sonia | Entries tagged with story!

rachelmanija. "She was found in the Lowlands, but she was from so much further away." This story is jewel-like and perfect. I don't know canon, and didn't need to.

Masked Cities by

reconditarmonia. Also via

rachelmanija. "You take a trip to the city of Agilulfa." An interactive text game where people wear masks (decorative, not medical). I haven't played all the way through it yet. The traveler doesn't keep as low a profile as I would as a tourist.

Okay, now I completed it. It's a little more aimless and anti-climactic than I expected. I kept flinching and waiting for something terrible to happen. Still a lovely Yuletide offering!

101 Gifts For the Druid Who Has Everything by

Ferritin4. A new Asterix and Obelix adventure! It's been many years since I read one of the comics, but the illustrations popped up in my head as I read each name. <3 <3 <3

A few Yuletide 2021 stories I enjoyed for their warmth.

Gentle Slice-of-Life in G Major by

ocean_of_ink. John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme. I hadn't heard of this canon, but the story is great. "Snapshots of Susanna, Gally, and Newt"

at dusk through narrow streets by

raven (singlecrow). Also John Finnemore's Souvenir Programme. "Newt, Susannah and Gally, on one winter's day in 1923." Both of these via

petra.

Long-Term Projects by

Wasuremono. A crossover between 17776: What Football Will Look Like in the Future - Jon Bois, and Expert Judgment on Markers to Deter Inadvertent Human Intrusion... - Sandia Labs. "Even after radiation stops being able to kill, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant doesn't offer a lot of entertainment. What keeps drawing people back? A sense of duty to a lost future? Reenacting old mistakes? Boredom?

It's probably mostly boredom." Via

gingicat.

A Garden Invasion by

Ghostinthehouse. "How the angel Aziraphale, when he finally came hunting for his husband, found him on his knees, weeding Miss Marple's garden." Slyly sweet.

While you wait for Yuletide 2021…

back in anno domini and eia nobis annus est by

acrosticacrumpet, via

pedanther. "One cold Christmas, Susan Pevensie meets Kay Harker, and things get very strange very quickly."

Two people with mysterious pasts develop a warm friendship, and later have adventures. Just lovely.

Via

minoanmiss's Year End Fanfic Meme post, her lovely story with her favorite cat character,
The First Tale of Mmr-ii-reh by

rubynye . For the prompts "Ghost Cat & Person She's Chosen to Care for Her Kittens" and "Cat Who Wants To Be A Witch In Her Own Right Instead Of Someone's Familiar"

and her most recommended fanfic, which I am now joining her in recommending. Very topical!
[Comics] Happy Birthday, Steve Rogers, 2021 by

potofsoup.

These two stories make me cry because of the warm connections they show.

The Tale of the White Lady of Iffish by

raspberryhunter via

melannen. "It is not told in the Deed of Seren how Tenar of the Ring became the White Lady of Iffish. This is that story." I had read (and recced) this one before, and it's even better than I remembered.

Wholly to Be a Fool by

bluestocking79 via

beatrice_otter on

fancake for the Going Home theme. "At the age of 65, Eileen Prince Snape is as surprised as anyone to find that she's finally developed an interest in being anybody's wife or mother."

The Last Navigator by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa. A brief, hopeful story about the far future.

The Amiable Planet by Yoon Ha Lee, a Twine (text-based) gentle exploratory game. Full play-through in about 20 minutes.

And as a counterpoint, a tall comic I posted before (twice!) about dark stories.
"Do you have any idea what you're doing?" by B. Patrick.

Without a Password by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa. A warm, hopeful story. In fact, it talks about exactly what I want, which has felt more and more impossible.

tlkateart, The Latest Kate posts her art of encouraging animals and sayings. Example: Hedgehog says "Please try to be on your own side today." Open in a private tab in your browser to avoid Twitter hassling you to log in.

The Shape of Wings and Feathers by Jenny Rae Rappaport. Caring and connection win out over their opposites. Also it's okay to see the world differently from your peers and find your own way.

A Worm to the Wise by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa. This is what a hopeful response to climate change can look like.

melannen is offering 100 days of enemies to lovers story recs. I'm not even invested in that trope, or in most of the fandoms, but her writing about each fandom is sharp and entertaining, and it's a great survey of a whole bunch of fandoms. Highly recommended!

Post titles start with "100 days of enemy recs:".
Intro post.
First rec post on July 26th, 2021.

I liked all the stories on the 100 days of enemy recs: 16. The Lone Power page.
The most recent one is 100 days of enemy recs: 34. The Left Hand of Darkness and I liked Something New in the Same Face by

arpent.

Immortal Coil by Ellen Kushner. A story that dances through literature and a long friendship. I don't have the classical education to appreciate all the allusions, but I do appreciate the woven strands. The Afterword really makes it.

The Witch’s Child by

rubynye,

minoanmiss. "Someone — I’ve never known their name — cried it out that on our fair island of Ecoushia, a witch’s child would bring down the castle." I love the writing in this and the way the story flows. ( spoilery comment )

Cursed Motives by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa. A short story of hers I hadn't seen before, from 2012.

It reminded her of her cousin Tur, who would never be the Imperial heir because the Electors found him too pompous. This was not like Safy, who would almost definitely never be the Imperial heir because the Electors found her too frivolous.

The only thing that was really unsatisfactory about the situation, Safy reflected, was that she had no opportunities to use her great gift, which was the laying of curses. It seemed rude to complain about that, since the entertainment, the company, the scenery, and the food were first-rate.

The Thing, With Feathers by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa. A more recent one, that I had read before and still like, about a grimly determined lighthouse keeper. The ending made me wistful.

The Badger’s Digestion; or The First First-Hand Description of Deneskan Beastcraft by an Aouwan Researcher by Malka Older. The pompous voice at the beginning almost put me off, but it was worth continuing. A story about shifting perspectives.

Lava cake for the Apocalypse by Wendy Nikel. This story does a lot in a short space, and I like what it makes important. Via

ladybusiness.

Yes, Admiral, I know we have developed superior, genetically enriched starches on the New Worlds, but when I found this crumbling recipe card in the archives and realized it was written in your great-great-great-grandmother’s hand, I thought it would be fitting to bake it as accurate to Earth-era as possible.

'I'm with Muni - how can I help?' by Annalee Newitz. "This short fiction imagines a new kind of social support system in SF." I hope this becomes a template for future social services in many cities.

The Ancient Method That Keeps Afghanistan’s Grapes Fresh All Winter by Stefanie Glinski. I love the photos and story about the family that uses the ancient method. This is a true story. Via

conuly.

The Nine Scents of Sorrow by Jordan Taylor. I love all the sensory details in this story, even if I wouldn't be able to be in the same room with all the perfumes and perfumed people. Underneath the breezy tone lies the sorrow at losing connections. I'm still sitting with what the underlying conclusion of the story is (if there even is one) and whether it feels right to me. Via

bookgazing.

ETA:
We Are Not Phoenixes by John Wiswell. I like the matter-of-fact kindness in this story. It's a darker topic than most of what I post, but handled with compassion. Via

mrissa

Open 27 Hours by LP Kindred. Sensuous descriptions of food, and vivid descriptions of confusion and dislocation at the longest open soul food spot.

Southside Gods by Sarah Grey. "Within these lands, he is every plumber in the directory; he is all search results for toilet repair and leaking faucet. He is the alpha and omega of pipes, a small god of irrigation."

Both stories via

bookgazing in

ladybusiness.

I saw this on a poetry post outside a neighbor's house on a walk. You can also hear it read, I believe by the author.

"won't you celebrate with me" by Lucille Clifton
won't you celebrate with me
what i have shaped into
a kind of life? i had no model.
born in babylon
both nonwhite and woman
what did i see to be except myself?
i made it up
here on this bridge between
starshine and clay,
my one hand holding tight
my other hand; come celebrate
with me that everyday
something has tried to kill me
and has failed.

Copyright © 1993 by Lucille Clifton in Book of Light.

The Apothecary and the Carpenter's Son by

JohannesEvans. A story in a twitter thread. Lovely, warm, sweet. Mostly safe for work.

an apothecary who lives alone at the edge of town bc a lot of the townsfolk find his gruff and taciturn manner very intimidating - he almost never says a word, and they're sure he must be very powerful

and a man comes to town because he wants to come home and look after his father, a carpenter, and help him work because he's getting on in years

keeps showing up at the apothecary's to ask him for gels and potions and such for his father, little remedies

but he lingers, too.

watches the apothecary work and praises him for how skilled his hands are, how neatly organised everything is, how fine it all looks

the apothecary never replies, but he seems to listen, and the carpenter's son likes to talk

Read the rest on twitter

The last few years I haven't found as much I resonated with in the Yuletide collection, as I and the stories I loved as a kid continue aging. But this year I got lucky in my first few clicks! Yuletide 2020

The Urchins in the Tower by

UrsulaKohl. An interactive 13 Clocks story! "Who were the children whom the cruel Duke found in his camellia beds? How did they find a ball covered in golden stars? What was their fate?" It worked for me in Safari.

the stuff dreams are made of (are someone else's nightmares) by

Elemental. A Calvin & Hobbes story starring Susie Derkins as herself!

And, find out what words were added to the dictionary the year you were born. Here's 1969 and you can change the year at the end of the link to the year you're interested in. Via

jesse_the_k. My best one is analemma.

ETA: More Yuletide stories

The Season of Basking by

serephemeral, Jackalope Wives series. The story really catches the tone of Ursula Vernon's writing, as well as having something important to say in its own right. (I had an incorrect author guess on this one.)

Altogether Your World by

Slantedlight, Dark is Rising Sequence. I've read several lovely loving Bran/Will fics over the years, and this is another one in that tradition. I like how it shows the characters as capable grounded adults while still keeping them in character.

Across the Realm by

ivyspinners, Riddle-Master Trilogy. It's been so long since I've seen a Riddle-Master fic at Yuletide, I thought it must no longer qualify. This one is perfect. It makes me happy simply by existing.

The Song in the Night by

sandalwoodbox, Steerswoman series. "Rowan and Bel spend a wintry evening singing, talking, and looking at charts." It's a lovely story, and at the same time it's interesting to notice that it doesn't match my internal sense of how the characters would interact.

Come Water, Be One of Us by Olivia Cade via

asakiyume, who posted some quotes. An angry, triumphant story about one way things could come right. Mind the warnings at the beginning.

A side rant. Not directly related, but I think indirectly it is. ( Not being treated like a person )

Themes of loneliness, longing, going home, leaving home. While still avoiding grimdark, violence, death.

Old Age Wrestles Thor Again by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa.

Points of Origin by Marissa Lingen,

mrissa. From 2015, in the Oort Cloud Disaster universe, but I had somehow missed this one. Contains ice skating on Mars.

Seven Commentaries on an Imperfect Land by Ruthanna Emrys

Dragon Years by Juliet Kemp.

In the House of the Seven Librarians by Ellen Klages.

Many of these via Cosy Up With Our Short Fiction Recs on

ladybusiness. Some of them I've posted before, and still like.

A Pale Horse by M Evan MacGriogair.

A lovely multilingual story (Gaelic and English) about despair, hope, and connection.

Here, have a Scots Gaelic pronunciation guide that I wish I'd had before I read the story. It's one thing not to understand everything in a story, but to know I'm not even getting close to pronouncing it right is another level of discomfort. I have enough of a grounding in enough languages to be unused to feeling completely shut out.

And here's Google translate from Scots Gaelic to English. I don't have time right now to run the Gaelic in the story through there, since I supposedly only paused briefly to post this, but I might go back and do this later.

I have not forgotten the suggested topics and will write posts for them soonish. It's not too late to suggest more topics. I am enjoying people's comments!

Meanwhile, am writing! The section intros are finally settling into shape and I might have a solid complete draft soon.

Signal boost from

runpunkrun:
If you live in Canada or the US, Tor.com's ebook of the month club is giving away Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series for free this week, one book a day through Friday. Just sign up for their newsletter.

Today's book is Every Heart A Doorway and can be downloaded until midnight tonight. Available in DRM-free epub or mobi.

I downloaded the first one and read it today. More violent than I expected, but also more kindness.

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TraumaHealed.com

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Sonia Connolly

Entries tagged with story!

Stories! From far lands

Stories! Sweet relationships

Story! The Fearsome Robber Band of Pevensie-Harker

Stories! @minoanmiss's recs

Stories: Friendship and warmth

Stories! Gentle, hopeful

Story! Without a Password

Stories and art: Encouragement

Stories! 100 days of enemies to lovers recs from Melannen

Story! Immortal Coil

Stories! Curses and gifts

Story! Lava cake for the Apocalypse

Stories! Community connections

Stories! Identities out of the ordinary

Story! The Apothecary and the Carpenter's Son

Stories! Some interactive

Story! Come Water, Be One of Us

Stories! Away from home

Story! A Pale Horse

Story! Free Seanan McGuire Wayward Children ebooks