Love All Around
I took a short break from livejournal to read the first book of CJ Cherryh's Dawnbreaker trilogy and watch anime. Catching up is really starting to kill me; I might have to read on filter once school starts, although I have no idea what I'd cut out beyond a few increasingly annoying communities.
Dawnbreaker: Is scarily similar to Cherryh's other books. karentraviss said once that the worst thing an author can do is change themes or styles, because this will alienate readers (who like a writer for what they do, after all). But I think using the same themes in two different series is an even greater turn-off. If there are two books about the same thing by the same author, why should I bother reading both? Especially in sci-fi: if I find myself thinking, I have already seen this concept explored in this way, the author is in trouble.
Anime: Samurai Deeper Kyo, which I've been watching on-off for two years now. I even have the first three official DVDs! When I tell my friends how tenaciously I've been following this they're always like, why, and I'm always like, I DON'T KNOW. It's ahistorical and badly drawn and retarded. Kyo is so cool.
HIGHLIGHTS from the last week.
Twelve Kingdoms
Taiki shortfic <-- I completely forgot to mention I wrote this. Probably because I don't like it, it's so typical.
Youko/Rakushun fics <-- collected in rakasha's memories and as you can see the list is very short. DO A GOOD DEED: LEAVE A COMMENT IF YOU KNOW WHERE THERE ARE MORE.
Everyone knows about canis_m's letterfics? Yeah, I thought so. Beautifully evocative and they end perfectly.
Novel translations, for my own reference:
Demon Child
Shadow of the Moon
I've tried to read the translations at Otyaku, but I just can't do it.
Initial D
Initial D/Hikaru no Go crossover <-- Even if it was badly done this would be brilliant, but it's well-written and plausible, which makes it BRILLIANT. XD by issen4.
Street Racer's Terminology <-- evidence of how starved for non-drabble IniD fic I am. I haven't had time look around yet, and I need to. SOON. This one is alright, I like the abruptness of the exposition; but it's Keisuke/Takumi and the first paragraph fooled me into to thinking there'd be more about cars and less about playing amusing bedgames. BAH. (d_moonchild on issen4's recommendation.)
Pally's Collab Corner
Death Note one-page gag comic <-- *blows hearts in pally_pally's direction* the unoriginality is mine, the cute expressions and amazing linework are hers. Light, Near, and Mello.
Death Note chibi art <-- based on something I said here. bluedelirium did one too and it was SIMILARLY AWESOME (here).
Pally, you said you were looking for people to collaborate with? telophase and company are working at a limited-publication original manga anthology under their new label, PandaBuddha. You might find someone willing to take you on in the forum. I'm sort of still staring at the dark!Death Note script, but it's sort of still dead, and the massive amounts of CRACK in the latest manga chapters aren't helping. (OHBA-SENSEI SAYS: I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WERE TAKING MY MANGA SERIOUSLY, HAHAHAHA.)
Princess Tutu
ADV to release Vol 2 November 29, re-release Vol 1 <-- *PUMPS FIST*
Icon bases <-- check these out if the series summary is throwing you off, they're a visible representation of the themes that've been driving people crazy with Tutu-love.
Naruto
Summary of manga chapters 258-271 <-- i_smile's. THAT'S SO ASTUTE and also I don't like Kakashi much either.
GIP. *admires* It's my new "I'm overthinking this, aren't I?" icon. Courtesy of rashaka.
Fandom Relief Efforts
Pellaz offers fic in exchange for Katrina donations <-- I'm doing this as soon as my House!finances are settled.
Blood for fic <-- exactly what it sounds like. Measures like this are too inefficient to really be effective, but they don't hurt either.
News and help links <-- yasminm is always on top of these things.
I didn't think I'd ever been to New Orleans -- even though Umich always schedules Spring Break to coincide with Mardi Gras -- but I've just realized I have. We took a detour on the way back from Florida (Boca Raton), I think I was five or six. I remember sitting at an outdoor cafe, on a second-story balcony, French Quarter, July, millions of hanging flowers (mostly pink), and I accidentally dropped a really nice fork over the railing and onto the street. After we'd paid the bill we saw that the fork was still there, only it'd been flattened into sheet metal by the traffic.
I still have that former fork.
Dawnbreaker: Is scarily similar to Cherryh's other books. karentraviss said once that the worst thing an author can do is change themes or styles, because this will alienate readers (who like a writer for what they do, after all). But I think using the same themes in two different series is an even greater turn-off. If there are two books about the same thing by the same author, why should I bother reading both? Especially in sci-fi: if I find myself thinking, I have already seen this concept explored in this way, the author is in trouble.
Anime: Samurai Deeper Kyo, which I've been watching on-off for two years now. I even have the first three official DVDs! When I tell my friends how tenaciously I've been following this they're always like, why, and I'm always like, I DON'T KNOW. It's ahistorical and badly drawn and retarded. Kyo is so cool.
HIGHLIGHTS from the last week.
Twelve Kingdoms
Taiki shortfic <-- I completely forgot to mention I wrote this. Probably because I don't like it, it's so typical.
Youko/Rakushun fics <-- collected in rakasha's memories and as you can see the list is very short. DO A GOOD DEED: LEAVE A COMMENT IF YOU KNOW WHERE THERE ARE MORE.
Everyone knows about canis_m's letterfics? Yeah, I thought so. Beautifully evocative and they end perfectly.
Novel translations, for my own reference:
Demon Child
Shadow of the Moon
I've tried to read the translations at Otyaku, but I just can't do it.
Initial D
Initial D/Hikaru no Go crossover <-- Even if it was badly done this would be brilliant, but it's well-written and plausible, which makes it BRILLIANT. XD by issen4.
Street Racer's Terminology <-- evidence of how starved for non-drabble IniD fic I am. I haven't had time look around yet, and I need to. SOON. This one is alright, I like the abruptness of the exposition; but it's Keisuke/Takumi and the first paragraph fooled me into to thinking there'd be more about cars and less about playing amusing bedgames. BAH. (d_moonchild on issen4's recommendation.)
Pally's Collab Corner
Death Note one-page gag comic <-- *blows hearts in pally_pally's direction* the unoriginality is mine, the cute expressions and amazing linework are hers. Light, Near, and Mello.
Death Note chibi art <-- based on something I said here. bluedelirium did one too and it was SIMILARLY AWESOME (here).
Pally, you said you were looking for people to collaborate with? telophase and company are working at a limited-publication original manga anthology under their new label, PandaBuddha. You might find someone willing to take you on in the forum. I'm sort of still staring at the dark!Death Note script, but it's sort of still dead, and the massive amounts of CRACK in the latest manga chapters aren't helping. (OHBA-SENSEI SAYS: I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU WERE TAKING MY MANGA SERIOUSLY, HAHAHAHA.)
Princess Tutu
ADV to release Vol 2 November 29, re-release Vol 1 <-- *PUMPS FIST*
Icon bases <-- check these out if the series summary is throwing you off, they're a visible representation of the themes that've been driving people crazy with Tutu-love.
Naruto
Summary of manga chapters 258-271 <-- i_smile's. THAT'S SO ASTUTE and also I don't like Kakashi much either.
GIP. *admires* It's my new "I'm overthinking this, aren't I?" icon. Courtesy of rashaka.
Fandom Relief Efforts
Pellaz offers fic in exchange for Katrina donations <-- I'm doing this as soon as my House!finances are settled.
Blood for fic <-- exactly what it sounds like. Measures like this are too inefficient to really be effective, but they don't hurt either.
News and help links <-- yasminm is always on top of these things.
I didn't think I'd ever been to New Orleans -- even though Umich always schedules Spring Break to coincide with Mardi Gras -- but I've just realized I have. We took a detour on the way back from Florida (Boca Raton), I think I was five or six. I remember sitting at an outdoor cafe, on a second-story balcony, French Quarter, July, millions of hanging flowers (mostly pink), and I accidentally dropped a really nice fork over the railing and onto the street. After we'd paid the bill we saw that the fork was still there, only it'd been flattened into sheet metal by the traffic.
I still have that former fork.