brightknightie: Girl running into the wind with a kite in summer (Enthusiasms)
[personal profile] brightknightie

Here are some recent fannish things I've happened to see and would like to share!

Spotlight: I went to Dickens Fair again this year and had a lovely time. As a fan of nineteenth-century literature and history, I find it immensely fun! It's certainly also delightful for a much broader circle than just those interests, though, and I'd like you all to know that it is a thing! The shortest description is: Dickens Fair is like a Renaissance Faire, except it's Victorian London at Christmastime. Imagine walking into the pages of A Christmas Carol, and, among the crowd, potentially running into not only the characters of that novel, but all Dickens novels and many other novels of that vintage, plus real historical folks, from Dickens himself to the members of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood to Charlotte Bronte. And, of course, Father Christmas.

Ficathons, fests & communities

  • Create & engage
    • [community profile] hlh_shortcuts, the annual Highlander exchange, released 20 new stories, and is currently in its "author guessing game phase," with reveals planned for January 5.
    • [community profile] snowflake_challenge, the annual challenge to highlight what we love about fandom and our fellow fans, with prompts but no deadlines, is up and running for '26.
    • [community profile] purimgifts, the annual exchange featuring characters "who are at least one of: women, Jewish, or persecuted (preferably by evil viziers)," has nominations and sign-ups 1/02-08; due 2/23.
    • [personal profile] candyheartsex, an exchange focused on relationships (both platonic and not), has sign-ups through January 7.
    • [community profile] beagoldfish, a low-stakes "make-a-thon," runs through February 28.
    • [community profile] crackthewip, a fest encouraging finishing works-in-progress (WIPs), has both sign-ups and posting through June 30.
    • [community profile] inkingitout, an annual challenge to write 75K+ words, has sign-ups through January 3.
    • [community profile] rewrite_a_fic, a challenge to rewrite one of your own stories, runs through November 30.
    • [community profile] goals_on_dw is hosting a '26 "Fannish 50" blogging challenge.
    • [community profile] comment_bingo, a challenge to comment on others' works, runs its current round until March 31.
    • [community profile] allbingo's January theme is "Public Domain Day."
    • [community profile] trope_of_the_month's January theme is an amnesty (wild card for any previous month).
    • [community profile] whenisitdue tracks many more events than I note here!
  • Enjoy & share

Sidelight: I've realized that as much as I enjoy Jed McKay's comic-book writing -- I picked up his Nova: Centurian series sight-unseen and will give it a fair shot, though I've never been interested in Nova -- the twice-monthly release schedule for his X-Men run is wearing me out, and I don't even read any of the other gazillion X-titles. Money-grubbing, much, Marvel? I may drop the series when this current storyline ends in a few months if they don't cut it out. (I hope they don't wear McKay out!)


Birdfeeding

Jan. 1st, 2026 02:34 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Today is partly sunny and cool.

I fed the birds. I've seen a large flock of sparrows. A squirrel was running around in the trees.

I put out water for the birds.









.

Rose and Bay Awards

Jan. 1st, 2026 02:00 pm
ysabetwordsmith: (Rose-Bay)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
The 2026 Rose and Bay Awards are now open for nominations! Please make your nominations and pass the word to all the crowdfunders you know and encourage them to participate. It would be especially helpful for folks you know via places like Kickstarter or Patreon, as I'm not on those sites.

The award period for eligible activities spans January 1-December 31, 2025.
The nomination period spans January 1-January 31, 2026.
The voting period spans February 1-February 28, 2026.

I am eligible in the Poetry and Patron categories this year, if anyone wants to nominate me.


These are the handlers for the 2026 award season:
Art: [personal profile] gs_silva Nominate art! Vote for art!
Fiction: [personal profile] fuzzyred Nominate fiction! Vote for fiction!
Poetry: [personal profile] gs_silva Nominate poetry! Vote for poetry!
Webcomic: [personal profile] curiosity Nominate webcomics! Vote for webcomics!
Other Project: [personal profile] curiosity Nominate other projects! Vote for other projects!
Patron: [personal profile] fuzzyred Nominate patrons! Vote for patrons!

Humor

Jan. 1st, 2026 01:53 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
A set of funny science memes. Do not read with mouth full.
althea_valara: Photo of my cat sniffing a vase of roses  (Default)
[personal profile] althea_valara
two log cabins with snow on the roofs in a wintery forest the text snowflake challenge january 1 - 31 in white cursive text

Challenge #1

The Icebreaker Challenge: Introduce yourself. Tell us why you're doing the challenge, and what you hope to gain from it.

Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it.


Hiya! I'm Althea Valara (my chosen name, not my wallet name). I'm a fiber artist, Twitch streamer, and video game player. For fiber arts, I knit and crochet, plus do a little pin loom weaving. SOMEDAY when I have more space/money, I'll own a rigid heddle loom.

Most of my consumed media these days comes from video games, and primarily the Final Fantasy franchise with a healthy dose of Kingdom Hearts. I currently stream Final Fantasy XI on Fridays, Final Fantasy XIV on Saturdays, and am making my way through the Kingdom Hearts series on Mondays. Start time is around 7:30pm Central and goes until 10:30pm or until I get tired/feel like stopping, whichever comes first. Lately I've been more tired than usual so streams have been shorter, but I'm still streaming!

My stream is at https://twitch.tv/altheavalara - my first stream was on February 13th, 2021, so I'll be hitting my five year anniversary this year, WOW! I started streaming as a way to combat social anxiety. I'm still a very tiny streamer (last month I hit 100 followers, FINALLY!) but I enjoy it and no longer feel anxiety when I start a stream. It's like breathing now - just something I do.

Why I'm doing Snowflake Challenge

Mostly, it's because I've done it for a few years now and had fun with it! I've appreciated the opportunity to blurble happily about my blorbos and otherwise geek out about fannish things. Normally, I do not consider myself as part of a fandom. I mean yes, I love Final Fantasy and do make some fanworks for it, but I usually don't consume fanworks unless people point them to me. Sometimes it can feel lonely in my little corner of the fandom, so I really have loved Snowflake Challenge for giving me an excuse to put myself out there some more.

What I hope to get out of the Challenge

An opportunity to be creative. An excuse to work on my Neocities site some more, which I launched during last year's Challenge. Reading enthusiastic posts from others and seeing both familiar usernames I don't normally interact with, plus new people that I find charming and delightful. I've met some really cool people through Snowflake Challenge like [personal profile] vriddy, [personal profile] enemytosleep and [personal profile] peaked, and I hope to make some new acquaintances, if not friends, this year.
vriddy: Hawks (BNHA) - model shot hand on mouth (bnha)
[personal profile] vriddy
It pains me that I couldn't make the first half of the story as strong and funny as the rest (and therefore no one might get to the jokes I love the most orz), but that's okay, everything's a learning experience, etc, etc, and also I expected this to be 4-5k words and it's nearly 13k by now so let's leave it at that!!

In general, this has been an interesting exercise for me because while I have written OT3s, OT4s and OT5s in which everyone loves everyone else equally, this is the first time I write a polycule where some of the relationships are not shared with everyone else. This canon just has so many lovely ships, it worked out that way. Also I'm surprised no one sees the potential in Kafka/Reno/Narumi, with the competitiveness between Reno and Narumi, and how their different approaches and ways to care about Kafka. This might just be my headcanons talking, though XD


Warm as life | Kaijuu No. 8 | Kafka/Reno/Narumi, Reno/Iharu, Kafka/Hoshina | 2.4k words (WIP, 1/7) | rated M

Summary: The new threat posed by No. 9 weighs heavily on everyone. Under these circumstances, emotions run high and what starts as a way of relieving stress can easily bloom into unexpected feelings. Some people find that easier to admit than others.

Read it on Dreamwidth or AO3.

Snowflake Challenge 2026 Day 1

Jan. 1st, 2026 11:11 pm
swingandswirl: text 'tammy' in white on a blue background.  (Default)
[personal profile] swingandswirl
two log cabins with snow on the roofs in a wintery forest the text snowflake challenge january 1 - 31 in white cursive text


 


Challenge #1

The Icebreaker Challenge: Introduce yourself. Tell us why you're doing the challenge, and what you hope to gain from it.

Hi! I'm Tammy. I'm in my late 30s, Desi, and have been in fandom since 2000.

I'm back on DW after a little over a year of a mostly unintentional break. I want to get back into the journaling habit, and be mindful and present when I post vs just doomscrolling. I'd also like to make some new friends!

Things I love:

Reading. Another of my goals this year is to read the books I already own. I mostly read romance, SFF, and light/cozy non-fiction. I've honestly tried litfic, but it bores me to pieces. I avoid the crap out of horror, dystopia, and anything too dark.

Podcasts. My favorites are the ones that teach you things, like Gastropod, Dressed, and Stuff You Should Know. I also adore Writing Excuses, which honestly is practically an MFA in podcast form. 

Food. I am a competent cook at best, but I love thinking and talking about food and culture. Also, I am aggressively pedantic about that not all Indians eat naan and curry, damn it. Also that coconut anything does not belong in butter chicken. 

Music: I am mostly a pop, pop-rock, and feminist country girlie, but I'm looking to expand my horizons. I also unapologetically love Taylor Swift. 

My fandoms: 

Numb3rs: The fandom of my heart. I just love how KIND this show is, and how well it's aged, a few episodes aside. Also? So much shipper potential, lol. (Even if I do bear a grudge about the portrayal of Amita that's as old as the show at this point. In my defence, we're from the same subcommunity and the writers... did not do their research.)

Harry Potter: More specifically, the first four books and parts of the fifth. No shade to those of you who loved the direction the series went in in Six and Seven, but it was epically not for me. Also, JKR and her bigoted bullshit can take a long damn walk off a short damn pier, but damned if I'll let her take away this thing I've loved since I was nine. I refuse to support her monetarily; that's my line in the sand. I'm honestly mostly here for AUs and fix-it fic, lol. 

The Avengers: Specifically, the pocket universe post the 2012 movie where they're all in the Tower and also functional adults who are slowly learning to become a family. Not here either for SHYDRA or the whole 'my dad can beat up your dad' bullshit of the later movies. I'm a Stony girl at heart, but I'm willing to read a well-written Stucky. 

The Goblin Emperor/ The Cemeteries of Amalo: Maia and Csethiro are adorable, as are Thara and his circle. I especially love the canonical pairing, which I won't spoil here, lol.

Superbat: Look, these two have been special since their first appearance together. I've loved them since I was a teenager, and their dynamic of best friends and partners, two men who are so different yet are so close. 

Other more minor fandoms: Pride and Prejudice (love me some Jane/Colonel Fitzwilliam), Check, Please!, all Sherlock variations, LotR and the Hobbit, the Electra McDonnell spy thriller series, and L.A. Hall's The Comfortable Courtesan.


Snowflake Challenge 1: Icebreaker

Jan. 1st, 2026 12:06 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Snowflake Challenge 1: The Icebreaker Challenge

Introduce yourself. Tell us why you're doing the challenge, and what you hope to gain from it.


two log cabins with snow on the roofs in a wintery forest the text snowflake challenge january 1 - 31 in white cursive text

Read more... )

/waves shyly/ I'm back.

Jan. 1st, 2026 09:21 pm
swingandswirl: text 'tammy' in white on a blue background.  (Default)
[personal profile] swingandswirl
 So. Uh. I didn't ACTUALLY intend to basically disappear from DW for over a year. But, well, Certain RL Things happened in November of 2024 and I needed a break from ALL social media that had anything even remotely US politics related on it, and then once I surfaced from that, I'd feel bad about how long I'd been away and somehow wind up not posting. /o\

But! It is a new year, and the lovely ilyena_sylph was generous enough to gift me some paid time, so here I am making an attempt to get back in the saddle. I realized that I need SOME kind of fannish social media that's not Discord, and Reddit was just not good for my brain, so good old DW it is.

I realized that one of the reasons I wasn't using DW as much as I meant to was that I was all up in my head about that I needed to have Something To Say to make a post, and I... often don't, lol. So this time, I'm allowing myself to use DW for long posts, yes, but also like I would the site formerly known as Twitter - for short, silly things, individual links, and just... interacting with people. 

I don't really want to do a 2025 recap, I'd rather start with a clean slate, but! I am very proud to say I published over 38k of fic last year, and some of it wasn't even for exchanges! It would have been over 40k, but I only wrote 7k for ficinabox rather than the required 10k. 

This year, I'd like to focus on things other than mindless doomscrolling - I want to get into new fandoms, since honestly, as much as I love the little corners of HP and Marvel I've staked out for myself and my co-writers (/waves to Rhi and Yena/) the broader fandoms do not spark joy and I want something new. Recommendations welcome, although no horror, dystopia, or C-dramas, please.

I also want to write more solo fic - while I love exchanges for pushing me out of my comfort zone (I would never have written P+P or The Goblin Emperor fic without recips who wanted them) - this year I would like to focus on writing more for me, since Gods know nobody else is writing Colby/Amita, lol. And very few people are writing Jane/Colonel Fitzwilliam.  

But that's enough about me! What have y'all been up to? I've missed my friends! Tell me all the things! 


Things to Work On or Finish in 2026

Jan. 1st, 2026 09:04 am
althea_valara: Photo of my cat sniffing a vase of roses  (Default)
[personal profile] althea_valara
HAPPY NEW YEAR! May your 2026 be filled with good health and much happiness.




So here's last year's list. I had some success this past year, but not as much as I would have liked:

Fannish Things

1. My Shadowbringers "summaries"

STILL not done. I think I did one update? Gotta get cracking on this!

2. The FFBE script

Last year I was lamenting not having Season 2/all the story events captured. I have since found YouTube channels that have the whole of Season 2 and many of the story events recorded! \o/ I would like to put some work into doing Season 2 this year.

3. Final Fantasy XI story

This was new for last year, and I'm really pleased with how much I've gotten done. I've documented Bastok missions through rank 5, plus the first expansion, Rise of the Zilart. I'm at work on the second expansion now.

4. Neocities!

This was also new for 2025, and I am very happy to say that I completed it! Well, completed in the sense that I got it fixed up enough to launch. It's always going to be a work in progress. I'm hoping to put a lot of work into it this year.




Knitting & Crochet Projects

I finished 23 projects in 2025, some of which had multiple pieces. I have dutifully made the list of WIPs, which is still L-O-N-G.

The following WIPs were deleted in 2025. Either frogged, or thrown away, or just lost and decided I didn't care to finish them:

* Mathilda Bolero
* Hospice Canaries
* Amigurumi Potted Plant
* Cherry Blossom Bonsai
* Perfect Knit T-Shirt
* NewYear Tree
* Little Green Elf Cowl
* Small Eastern Dragon
* Marion Slouch
* Boo! Doily

But I also added a bunch of WIPs, so the number hasn't changed much:

* Weekend Headband
* Mosey - technically done but I might lengthen them, so still marked WIP
* Versailles Scarf
* Pretty Poinsettia Ornament
* Disney Crochet Kit Halloween Stitch
* Sylvan Tee
* Butterfly Shawl
* Sophie Scarf
* SECRET PROJECT
* Diamond Peaks Drawstring Bag
* P 9. Shawl (ショール)
* Glymur
* Sweetheart Soiree
* Emotional Support Chicken

This year, I'd really like to focus on bigger projects and get some garments done. So I don't know how many of these WIPs will be touched this year. We'll see!

Here's the list of WIPs:

#Date StartedProject NameComment
12025-12-09Weekend HeadbandYuppers.
22025-11-02MoseyMight make longer? Otherwise done.
32025-11-01Versailles ScarfYES, FINISH! January goal?
42025-10-07Pretty Poinsettia OrnamentMaybe for this year.
52025-09-15Disney Crochet Kit Halloween StitchIt’s STITCH! Make for Halloween 2026?
62025-08-01Sylvan TeeTo poke at now and then.
72025-08-07Butterfly ShawlFind and finish.
82025-06-05Sophie ScarfUnearth and finish.
92025-05-06SECRET PROJECTSECRET PROJECT. Yes, please finish in 2026
102025-04-24Diamond Peaks Drawstring BagNeed to start over. Maybe someday?
112025-04-07P 9. Shawl (ショール)Have yarn, might make.
122025-04-01GlymurInspired by my therapist, who wears ponchos. Find and finish in 2026.
132025-02-03Sweetheart SoireeUnearth and finish.
142025-02-02Emotional Support ChickenEh, maybe
152025-01-01Motion Picture Mosaic CardiUGH. Starting sleeve over.
162024-12-30VillemoNewest WIP, will do as I can.
172024-08-07Cat Lady BagNEW, and I really want to make this!
182024-06-07LuftslottNEW in 2024, plan to do in 2025.
192024-05-26PlumeriaNEW in 2025, finish by end of summer?
202024-04-04Final Fantasy XVI Torgal Blanket SquareTried, wasn’t coming out too good. Unsure what to do.
212024-01-05PoinsettiaJust need leaves!
222023-12-04#13 Central Park HoodieFor ME. Want done by spring.
232025-12-14Missy CFor ME. No hurry.
242023-10-15Copycat CowlUm, did I finish this?
252023-09-20Celtic PlacematPlan was to make for older sister, not sure I am going to follow through on that.
262023-08-02Spring Bluebird BannerFinish by spring. (I said this in 2024, too, hah!)
272023-02-24Brown Felted BagNo hurry.
282022-12-01The Parlor CatFinish eventually.
292022-10-30Bat Filet Crochet ExampleFinish by Halloween!
302022-08-30Lacy Crochet KerchiefDone, find and take a pic to mark complete
312022-08-03Simple Crescent ShawlFinish for Area 51 sometime.
322023-02-02Lovely room doilyWould like to do sometime.
332022-04-02Cable-Stayed BeanieThis is a cool hat I’d like to make sometime
342022-03-02WavedeckWant to finish this sometime, for myself.
352021-12-22Country Cottage HeadbandGods will I ever finish this?
362021-03-04Tarragon the Gentle DragonStill would like to make this!
372021-02-03Twig ShawlFinish eventually.
382020-10-04Hazel HandbagFinish eventually.
392020-04-24Forest Green HatWould like to do sometime.
402020-01-03Buckle Your Swash GauntletsWould like to do sometime.
412019-07-22Yeah, need to finish.
422019-04-15Dreaming of Spring DoilyWould like to do sometime.
432019-04-06The Little Flower DoilyMaybe? It’s knitted so HARD.
442018-11-01Snowberries A Luxurious Winter ScarfFinish eventually.
452020-06-08Knitted DragonStill love this, might make eventually.
462018-12-01Call Them Cherry BlossomsFinish eventually.
472008-09-27Ripple Beige AfghanMy oldest WIP, needs to be done already!
482015-12-05Turkish TreasureFinish eventually.
vriddy: Injured Endeavor (ouch)
[personal profile] vriddy
Via [personal profile] synecdochic, and also what I see happening based on the latest post on [site community profile] dw_maintenance and comments there.

Please spread this far and wide so as many people see it as possible, because I really don't see English-language LJ continuing in its present form for much longer, and I know some people may still have things they care about there. It doesn't matter how you get it backed up, but it's absolutely crunch time for getting it backed up.

I saw this import FAQ being linked in the [site community profile] dw_maintenance comments for how to import into Dreamwidth, if that's the option you choose. So I take it this is working again, I remember there were issues a couple of years back, but better act quickly before that's no longer the case.

Link: Get anything you have left on LJ backed up ASAP by [personal profile] synecdochic
Link: How do I import my journal from another site? (dreamwidth.org)

vriddy: Hawks perched on a pole with sword-feather in hand (hawks perched)
[personal profile] vriddy
Candy Hearts sign-ups are OPEN!!! You can find the schedule here, and the sign-up info post there, and here's for a direct link to the sign up form, and to the tagset!

You will never guess which fandom is included in my sign-up... and which canon I wrote a canon promo comment for ;D Haha. I'm actually signing up with tiny beloved polyships in 3 fandoms this time (K-9, Wind Breaker, Kaijuu No. 8) and I'm seriously excited about receiving any of them. It's the first time I do a sign-up like this haha, in that normally I try to be serious or close enough, but instead this is just me kind of jumping around about "THEM" whichever THEM it happens to be about XD :D I'm excited. It's also the first time I sign up for an exchange so early I think!! Normally I procrastinate until dangerously late because I worry about forgetting something. I also linked to the K-9 primer in my request... XD

Anyway, I love [personal profile] candyheartsex (and its predecessor [community profile] chocolateboxcomm), it's a chill exchange with a small minimum (300 words fic or podfic, art) that reveals on Valentine's Day (but doesn't have to be valentine-themed, at all). Because of the low word count maybe, there's usually a fantastic treating culture around it, and it's just sweet and delightful fun all around. I'm really glad to be participating this year! I'll have to remember to check in a few days that I can match as well. I see BNHA and Wind Breaker people are starting to sign up so it should be fine :D Maybe see you there??

Persistence

Jan. 1st, 2026 03:42 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
I love this quote.  It's actually good advice.

Don't chase your dreams. 

Poem: "Ruling from Beneath"

Jan. 1st, 2026 02:33 am
ysabetwordsmith: Damask smiling over their shoulder (polychrome)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
This poem was written outside the regular prompt calls. It was inspired by a remark from [personal profile] fuzzyred. It also fills the "Deep Blue Sea" square in my 5-1-25 card for the Colors Fest Bingo. This poem has been sponsored by a pool with [personal profile] fuzzyred. It belongs to the Kraken thread of the Polychrome Heroics series.


"Ruling from Beneath"


Kraken had always contained
enough scientists to understand
observation changing experiments.

They realized that ruling from beneath
would cause less ripples, less risk of
rocking the boat, than trying to be
the shadow behind the throne.

Nobody would ever look for
world leaders underneath
the deep blue sea.

Bye-Bye, 2025

Dec. 31st, 2025 10:46 pm
ravan: (Goodnight - crystal_blitz)
[personal profile] ravan
You sucked, 2025. Between death in the family and the political insanity, you just plain sucked.

I don't do "New Year's Resolutions". I learned a long time ago that by February everything would change again.

I'll be up until midnight, as usual. Quite frankly I'm not looking forward to the coming year, between family issues and politics.

Public Domain Day Bingo Card 1-1-26

Jan. 1st, 2026 12:29 am
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
Here is my card for the Public Domain Day Bingo over in [community profile] allbingo. The fest runs from January 1-31. (See all my 2026 bingo cards.)

If you'd like to sponsor a particular square, especially if you have an idea for what character, series, or situation it would fit -- talk to me and we'll work something out. I've had a few requests for this and the results have been awesome so far. This is a good opportunity for those of you with favorites that don't always mesh well with the themes of my monthly projects. I may still post some of the fills for free, because I'm using this to attract new readers; but if it brings in money, that means I can do more of it. That's part of why I'm crossing some of the bingo prompts with other projects, such as the Poetry Fishbowl.

Underlined prompts have been filled.


PUBLIC DOMAIN DAY CARD

Seas Beneath  PrivateYou're Driving Me CrazyBody and SoulThe Secret of the Old Clock
Cakes and AleChasing RainbowsThe CastleSoup to NutsBorn Reckless
The Hidden StaircaseJust ImagineWILD CARDUp the RiverBut Not for Me
The Mysterious UniverseThe DoorThe Green PasturesA Cup of CoffeeBeyond the Blue Horizon
The End of the WorldGrumpyCity GirlSomething to Remember You ByFascinating Rhythm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith
For those who may have overindulged (or know someone else who has) recently:

Hangover Severity and Symptom Tracker

24 of the Best Hangover Foods to Ease Your Pain


Additional resources appear in the content notes for poems dealing with overconsumption of alcohol.

"Monkey Chew Pepper" and Monkey content notes

"The Hog Knows the Tree" and Hog content notes


"The Fourth for My Enemies" and Fourth content notes

"When in a Dark Place" and Dark content notes

"Our Power to Change" and Power content notes

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