he never got into trouble before

lucifer probably broke him out and they used the pen thingies from men in black to erase everyones memory of that 🙄

dont think he listens to anything other than music that'll put him to sleep. really likes lazy song by bruno mars but thinks that bruno mars put too much effort into the song. should have been one acapella verse and then finish

similar to beel hes only semi fluent in one language, probably french bc of lucifer. doesnt remember much but knows a couple of lullabies and bedtime stories

the sandman used to be his bff until they drifted. they do, however, like and comment on each other's sns posts.

diavolo

once he found out who nicki minaj was he became her #1 stan

def an ariana grande stan too 😌

choreographs dances when hes stressed...idk just seems like a diavolo thing to do

also makes rly bad soundcloud rap music sometimes. turns to poetry when hes feeling emo but only lucifer knows this. barbatos is suspicious of him but doesnt have enough evidence to confirm.

his dad is like hudson abadeer from adventure time aka marceline's dad? something must have influenced him to want to unite the 3 realms + he would need the approval to do so, so his dad must be more chill than all the others before him 🧍🏻‍♀️ IDK ok anyway

currently going through his hamilton phase bc of mc. whether mc's intent was to get him hooked onto it or just to explain it bc of something he saw online, he tells everyone that he found out abt it bc of mc!

this man cannot drive his skills are only second to jumin han

not too fond of many languages but knows the widely spoken ones like spanish, mandarin, etc. if it's taught in high school he knows it

smells like a las vegas casino. not sure why but i feel like he does. but there's also an interesting & nice smell to him if he embraces you. it's a smell you cant quite identify. but it smells nostalgic, it's mysterious, and it's tempting.

barbatos

very calm demeanor but underneath hes WILD hes probably done everything at least once oof

he just has a lot of control and stability over himself (must be nice!)

on a more angsty note i feel like he might have had his heartbroken sO BAD IDK he is hurting and maybe that's why hes so willing to obey diavolo and not abuse his time lord power thingies bc he learned his lesson the hard way

mans is so smart he knows every language you could switch languages mid conversation with him and he wouldnt be thrown off. he'd probably start speaking it too.

BUT HE SPEAKS VIET P E R F E C T L Y

listens to the same stuff as lucifer but also likes eminem. likes the movie 8 mile but criticized it heavily

have you ever been to a chinese herb shop? naturally, he smells like that. his room probably smells like it too. he doesnt really have a significant smell like some of the others

when he bakes he smells like whatever hes baking tho

one of the few out of everyone listed to have been able to travel to literally everywhere

solomon

was probably on kitchen nightmares once, but only to get feedback from chef gordon ramsay. then he used his magic to prevent the episode from airing...

was in an orchestra, one of the best times of his life. played the violin. asmo watched him in the audience once, but didnt approach him until well after that performance.

he CANNOT sing. he can, however, rap.

doesnt listen to music. he listens to podcasts! but every now and then he turns on background music, but prefers it to be instrumental stuff

never wears sunglasses. also does not have a driver's license. cannot drive a regular car. could maybe fly an airplane.

due to his immortality he has learned almost every language to exist, but finds himself speaking mandarin the most. knows most dialects too

similar smell to barbatos but u can also smell some sunscreen on him too. like, generic beach day suncreen

he has a lot of pact marks, so he once had the idea to match foundation to his skin. it took him two weeks but he eventually perfected a combination. yes he will help u find ur perfect shade if u ask him to

simeon

another country music man. has also made a tiktok or two to that one song that goes "he cant even bait a hook." they are private tho

angel country music exists and simeon invented it

if he visits the human world and wears more causal clothing he probably tucks his shirt into his pants

wears a speedo at the beach i tell u, speedo at the beach

he can speak german...i can feel it

uses his pointer finger to type and holds the phone like 2 inches away from his face so sometimes his nose will push a key hence all his typos

has no signature smell. he simply smells like your favorite scent all the time. if multiple people are around him at once, everyone smells a different smell. it's pretty rad

"what does he smell like to himself?" u may be asking. hmm...a church? 💀

luke

his first pet was a goldfish and a few months before the exchange program happened, he was given a koi pond!

secretly likes hanging out with levi sometimes just to play with henry. makes him miss his pet fish back home

so his favorite movie is probably finding nemo and he threw a fit when nemo touched the butt

luke is probably learning german bc of simeon, though he'd like to learn more of the dead languages just for fun

i dont think he listens to music often or has any preferences, he just listens to whatever is playing on the radio

but he finds himself listening to the music mc listens to

smells like freshly baked goods all the time. or fresh laundry. but like, not combined. just depends on the day

Thank you to all who participated! There were 404 participants in this survey.

Of the 404 participants, 87.9% have read Japanese literary works by BSD authors and only 12.1% had not. Please remember that this survey was only advertised on a Bungou Stray Dogs literary blog, so these results do not reflect the BSD Fandom as a whole.

Readers read these literary works in 20 different languages. 69% of readers read the works in English, 13% in Japanese, 5% in Spanish, 2% in German and French, and the remaining 9% were reading Japanese literature in the following languages: Chinese, Czech, Finnish, Georgian, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Thai, Turkish, and Vietnamese.

Most people have read a novel, short story, and/or poem by the Japanese BSD authors, but not many have read the essays and plays.

Dazai Osamu is the author with the most readers. In 2nd place is Nakahara Chūya, 3rd place is Akutagawa Ryūnosuke, and 4th place is Edogawa Ranpo. 

No Longer Human by Dazai Osamu is the top favorite literary work, followed by The Setting Sun by Dazai Osamu, “Hell Screen” by Akutagawa Ryūnosuke, and Kokoro by Natsume Sōseki.

The top three authors people want to read next are: Edogawa Ranpo, Nakajima Atsushi, and Dazai Osamu. Right behind them are Akutagawa Ryūnosuke, Yumeno Kyūsaku, Oda Sakunosuke, and Natsume Sōseki.

Take a look at the images above for more details.

If you want to read more Japanese literature or are interested in a specific author, you can check out my Online Library and the BSD Recommended Reading List. There you can find over 200 literary works by Japanese authors as well as articles and videos, all free and ready to download.

There was a comment section, so if you are interested in reading the responses I have included them under the cut:

Survey Comments:

(i know no one asked but i have no friends so-) currently reading crime and punishment and it actually feels like a punishment. but it’s so good—

<3

Although i have not read any japanese authors books, I have read the books for Edgar Allan Poe and Louisa May Alcott

As character Chuuya is my favourite, but I still haven't managed to read anything by the author! In Brazil there's a collection of Japanese short stories and most of the authors I've read are from there, though the book is a bit old. The others I looked up on the internet or bought ebooks, mostly in English. I've got to know Miyazawa Kenji before I started reading BSD due to a Japanese TV program that introduced Yoshinori-sensei and his reading of the poem! So he has a special place in my heart :)

Bless this survey

Bsd (but quite honestly, your blog in particular) really awakened my love for literature and critical analysis which has been laying dormant for a while. I used to be quite good at literary analysis when I was studying romanian literature in school back in my home country, and although the subject was, unsurprisingly, abhorred by most of my classmates, I quite liked it. I hope I can go back to that someday. Thank you for the effort you put in this literature blog.

cant wait to see the results to the survey!!! ive been curious about this too, so this is very exciting for me, especially since this anime got me back into reading

Choosing the favorite author and favorite work was too harsh (I love all of them, impossible), but I tried. Can you please tell any sources, where its possible to read any works in English? Reading in Japanese is nice, but takes too much time :( And, as always, thank you for your hard work!

Chuuya's poems ? I would die for them. I'm a big sucker for poetry and there's something, somehow, inside them, that just... leaves me spechless.

Creating a discord channel to disscus about literary heroes and their works.

For the question "What Japanese BSD author are you most interested in reading whose works you HAVE NOT read?" I also want to say that I'd love to read Ogurri Mushitarou's works. <3

Gambatte💕

Happy to participate in the survey! <3!

have a nice day! ^^

Hello! Your work is amazing. Thanks for bringing all those facts and interesting quotes on these authors. Your work is really appreciated :) Have a great day!

Hi!

Hope this helps! :)

I am a huge live for reading and am planning to one by one read all of the books from the bsd authors!!

Also, I have read most of the works from the western authors featuring in bsd (since they are more available) like Fyodor's Crime and Punishment, Agatha's And Then There Were None and many of Poe's short stories!! And I felt overwhelming happiness when I saw them in the series!! Thank you ^-^

I am planning to read more of their works.

I do feel quite bad and embarassed about not reading any of the author's works, but i will read their works some day

I don't know if it is a coincidence but after I started watching the anime the libraries of my city suddenly had books of Dazai, Chuuya and Tanizaki. What they were too expensive for me to purchase.

I don't suppose you have any recommendations on where to start reading these novels in English?

I don’t really know much about BSD but I’ve been a long-time reader of Japanese literature. It’s nice that there is more exposure & interest in these books. Thank you for your blog. I hope it would lead to an introduction to other Japanese works like the classics, poetry, performance arts like kabuki, modern literature, etc.

I have marked Dazai as my favorite, though I’m not really sure if that is true, it’s just I have only read The Setting Sun and No Longer Human, so I can’t say much of my thoughts on the other authors, though I do want to read works from more of the authors the BSD characters are based on.

I have read only one short story by Akutagawa, and so I understood why the writers of BSD weren’t favored by the people in their era, considering his short story talked about the time imperial Japan taken over Joseon (Korea) and yet he made the evil ones are the Japanese, he wasn’t afraid to address his country’s bad regime, and that’s an impressive thing to be very honest, hopefully I will increase my knowledge about the authors of BSD

I haven’t read any literature yet, but I do mean to someday (ideally in japanese, although I’m still learning the basics so it might be awhile yet)

I honestly wish I read a lot more by the japanese authors. Just from the quotes you guys post, I get a desire to go out and buy a book from one of them. I'll definitely get one by Yosano this month, and then probably other BSD authors. I wish they included Japanese authors as well in school literature, like, for an example : Fyodor and pretty much whole Guild are authors you HAVE to read in my country's schools.

I like how you asked about the language of the books! I'm looking forward to the results :)

I like that i have learned about japanese culture through this works and i would have not learned about many of them without BSD. BSD have also inspired me to read other autors, or finish books from them. I love "La Nariz" from Gogol and i think i would have not learned about that story if i hadn't known BSD.

I love Ranpo-kun!

I love reading all Japanese literature, because of the unique style and approach they have toward writing. The poetry especially is very different than traditional western style, and the short stories are often written about subjects that most westerners do not touch on. I love both, but find them enjoyable for different reasons. I just wish I could read more of their works, but it is difficult to attain them sometimes, especially the more rare authors!

Keep up the good work, you got me inspired to explore more authors that I might have never even heard of otherwise!

I LOVE RL RANPO SO MUCH. HE'S THE LIGHT OF MY LIFE. I THANK BSD EVERY DAY FOR INTRODUCING US.

I love your blog, and this is cool.

I love your post about facts of the authors because it's so satisfying know why in the anime characters have some attitudes, relationship or actions

I love your tumblr 😉

I managed to buy a book with a lot of Japanese short stories and most of them are in BSD, I haven't really read it yet. My brother actively studies Japanese and one of his materials is a collection of short stories from Akutagawa and Natsume in both English and Japanese. I hope to read it in Japanese one day. Your blog is great, thank you.

I truly enjoy your tumblr, thank you

I want to read Dazai Osamu's work but I don't where to read it, don't have money to buy the real book...

I want to read their works but finding time to read is a bit hard with my life. If you know any good free pdfs then pls tell me. Have a good day! 😊

I wish I knew Japanese because there will always be something lost within translation.

I would like to read all works, but I'm too lazy

I'd like to translate Dogra Magra into English but I'd need a proofreader as my English isn't that good...do you know anyone who'd be willing to help?

I'm currently a graduate student so most of my reading is dictated by my classes, but BSD has definitely created in me a curiosity to read Japanese literature!

I'm not a fervent bibliophile like yourself but I do really like your quote choices, it's what got me really interested in those authors I have not read.  I don't follow many tumblers but yours I particularly enjoy a lot,  and it's also great we both like the bsd anime /manga! Keep up the good work I always look forward to your posts.

I’ll just take this opportunity to thank you for all your hard work in the fandom. One of the things I love the most about bsd is seeing how the authors and their works influence their manga counterparts. I would’ve never known so much about them if it wasn’t for your blog. Thank you so much!!

I’m in the middle of reading No Longer Human

I’m most familiar with British and American authors, but I love that BSD showed me so many more Japanese and Russian authors that I didn’t know existed (that’s more because of my high school but we don’t need to talk about that)

Is it weird that I actually find Kajii's stories... delightful? So much so that I want more from his character! Anyways, thanks for sharing your love for literature!!

keep up the good work, your blog is awesome!

Keep up the good work! <3

Looking forward to the results. Thank you for your hard work!

Mishima Yukio

miyazawa kenji is my favourite jp author but in terms of BSD charas, chuuya has my favourite design.

Mori-san writes really well

Most of the BSD authors I read were the American  authors and it was interesting to compare and contrast eastern to western writing

My favorite author is Dazai, but Akutagawa also have some literary works that deserves to be readed.

Nakajima atsushi works bring me a lot of happiness somehow

Reading their literary works make me understand BSD's characters better. So try reading ones if you haven't read them yet. :)

Since starting to become a fan of BSD, I've also started up a collection of books by the IRL authors on my bookshelf; I've just not got around to reading some of them yet, and others on the list are hard to find or expensive when they are available (Atsushi's Light, Wind, and Rain and Ayatsuji's Another especially). I also like reading about the IRL authors and seeing quotes, so I've seen bits and pieces about more authors than I felt was right to say I've read an entire work from.

Stan best boy Chuuya 🥺

Thank you

Thank you for all the traductions and your hard work. It is hard to know or obtain information about japanese writers in my country, so I really appreciate all of your work and traductions.

Greetings from Mexico ୧(＾ 〰 ＾)୨

Thank you for all your hard work, thanks to you I've developed an interest to Japanese literature, and seeing your posts each day put a smile on my face, so thank you sempai, lots of love from a French fan ! ^-^

thank you for conducting this survey and for all of your work providing quotes, facts etc. about the authors on your tumblr as well!

Thank you for making this survey, I was actually interested ti see how many people actually read.

Thank you for making this survey!

thank you for providing us with easy to access works from these authors 💕

Thank you for your hard work !

Thank you for your work on bsd bibliophile. I wouldn't have discovered all of those books without your blog

Thank you very much for the work you do. I study japanese literature at my university, but I couldn't find many works you post about, because they aren't translated in italian, unfortunately.

Thanks for all the effort and time you put into your blog! I always enjoy seeing your posts on my dashboard.

Thanks for all your quotes and facts!! I love your tumblr page !!

Thanks for the survey! Have a pleasant day :)

The works of BSD authors I have read so far are varied. But rather than critique them, I actually enjoy reading them especially No Longer Human because I felt like I can related to Osamu Dazai to some degree.

This survey is really interesting! I wonder if the writers are as popular as the characters!

I want to have some free time quickly so I can read some more BSD authors! My favorite japanese authors though are Banana Yoshimoto and Haruki Murakami. I've read works of Kensaburo Oé, Yukio Mishima and a little bit of Yasunari Kawata too and I wish they could appear on BSD haha it would be really cool!

PD: I love OP blog, they are one of the most original and cool fandom blogs I've seen. I think Asagiri would love it :D

This survey was nice to do ^.^

Unfortunately, it is very difficult to find books from Asia in my country (translated or not). I would really like to be able to read more of them.

You may have missed Yokomizo Seishi? Not exactly a character that appears, but at least he’s part of the perfect murder arc. I’ve only read the Inugami Clan but loved it a lot!

I started exploring Japanese lit because of a metal band I like called 人間椅子, whose entire discography is an homage to Japanese horror/mystery lit, but especially Edogawa Ranpo’s works. To be honest, I’ve been avoiding reading in English because I wanted to read in the original and (until recently) hadn’t had the proficiency to do that comfortably. Finally catching up though! Plus, I’ve been more appreciative of quality translation work, so more willing to read these things in English too.

You're one of my most favourite blogs online ever and I'm so happy you're doing this! Please share the data with us once you're finished. Thank you for your efforts!

your blog is a blessing ✨ thank you so much for bringing fans closer to the bsd authors themselves through presenting their works.

your blog is hella rad thank you for running it :’)

Top Benefits of Learning Spanish Start Learning Spanish Right From Your Home

What are the benefits of learning Spanish? Well, learning a new language, like Spanish, is a good idea for a handful of reasons: you can increase your chances of being able to work from anywhere in the world, more easily meet and date folks in countries where most people don’t speak your native language and maybe even get to travel the world for free.

Each language comes with its own pros and cons. Some, like English, are spoken widely throughout the world, making it incredibly beneficial. Others, like Paakantyi, are only still spoken by a handful of people, but allow learners to be one of the sole speakers maintaining its existence.

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The benefits of learning Spanish are plentiful. But for the sake of brevity, we’ll only include the nine most major ones.

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9 Major Benefits of Learning Spanish

1. One of the best languages to learn for travel

As of 2016, there were 437 million Spanish-speakers throughout the world. That’s 17% of the entire world. Not only does this heft number make Spanish the second most-spoken language in the world, but it is also the official or national language of 21 countries. In the Americas, 418 million people speak it, and in the European Union, 8% of folks speak it as a first language, and 7% speak it as a second language. The point of all of these fancy facts and figures is that if you learn Spanish, you’ll be hard-pressed to go somewhere where at least a few people don’t speak it. This will make you a better-equipped traveler, allow you to meet even more people and enrich your personal experiences.

Plus, you’ll be able to speak like a pro in some of the most beautiful countries in the world where Spanish is the official language:

Argentina

Colombia

Mexico

Peru

Panama

Costa Rica  

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2. Learning Spanish makes you more employable Yes, you read that correctly. Learning Spanish makes you more employable. At this point, we’re sure this isn’t surprising. Spanish is one of the six official languages of the United Nations, and the third most-used language in the media. The importance of Spanish as a business language is hard to dispute. With the economic development of many Latin American countries, Spain being the 14th highest for GDP in the world and an influx of Spanish-speakers in countries like the United States, anyone who knows, or learns, Spanish will be at a great disadvantage. According to The Economist, learning Spanish will net you an additional $51,000 in life. Oh, did we also mention that 10% of the language used on the Internet is in Spanish?

3. It’ll keep your mind sharp According to Alzheimer’s Today, “Speaking more than one language appears to help the brain resist the effects of Alzheimer’s disease.” Italy’s Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan conducted a study in which they studied CT scans of 85 older patients with Alzheimer’s disease. 45 of them spoke both German and Italian and 40 spoke only one of the two languages. As you can imagine, those who were bilingual performed better than monolingual speakers on short and long-term memory tasks. In fact, they scored three to eight times higher despite their brain scans showing more severe deterioration!     

4. You’ll become a better person Okay, we know this is a bold claim, but it’s true. At least, it’s true if you define being a better person as someone who is empathetic towards others and can read social cues. Learning another language, like Spanish, won’t only increase your ability to focus, but it will also help you understand cultures that are unlike your own. According to NPR, “bilingual children as young as age 3 have demonstrated a head start on tests of perspective-taking and theory of mind — both of which are fundamental social and emotional skills.

”5. A world of art, literature and beauty will open up to you One of the most major benefits of learning Spanish is that you’ll gain access to the unparalleled world of rich Hispanic culture. Watching classic movies, like Pan’s Labyrinth, in their natural language is more enjoyable than watching with subtitles. The same goes for reading literary heavyweights, like Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Pablo Neruda, in the way that they originally wrote their books. Engaging with works in their original language provides you with deeper insights into them than you can access through translations. And while art may not have an exact language, being able to speak Spanish may help you better enter the mind of Pablo Picasso, Salvador Dali and many others. The same extends to music of the greats, like Gloria Estefan, Celia Cruz and Tito Puente.         

6. Get a better handle on pop culture

In the same way that learning Spanish will give you access to classic literature, cinema, art and music, it will also open worlds to the the most dynamic and vibrant pop talent of today. If you’ve been to a club or bar in the last five years, it’d be difficult to hit the dance floor without shaking your hips to a song by Pitbull, Enrique Iglesias, Ricky Martin, Shakira or any other top Spanish-speaking musician. And aside from the dance floor, Spanish has entered the modern vernacular of many large brands and restaurants like Taco Bell’s famous saying of, “Yo quiero Taco Bell,” or McDonalds’ “Me encanta.” Other brands, like Walmart, are spending millions of dollars every year targeting Hispanic audiences. Whether you want to work for one of these organizations, or just be in the know when you see an ad in Spanish pop up, learning Spanish will help you get there.

7. It won’t take you too long

Now, how long it takes you to learn Spanish is entirely dependent on who you are, how you study and if you’ve studied it, or a similar language before. According to the American Council of Teaching Foreign Language (ACTFL), languages are divided into two classes:

Group I: Spanish, French, Portuguese, among others

Group IV: Arabic, Chinese, Japanese and Korean

The languages in Group I, which include Spanish, take 480 hours of professional curriculum to achieve mid-advanced fluency. It’s important to remember here that how one defines “fluency” is entirely subjective. Some folks say they’re fluent in a language if they can read and write without a dictionary. Others claim that true fluency is impossible because it’d take a lifetime to understand all of the cultural idiosyncrasies if you didn’t grow up in it. Either way, Spanish is widely regarded as one of the easiest languages to learn, so you can be up and running with basic reading and speaking skills in no time.

8. Slang will become a way of life

With 437 million Spanish-speakers in the world, it’d be crazy to think they all speak Spanish in the same way. Some people, like in Spain, speak Spanish with a lisp. Others, like in Argentina, shorten words (e.g. tranquilo, for calm, to tranqui) down and some people speak a Spanish creole, like in the Dominican Republic, that’s difficult for native Spanish speakers from other countries to understand. According to Wikipedia, Hispanic American Spanish can be grouped into:

Mexican

Central American

Caribbean (Cuba, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Panama, Caribbean Colombia and Caribbean Mexico)

Andean-Pacific (Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, West Bolivian, and Andean Venezuela).

Rioplatense (Argentina, Uruguay, East Bolivian and Paraguay)

Chilean (Chile, Cuyo)

Within European Spanish (Spain), there are also a handful of dialects:

Northern Peninsular (Asturias, Castilla y León, Cantabria, Basque country, Navarre, Aragón, Rioja, Provinces of Guadalajara and Cuenca)

Central-Southern Peninsular (Madrid, Toledo, La Mancha)

Southern Peninsular (Andalusia, Extremadura, and Murcia)

Canarian (Canary Islands)

Despite all of these dialects, most educated people will be able to understand one another regardless of which Spanish-speaking country they’re from. Standard usage of formal Spanish in Hollywood and many forms of literature helps to create a standard version that most people understand. But, on the flip side, all of this diversity can help anyone become a master in cross-cultural slang. Each dialect and Spanish-speaking region comes with their own sets of idioms and unique cultural differentiators, which makes learning Spanish fun and engaging. The number of ways you’ll be able to express yourself will be endless.

9. More chances to fall in love

One of the benefits of learning Spanish or any language is that you’ll widen your pool of romantic prospects. We live in a world where the number of Spanish-speaking people is only growing. Those who don’t attempt to learn even a little put themselves at a romantic disadvantage. How amazing would it be to travel to another country and connect with others in their own languages, versus hoping they speak your own? Learning a new language naturally enriches your life, and gives you the opportunity to meet people whom you’d never be able to communicate with before. It is a gift, and something you shouldn’t deprive yourself of.

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Oh, I can just say he's definitely not great, I definitely do not understand a bit about politics but this guy is a shame, and his son literally almost started a war with China about corona and all, they are just so dumb I can't even explain!💚

How was your day? I'm sad I studied for just an hour and 20 min today, I was just not in the mood for math :(💚

Aaaah I'm sorry, I almost forgot to answer you about the languages. Being honest idk why Korean or Chinese, I'm just really random, I've tried German, Italian, a bit of Japanese, Spanish too but they're all "Hi, my name is..." dkslfjs I only know Mahal Kita because of Bailey from Now United😂💚

now united?? whats that? 

and no!! never apologise w me!! you did nothing wrong <3 as long as you’re happy learning those languages, that should be the priority. i know forcing yourself to learn a language you didn’t particularly like can be hell (me in my old school ngl haha) 

i’m never in the mood for math so im vv proud of your 1 hour and 20 minute hours of work :P my day was okay!! i was doing some internship stuff and i reorganised the avatar series plan so im vv excited to write stuff which is a good feeling bc ive been not the most writing person the last few days haha 

holy shit honestly i absolutely get so mad when people call the virus the “chinese virus” or blame the chinese bc like its not their fault??????????? like it originated from their country (apparently - there has been a report it originated somewhere else but idk how much i can trust it) but they didn’t make it. like ppl don’t get that calling it a “chinese virus” only encourages racism more. idk i can rant for ages about racism against asians bc i was raised experiencing the implied actions of it (if that makes sense, idk how to explain it) haha 

I was tagged by @queenofkadaara. Thank you very very much!! ❤

RULES: 1. answer the new questions given by the previous person 2. write 11 new questions 3. tag 11 people

I. What music genre do you usually listen to?

Pop, especially Indie Pop, Jazz, Blues and Rock, even classical music. I listen to many genres every day.

II. What words would you use to describe your aesthetics?

I’m not sure… Cats, black, dark blue, flowers, chokers, old books… Mmmm, rain maybe and… Ehhhh… Videogames and classical music. Oh! And skulls, I love skulls.

III. Favorite tea flavour?

Wild berries.

IV. Favorite time period? Why?

I have many: the Renaissance, mostly because of Leonardo Da Vinci, he’s my hero, I admire his work very much. Let’s say that he’s my historical crush. Ancient Greece and Rome, I’ve been all my life studying these two time periods and I am so curious to see how people lived back then. I like the 18th Century too, because of the French and American Revolution. Also, I love the music and the artists from that period (and the clothes).

 V. Favorite motto / quote?

 “Sometimes you just have to die a little inside in order to be reborn and rise again as a stronger and wiser version of you.”

 That’s what I repeat myself everyday.

 And:

 “It is madness to hate all roses because you got scratched with one thorn. To give up on your dreams because one didn’t come true. To lose faith in prayers because one was not answered, to give up on our efforts because one of them failed. To condemn all your friends because one betrayed you, not to believe in love because someone was unfaithful or didn’t love you back. To throw away all your chances to be happy because you didn’t succeed on the first attempt. I hope that as you go on your way, you don’t give in nor give up!”

 VI. Language you wished you speaked?

Polish, Italian, German, Chinese, Japanese… I wish I could learn all the languages in the world.

VII. Name of your first plushy / stuffed animal? Do you still have it? And while we are at it, do you still have plushies?

My two first plushies were a little sheep called “Dolly” and a dog (?) called “Lulú” and I still have them both. Yeah, I’ve got lots of plushies!

VIII. What color do you wear the most?

Black.

IX. Favorite ice cream flavor?

Lemon, cookie and chocolate.

X. Most emotional fictional moment? Can be from video games, books, movies, etc.

 The list is very long, so I’ll just choose the most important ones, exclusively.

 The Witcher: when Geralt finds Ciri and he hugs her thinking that she’s dead, but no, she’s alive! The hansa dying trying to help Geralt and Regis appearing in Blood and Wine (I had a fucking heart attack, ask my bro I almost made him deaf).

The Pianist, all the scenes made me cry.

Dreamworks: In The Prince of Egypt when Mirian and Tzipporah sing “When you believe”.

Disney: The last scene of Pocahontas and when Mulan cuts her hair and decides going to war for her father, risking her own life for him. Also, when Quasimodo sings “Out there”. In Moana, when her grandma appears and reminds her who she is. Bless that woman. In the new Beauty and the Beast, the song “Evermore” made me cry!

Wicked: Elphaba singing “Defying Gravity” and “No Good Deed”.

The end of The Phantom of the Opera… Erik is in my heart forever.

The book “The Little Prince” made me cry when I was little and when I see it somewhere I start crying because that book is so special.

When I watched “The Help”, that movie made me laugh and cry at the same time.

XI. If you could make one fictional character real, which one would you pick?

One?? Only one?? How am I supposed to make only one real?? I can’t!! I want all The Witcher characters to be real!! The hansa too, they are coming to live with me at home!!

My questions:

I. What’s your favorite flower? Why? Does it have some special meaning for you?

II. Which song describes you better?

III. Do you like classical music? Who’s your favorite composer?

IV. In which city would you like to live?

V. What’s your favorite mythical creature? Why?

VI. What’s your favorite word?

VII. Who’s the person you desire to meet currently?

VIII. What’s your favorite profession?

IX. Who’s the person you admire the most?

X. If you could be a fictional character which movie, book or videogame would you like to be in?

XI. Can you post a photo of your favorite accessory? It can a ring, necklace, bracelet, piercing, glasses, etc., something you usually like to wear.

I am tagging my favorite people: @ilonavic, @cirillach, @holy-squirrel-of-death, @lunedin, @moonwich, @silnaniewinna, @dandelionandbuttercup, @whitenerine, @vaporeox, @vattgherncirilla, @sarayburnu, and everyone who wants to do it!! You can also just answer my questions for fun. I don’t know if you’ve been tagged before, if so, sorry, and you know, you don’t have to do it if you don’t want to.

You know you’re extremely dedicated to an AU when you’re written so many papers on headcanons for that AU because they just keep coming. And just when my exams are coming up too :/

Before I start, I just want to say that it gets a little sad at the end here so be warned. I choked up typing this. Try to enjoy Jackie Chan Adventures High School AU Part IV.

when in italics, the conversation is in another language, like Mandarin.

San Francisco High has 2,000 students, 140 faculty members and and a seemingly endless number of classes to take. There are 2 semesters and each semester a student has to take 4 classes. At the end of the year, every student will have taken 8 classes and they can only fail one class. By graduation, seniors would have had 28 - 32 credits recorded to graduate.

Jackie has a free period in each semester, so Jackie takes this as an opportunity to get to know the Enforcers, V.P. Hartman and Principal Black. Of course, other times Jackie uses this time to study for anything and do homework so he has enough time to do whatever when he gets home.

Jackie shares a World History/Geography class with everyone in the J-Team (including Drago) in the second semester, which brings everyone in the group closer together by the end of the year.

By the time the 2nd semester comes around, Jackie is classified as a “nerd” because of his smarts and incredibly good grades. He’s helped Viper in Mandarin, Jade and Frank in Spanish, Charlie and Rocko in Algebra and El Toro in English language.

However, World History/Geography is a hard class, taught by Mr. Kasahara/Origami. He is a pretty tough teacher, but Jackie loves Geography and World History, so the class is a breeze for him. For everyone else in the J-Team, not so much. On top of that, Drago and Jackie bump heads wayyyy too often, which disrupts the class numerous times.

Over time, Drago’s grade in W.H./G. begins to fall to a D and Capt. Black finds out. In the 13, you must make a C or higher to continue playing any kind of sport. If Drago doesn’t find a way to bring up his grade in World History by the end of the semester to a C or higher, he loses his chance to sign up for the football scholarship everyone but him is getting. Drago becomes desperate and begs all the “nerds” for help, but they too are busy with their own issues..

Well, almost everyone.

Jackie wants to be an archaeologist when he grows up, which means he has to study very hard in history. He has the highest grade in his W.H./G. and won’t hesitate to help anyone in need.

Almost anyone.

Begrudgingly, Drago swallows his pride and asks Jackie to tutor him. Jade says no for Jackie, since he is the J-Team’s lead tutor. Plus, by now Jackie has enough bad blood with Drago to stay away from him. Drago doesn’t care anymore, until he gets his next test grade back. 

Through many sources in school, Drago discovers that some members of the J-Team aren’t doing so hot in subjects he’s excellent in. For example, Jackie isn’t doing so well in Pre-Calculus and in U.S. Civics + Economics and Frank and Tohru need a lot of help in German. Those are Drago’s easiest classes, so once again Drago swallows his pride to ask Jackie to tutor him with an offer of $50. For the first time that year Jackie sees some humility in Drago, so reluctantly he agrees but doesn’t take the money. It takes some time to get the J-Team to agree, but they decide it’s for the better.

The next day in school, the J-Team prepare to meet at the nearest park to study. Drago has the idea of taking the studying to his house. Everyone is hesitant to do this but does so anyway.

They split up: Drago and Tohru both have cars. Drago takes, Jade, Jackie, Viper and Rocko. Tohru takes Eduardo, Paco, Charlie and Frank.

When they arrive at Drago’s mansion, they are “greeted” by Drago’s pet tiger, Henri. Crazy right?

Everyone is extremely distrustful of Drago, but he somewhat helpfully and successfully helps Jackie get better in Pre-Calc and his Civics class. Still doesn’t change how he feels about Drago though.

One day, Jackie and Viper are waiting for Rocko and Jade as they are late for the study session, since they are waiting for Drago to give them a ride to his house. As they leave the school, they see Drago having a heated argument with his father in Mandarin. This is a surprise to Jackie and Viper, who never knew Drago’s ethnicity. As he’s listening, Jackie finds how Drago was able to put two and two on a lot of things in the shared conversations in Chinese between Jackie, Jade and Charlie.

Through translation, Jackie and Viper find out Drago’s father, Mr. Huo, is part of the Chinese mafia and is still being hunted by FBI because of what he did in China. Mr. Huo knows that any day now, he will be arrested and deported, so he’s saying goodbye to Drago ahead of time in case he never sees him anymore. Drago is angry over this because Mr. Huo has never remained in Drago’s life for more than a year. “I was even counting on you coming to my graduation, but I guess you won’t be here for that either! It seems like you never cared about me or Mom enough to leave the Bā Wáng!” Mr. Huo tells his son that he can’t leave; the life of the Bā Wáng has been embedded into him as long as he could remember. He’s too far in to quit. With that Mr. Long takes his departure in his limo and leaves Drago to angrily sulk alone. Then, Jade and Rocko come outside and Drago drives off. 

The group study session is going well for everyone, but Jackie and Viper still couldn’t help but to think about the conversation he eavesdropped in with Drago and his father. It distracts them from the tutoring in general.

Viper drums up enough courage to tell Drago the truth. Drago tries to ignore it, but ends up blowing up at Viper. When Jackie defends her, Drago replies in Chinese, “Well, excuse me, Mr. Perfect Know-It-All! I didn’t know that my life had to be perfect like yours, where you had to be born with friends and family there to support you every step of the way. You don’t know what it’s like to grow up learning how to survive day by day!”

Jackie is devoid of an expression and tells Drago the tutoring session is officially over in English. He walks out of Drago’s house with Jade behind him as the two walk home. The rest of the J-Team sans Drago leave to go home also.

When Jackie gets home, he doesn’t greet his host parents or say a word the rest of the evening. This greatly concerns Jade and her parents as he’s usually happy, but Jackie is unwilling to say or express anything.

In the middle of the night, Jade catches Jackie watching TV and eating a bowl of cereal, since he was unable to eat dinner. She sees that Jackie’s face is streaked with tears on his face, making it the first time Jade sees Jackie crying. 

Here, Jackie opens up more about himself, as he didn’t explain his full story to his host family or his friends at all. Jackie talked about his dream coming to America, his parents’, Uncle taking him in, going to school and being bullied for some time. This makes Jade cry a little also because she didn’t know much about Jackie’s past to begin with. He seemed always happy, so she never really thought about what Jackie actually went through. Here, the bond between Jade and Jackie becomes stronger and Jade and Jackie respect each other even more. Even through the hardest of times in life, Jackie refused to give up on his dream of being in America. Jade goes to bed that night with this embedded in her mind. 

me again.. 30 year old edition life update

so im back! got logged out when my laptop went in for repairs but ive finally logged back in. Tumblr is the only place that doesnt change to much. its familiar and nice.  ive turned 30 since the last time i wrote ( i think) which isnt much different but i did notice lines. lines on my forehead, lines under my eyes. just lines i never noticed before i was 30. i dont like them but there is nothing to do but accept them and their existence.  since the apocalypse started, i havent done anything different, not really. i was socially reclusive before, im still socially reclusive now, just with the added fear of people, their bodily fluids, and fear when i sneeze or have a sore throat now.  i did however, start learning a new language, i have never been good at wrapping my tongue around languages, german, chinese, japanese, all of them in the past just wouldnt stick, but for some reason i googled languages a few months ago, and romanian stuck out. (also, My brother charlie, he lives in Romania was echoing in my head from harrypotter)  so slowly still studying that, online, freely, with the help of other people who are learning the same way i am.  my dreadlocks turn 7 years old. i was here on tumblr when i started my dreadlocks. so long ago! i got a bday present for them, but not sure if itll arrive in time.  but 7 years on. they are long, they are happy and they are purple! but my profile pic will remain that old beginner picture because i like it and also because i dont know how to change it any more.  not much else is happening, toilet paper is now available again, but prices are still high on some things.  also im addicted to animal crossing..  okay till the next update. ill be around. if youhave a switch, im happy to add you.  if you play GTA V on pc im also happy to hang. havent played much else.  still making youtube videos now and then. its fun when there is no pressure and just posting what i want. i do miss vlogging but just cant get back into it..  anyhoo..  ---here are some pictures of my dreads and their progression. when i first got them in 2013, then 1 year later and then the pother day at 7 years. (the pics wont cooperate, so they are the top one when i first got them, the last one is the other day) , whatever works. :/ ----

Gaia School of Magick

Inspired by Astera Taylor's blog, "What would a Pagan Hogwarts look like?" https://www.patheos.com/blogs/starlight/2018/01/pagan-hogwarts-look-like/ Appearance and location: The school is located in a vast forest landscape in England. It is a castle similar to Hogwarts, except it is made out of wood instead of stone. It can only be accessed via a chant from a high priest or priestess. Group dynamics: Instead of houses, students are divided into covens or guilds based on both ancestry, deity worship, and personality. Each group is led by a high priest and high priestess, with two ministers to help guide the students. Two headmasters, a grand high priest, a grand high priestess and a council of professors oversee all activities. I. Wicca/Celtic group II. Norse/Germanic group III. Druids IV. Native American, African, and indigenous group V. Roman and Greek group VI. Egyptian group VII. Chinese, Japanese and Asian group Christian, Muslim, Jewish, and Atheist Pagans exist, they are just frequently looked down upon. Classes and activities: Familiar caring and raising Herbs class: working with healing plants and avoiding poisons Self defense class against witch hunters and ignorant mundanes ("normans") those who cannot do magic or chants Astronomy and moon cycles Dancing and singing class plus meditation before and after Potion and medicine making Tarot, astrology, runes and divination class History class on Wicca, deities, and Gerald Gardner Circle casting and working with spirits Ancient literature and math Shops Tis The Season: The largest store that changes based on the eight Sabbats. Students can buy clothing, food, crystals, and tools for rituals. Magicx Reads: textbooks, fiction stories, newspapers and research articles Legend states that there were some Pagans who were able to go to Hogwarts long ago. They enjoyed learning about magic, creatures, and divination. However, several consequences occurred. (1) The debate on what real "magic" was. While the majority of students at Hogwarts believed that incantations consisted of magic, the Pagans believed that the invocations of spirits/gods was what constituted magic. (2) Needless to say, some of the gods did not appreciate magic being freely used by individuals without giving anything in return. A few gods became engaged and interfered with the spells that students cast. Some spells would backfire, some would disappear into thin air and some magic would not work at all. Many of the students (the Slytherins in particular) did not believe in what they called "muggle" magic, leading to further discrimination toward their Pagan peers. (3) Several Pagans, seeking revenge against their bullies, used forms of dark magic to summon monsters and spirits. Curses and love spells spread through the school like a virus. With the help of the headmaster and a fellow High Priestess, the curses abated until everything was back to normal. Animosity toward the Pagans was fueled by dark wizard hating Christians and skeptical Ravenclaw atheists. Wanting to avoid future problems, the headmaster and the teachers insisted that the Pagans moved someplace else. Many were reluctant to leave but several of the ministers stated it was for the best, for it was obvious that "Wiccans could not co-exist with witches and wizards.""But we could teach each other so many things!" the Pagan students insisted. The statements continued.“Just think of how we can heal the environment and help the Hogwarts students make the world a better place!”"Magical creatures can co-exist with wizards. Why can't we?""Alas, it is clear" said the female minister with a sigh "that we do not appear to be welcome among wizards as well as non-magic folk. However, we can take what we have learned during our experience and make the best of it.""Why not start a school of our own?" asked a student. And so, England's Gaia School of Magick was born. I.                   Lydia: Main character, white with long black hair, female protagonist, chosen by Hecate. Stumbles upon the school and is able to enter. Her single mother is descended from witches, so she knows about the recent school. II.                Felicity: brown haired girl, light brown skin, worships Fortuna, Venus, Athena, and Isis. Lydia’s best friend. III.             Oliver: Felicity’s blond love interest. Worships Tyr, Ares, Thor and other war gods. IV.            Helen: worships mother goddesses like Selene, Danu (Celtic mother goddess), and the Triple Goddess. Helen takes a liking to both Lydia and Oliver, even though Oliver likes Felicity and Lydia is asexual. V.               Hayden: worships nature gods like Pan, Bres (Celtic fertility god) and the Horned One. Eventually gets to know Helen and they get together. VI.            Brianna: A woman who is part Native American and part African. She worships Cherokee deities and African gods, with Yemoja (mother deity of mankind) being her favorite. She falls in love with Hayden but finds herself and her covens ignored by the more prominent Irish and Norse ones. She also struggles to fit into two different groups (Native and African) at once. VII.         Orla: Outgoing red haired girl who worships Irish deities but is accepting of everyone. She is fascinated by Christianity, much to the dismay of many of her Pagan peers. Over time, her curious nature turns to obsession and she even changes her name to Samantha. She starts a revolution to get the Abrahamic religions noticed more, turning student against student. She even threatens Brianna and the indigenous Pagans to take her side against the prominent Wiccan practitioners. Orla becomes Lydia’s rival and is the one responsible for revealing the school’s location to a band of modern witch hunters. VIII.      Charlie: A self-centered man who worships Anubis, Osiris, and death gods. Is often a bully to others due to having been abused by his Christian family for being a male witch. IX.            Aurora: One of several lonely atheists who do not worship deities but also practice witchcraft. Like Brianna and the indigenous covens, she and her atheist friends feel rejected by the dominant groups.

7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Nancy Kress

“7 Things I’ve Learned So Far” (this installment written by Nancy Kress, author of TOMORROW’S KIN) is a recurring column where writers at any stage of their career can talk about writing advice and instruction, as well as how they got their literary agent—by sharing seven things they’ve learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning.

My first story appeared in print in 1976. Forty years later, as my thirty-fourth book is about to appear, it sometimes feels as if I haven’t learned very much about this peculiar business of creating lives on paper and selling those non-existent lives to others. But when I sat down to write this blog, I discovered that I had learned a few things after all. Here are seven of them.

This guest post is by Nancy Kress . Kress is the author of thirty-three books, including twenty-six novels, four collections of short stories, and three books on writing. Her work has won science fiction’s highest awards: six Nebulas, two Hugos, a Sturgeon, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. Kress’s work has been translated into Swedish, Danish, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Polish, Croatian, Chinese, Lithuanian, Romanian, Japanese, Korean, Hebrew, Russian, and Klingon, none of which she can read. In addition to writing, Kress often teaches at various venues around the country and abroad. TOMORROW’S KIN, released in July from Tor/St. Martin’s Press, is a science fiction novel of a pandemic, aliens who are not what they seem, genetic engineering, and a desperate race to avoid global war. 

1. Editors may be demi-gods but they are not gods.

I’m calling them “demi-gods” because, like Zeus’s numerous off-spring, they hold power to affect writers. Editors can buy your novel or not, push it hard at editorial meetings or not, determine how much you get paid for your sweat, blood, and tears. But they are not omniscient. They make mistakes, rejecting manuscripts that go on to be bestsellers, buying those that tank. Your editor can be your champion, partner, even friend—but she does not determine the long arc of your career. Only you have that much power.

2. You have to be better at the start of your career than later on.

This seems completely counterintuitive. But after several books, you’ve established a name and a fan base. Those things result in an editor’s reading your manuscript with a built-in bias toward it. In the beginning, you lack that advantage. So if a story or novel is being rejected, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad. It may just mean that you are being judged by a harsher standard than established writers. Happens all the time.

3. Writing is like having sex.

Some days you sit down at the keyboard, on fire, and fireworks ensue. Sometimes you are only mildly interested, but as the scene builds, it gets really exciting. Other times you start strong, but then interest fizzles. All this is normal. Tomorrow will almost certainly be different. Don’t divorce your story.

4. You have very little wordage to interest an editor.

Publishing houses and magazines alike get a lot of submissions. Reading through them can be a chore, and so editors decide quickly whether they wish to read on. You don’t have much time to create interest. So polish that opening, and then polish it some more, until it shines.

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5. Most writers’ career paths look like roller coasters.

Up for a while, with strong reader response and rising sales. Then something happens with the next book—it doesn’t work as well, or it does but the market has shifted, or your editor leaves or dies or becomes a minister instead (I know someone this happened to), or you’ve tried a different genre and your fans don’t follow you—and it doesn’t do as well. The roller coaster dips. This is normal. Even George R.R. Martin, author of the phenomenally successful A Song of Fire and Ice fantasy series, has said that after a previous book tanked, he thought his career was over. It wasn’t.

6. Writing teachers can only spot talent.

A good writing teacher can see from a student manuscript that the aspiring writer has a feel for language, a sense of the dramatic, an interesting character, or any of a dozen other tip-offs that talent is present. What he cannot tell is how much perseverance, resilience, and commitment the writer will have over time. I teach often, and some students I have pegged as future successes have never published anything, while others who did not stand out in class have gone on to build enviable careers. Which is why I never, ever answer the question, “Do you think I can make it as a writer?” The only honest answer is, “I don’t know.”

7. A pro makes sacrifices.

If you wanted to be a professional pianist, or basketball player, or clothes designer, you would expect to have to practice. Writing is no different. And since practice takes time and nobody gets more than twenty-four hours each day, usually something else, or several something elses, have to go. Decide what can’t be sacrificed (sleep, your kids, earning money to pay the rent) and what can. Then give up what is necessary to obtain that precious writing time. No, it’s not easy—but you can do it. I know you can.

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