crystal-lee

41 - Award Winning Lesbian and Pathological Upstager - MILF Collector "If you don’t like me at my Patti LuPone in War Paint, you don’t get me at my Patti LuPone in Evita"

[lezziemanville]

Hi!

Just so you know, with you being such a big part of my DWP experience back in the day, I’d love to hear what you thought of The Devil Wears Prada 2, especially with its very mixed reviews from fans.

I hope you’re well and I look forward to possibly hearing by what you think ☺️

You have no idea what it did for me to have you say I was part of your DWP experience. Generally so touched! I loved being part of that fandom - particularly in the Livejournal days. We were all truly living then weren’t we? Take me back pre-Lezziemanville to the Kitnkabootle days!

For the most part, I loved the movie.

I found the character jumps a little jarring at first. I didn’t want Miranda to talk so much. Or to be at her summer home all giddy. I know it probably sounds weird because while I saw what they were doing — showing us the characters on the other side of lived experiences — I wanted to see the same ones from before: Terrifying Miranda, floundering Andy.

The movie needed about 90% less boyfriend dialogue and I didn’t like Emily’s arc…

But overall I did love to see my girls again! The end felt like they landed the plane. Miranda and Andy were never going to be canonically a safe team. The power dynamics weren’t ever even. But I like it that way. I never wanted them to get married, and take the kids to the beach for the weekend. I wanted that weird, off-footed predator/prey thing they’ve always had going. Don’t get too comfortable, someone’s going to get hurt. They gave us that continued dynamic canonically.

What’s probably the most weird thing to admit, is that I hadn’t been craving the sequel at all.

Over the years, I’ve read DWP 2 in so many iterations: @chilly-flame , @ubiquitousmixie , @telanu, the authors of one shots, of AUs, of works four times longer than the original film script. The gift all these people shared with each other gave us the continuing story.

DWP2 just feels like icing on the cake.

Thanks sweetie pie, it was fun to think about ♥️

[stelly38]

(Two different versions, because I'm broken.) He looks like such a whore, I love it.

[lezziemanville]

The Lydia Quigley defense post literally no one asked for.

So like I keep seeing posts everywhere of people saying “So glad to see Lydia getting what she deserves” and all that, but I also see people saying “I’m not sure why I feel bad for her she’s awful” blah blah blah but hear me out.

Lydia Quigley was routinely raped by her own father as an INFANT. It’s also hinted that she grew up around that gross unscrupulous Bawd who was a friend of her father’s. Now it’s clear to me this kind of torment she had to endure until she was old enough to get out and support herself was detrimental to her entire belief system. At one point she says, “Love is strongest when it’s cruel”. She actually believes that. She believes that being ruthless and hard on the people she loves is the way she should be. She did it with Margaret and with Charlotte. She doesn’t see the problem. In other ways you see her struggle with the things she’s doing to keep power, like aiding and abetting rape herself, and her still making the choice to do it because she seems to believe it’s the only way to keep herself in a position of standing. Lydia seems to believe it’s constantly sink or swim and she’s keeping her head above water nomatter who has to be drowned for her to do so. Now as we see, that power doesn’t protect her in the slightest because one word from her son and she’s hauled away to the asylum — losing everything she worked for. My problem with Lydia hate is it’s not as simple as “oh she’s a bad woman”. She’s a product of the society she was born into. We’re also reminded that she sold Nancy and Margaret Wells when they were 12. But was it not suggested Charlotte was sold as young as 13 by Margaret? I’m fairly sure they are ALL CHILDREN. 12, 13, 14... doesn’t make any of that right so it’s interesting to me that the characters themselves don’t see that pattern. It was also different times when ages of consent were younger — which frankly is gross to even think about. She’s a fighter and a survivor and clearly succeeding in her endeavors from the wealth she amassed. But basically the TL;DR is that it’s easy to paint Lydia with the “villainess” brush because she’s designed to be that role in the series. What’s harder is seeing that she is the villain we could all be if we came from her circumstances and were brought up in that society.

[lezziemanville]

God I miss Lydia Quigley

[lezziemanville]

Concept: Patty Hewes and Gerri Kellman almost slept together once. Occasionally when Patty has a tough case she’ll call Gerri in to assist, flex her litigation muscles. Their sexual tension is palpable but ultimately Gerri will decline the offer of drinks that Patty invariably makes while they walk to their separate town cars idling outside of the building. Until one night, Gerri crosses in front of Patty and opens her car door for her, then slips in afterward. Patty knows it has less to do with her and more to do with the way Gerri’s brow had knit in consternation after a litany of texts had lit up her phone screen earlier in the day. More to do with the short, thin figure, hands shoved in his suit pockets, watching their car roll away from the curb.

[keepscrollinghun]

Olivia (1951) dir. Jacqueline Audry ↳ based on Dorothy Bussy's semi-autobiographical novel Olivia (1949).

[ashleyslorens]

#looking respectfully 👀

[lezziemanville]

This whole show owns my ass but her mainly

[magnass]

tagged by @lezziemanville thank you for tagging me! this was so fun even if it took me 2 business months to actually do it.

rules: give us the links to your fic with the most hits, second most kudos, third most comments, fourth most bookmarks, fifth most words, and fic with the least words (feel free to interpret however you would like; if not on AO3, can be on Tumblr or FFNET!)

most hits: wheat kings and pretty things (let's just see what tomorrow brings) (Bernie/Serena Holby City Great British Bake Off AU) 29,086 hits

light of my life, my darling, the longest and most intricate fic I've ever written. baked goods, lesbianism, there was a very detailed spreadsheet that planned out every bake and every ranking/star baker/disqualification for every week. trying to find technical bakes they hadn't done before was brutal.

I sometimes get comments that people are re-reading this as their comfort fic and that brings me so much joy

second most kudos: don't care what you keep doin' (just keep on doin' it with me) (Bernie/Serena Holby City Fake Dating AU) 1,183 kudos

I've always been a sucker for fake dating and this cruise fake dating moment was so fun to write. this was the first long fic I actually wrote and finished so it has a special place in my heart for that. also 10/10 enjoyable way to say fuck you to Marcus

third most comments: an intimacy (Bernie/Serena Holby City Sex Worker AU) 345 comment threads

literally obsessed that this is on here 😭 the world's most sex-less sex worker au.

as is probably very evident from my writing I really vibe with Bernie's experience of trauma and how she copes with it and I loved getting to give that an in depth treatment that wasn't there in the show. it was also very cool that so many people were willing to go along with whatever wacky au my muse handed me.

fourth most bookmarks: until i had you on the open road and now we're singing (Bernie/Serena Holby City Bernie is a Mechanic AU) 77 bookmarks

mechanic au!!! wow we are truly just playing the hits of my long holby city fics. this was a super fun way to put my time working in car servicing to good use. I loved hot mechanic Bernie and I also vividly remember scouring the internet for schematics of engines in order to get this done.

fifth most words: they don't know about the up all nights (they don't know I've waited all my life) (Johnny/Bull Band of Brothers) 22,010 words

throwback to when my former roommates and I got super into band of brothers for like 6 months. I am super proud of this fic, I actually think it's some of my best writing in terms of capturing characters as they exist in canon (especially because unlike most of my long fics this is not an AU but follows canon).

truly a tiny ship in a small fandom so very much something I wrote because there was so little fic out there for this pairing. you should watch the show because it's great and then go to ao3 because there is some phenomenal fic for it.

least words: always the healer, never the healed (Bernie/Serena Holby City) 1,494 words

just a short introspective fic that was one of the first things I wrote for berena. I don't know that overall it's my best written work or my favourite (I honestly think that ‘‘ｓｏ ｃｏｍｅ ｈｏｍｅ’’ said the voice from the stars. is my favourite thing I wrote for Holby City and technically one of my best pieces). But always the healer gave me the opportunity to really delve into and think about Bernie and Serena's characters and I think it was really foundational to how I wrote them in my later longer or better fics.

tagging Jess in case she hasn't done this before! @missparker

[lezziemanville]

All you Berena people especially need to take note that Magnass is one of the GOATS of Berena fanfic. If you haven’t read one of these pieces or all of these pieces, there’s still time to get in on the action!

[lezkissgifs]

Songcatcher (2000) dir. Maggie Greenwald

[callitacurse]

HACKS 4x08 | 'Witch of the Week'

a married couple

[damelucyjo]

Jennifer Simard photographed by Michael Kushner for The Dressing Room Project

[droughtofapathy]

Death Becomes Her's Jennifer Simard Celebrates 'Rebirth in My Life' with Fiery Photo Shoot (People)

"Simard collaborated with body paint makeup artist Ryan Jackson and photographer Sarah Jenkins on a spicy photo shoot. With the help of his assistant Siani Amalbert, Jackson transformed the actress, painting and bedazzling flames symbolizing Simard's interior passion onto her nude body." "I compare it to cooking a beautiful dish; sometimes it's better when it's been simmering for a while," she says. "You do get better once you have time to live in the shoes of the character and relax. Sometimes you just need to settle."

[lezziemanville]

rules: give us the links to your fic with the most hits, second most kudos, third most comments, fourth most bookmarks, fifth most words, and fic with the least words (feel free to interpret however you would like; if not on AO3, can be on Tumblr or FFNET!)

Thank you @applebottomclaudiajeans for the fun! I’ve not revisited my fanfic in a long time, and never even knew about fic stats until today. I so appreciate this!

Most hits: Indisposed (Miranda/Andy DWP) 25,732 hits

This was the first Devil Wears Prada fic I ever wrote. It took off so fast and I had so much support from the lovely Livejournal community, that it inspired me to believe in my own writing. I’m much too shy to attempt to re-read it now at the ripe old age of 40, but I’m happy it brought so many people joy!

Second most kudos: To Neither Give Nor Take Excuse (Bernie/Serena Holby City - AU crossover Bramwell) 600 kudos

This is one of my favorite things I have ever written. It came shockingly easy to me and I loved the process because I actually used a beta @jamieringo (the incomparable) who became a dear friend through the process. I was proud of this. I was writing in a time frame I enjoyed (it was set in Bramwell’s time period - old timey nurses are my fucking jam) and I was bouncing ideas off of a brilliant person who I just adore. 10/10 would recommend the process.

Third most comments: You’re the reason I had to stop telling lies (Ava/Deborah Hacks) 66 Comments

Okay I’m actually so happy with this one. It’s unfinished so don’t come for me, but I love the way it began. Wrote this for my bestie @badassbettyrizzo and she shames me every birthday for not finishing it. I know I will get to it, maybe after this season. It’s so hard to go back to the headspace when you’ve left the fic for a bit. This is, I think, the only Hacks fic I’ve written. Kind of crazy considering how easy a fandom can sway me.

Fourth most bookmarks: The House of Cards (Miranda/Andy DWP Sideshow AU) 91 Bookmarks

This was one of (if not the only) fics I’ve ever written with another author @ubiquitousmixie - and what an amazing writing partner to have! Guess you only have to do it once if your first time is as fulfilling as this one was! It was ages ago now but I remember sharing ideas back and forth, thinking up the trajectory of the story and plotting little moments along the path. We researched information and messaged it to each other, highlighting bits and pieces of real life sideshows that I think made it more compelling! I’m eternally grateful to have had this experience. She’s still one of my favorite authors!

Fifth most words: how memory is akin to remorse (Mademoiselle Julie/Olivia from Olivia (1951) 19,611 words

This is maybe my most favorite thing I’ve written in my whole life. I love this fic. I am not too modest to admit that I think it is actually in character and enjoyable to read. It helps that this fandom has maybe 5 fics total (so there is very little to compare it to currently) — but I loved living in the fancy world of Mlle Julie, aging Olivia to adulthood before exploring the possibility we all wondered as young lesbians - what if our beautiful female teacher ever loved us back.

Fic with the least words: Mirandy in Microfic (Miranda/Andy DWP)

What can I say, there was a time when Mirandy owned my whole ass. I was a lesbian in the early 2000s.

Final thoughts: I kind of expected more Berena to be on this list, and even some Abbott Elementary. I lived in a few popular fandoms for awhile but I’m so used to living on the periphery of popularity, in my little niche pairings that no one reads (I’m looking at you Marilla / Miss Stacy in Anne with an E). I guess, this is all to say, thanks for reading! I really do miss it.

Tags: @ubiquitousmixie @magnass @lavenderseaslug (I forget their tumblr username!!), @mylittleredgirl @chilly-flame @phantomunmasked

[lezziemanville]

I was so pleased with my GLAAD ceremony ensemble. As I settle into this 40th year of life I’ve been shifting my style to Dietrich-esque, bucking traditional gender roles, mixing high-femme and vintage masculine, and it’s really a vibe.

[avadaniels]

HACKS 4x01 "Big, Brave Girl"

[lezziemanville]

Any of you fellow gays going to Paleyfest to see Hacks HBO or?

[lezziemanville]

To all you new little sweet Patti gaybies, still in the infancy of infatuation with our Queen, I remind you of the time she and fellow legend Christine Ebersole were in love. Two icons, one stage, their characters mostly separate for the entire show, and still they had more chemistry than those people in the Notebook. Anyways, anyways, anyways… this is my Richard and Elizabeth, my Sonny and Cher. If God is real she will reunite them in something very gay, very musical, very soon.

[lezziemanville]

Any over 40s on here or did I age out of Tumblr? 😭