better a jungle in the head than rootless concrete

Marjorie. 33. Currently living in NY. INFJ and Enneagram Type 2-- that pretty much sums it up. Hi!

[obstinate-questionings]

Miss you and your writing, friend! Did my annual reread of your works and i hope you're doing well even though the world is going to shit :)

Thank you so much, anon! :) I hope you're doing well too, even in the midst of these horrible times. Sorry if this ask was sent a long time ago; I'm so bad at checking tumblr. Thank you for reading, and re-reading, and letting me know!

[obstinate-questionings]

Hi! I know this question may seem inappropriate, but I was wondering if I was able to get tattoos of some of the lines of your Bechloe fics? I'm an adult, fear not, and over the past 5 years or so, even if hey originated from fanfiction, your writing still impacts me today to keep moving. In fact, they feel like novels instead of writing! Just wanted to ask for your consent, and if not, no worries! I'm sure I'll find other ways to be reminded of your talent and the world you improved/created

Oh, wow! Lol. I don’t know if this is something you are still wondering about because I don’t know when this ask was sent -- I haven’t been on tumblr in a really long time; I apologize. This is a very surprising request! Well, I mean, the stories aren’t just mine -- they’re out in the world and shared with the world and it’s not up to me how people take inspiration from them or what meaning they might have for others. So it’s definitely up to you whatever tattoo you want to get for yourself. 🙈 But I appreciate that the fics are important to you and that they spoke to you, and I appreciate you letting me know. 

[obstinate-questionings]

Hi i just found youre the one who wrote forgive me these november days i just wanted to say thank you. I think i found that fic really early on when i first fell in love with bechloe fanfiction amd every year on thanksgiving break i plow through it still and im in college now. I just wanted to say thank you for such a masterpiece and for inspiring me to write my own fanfics when i was younger i just really appreciate your work a TON ily

Hi! I apologize for being so delayed in responding -- I forgot my tumblr password months ago and just got around to resetting it. I’m so happy to hear that November Days spoke to you and still speaks to you; it’s still really close to my heart so it always makes me happy to hear this! I really appreciate you letting me know, and I’m glad you’re writing your own works now. :)

[obstinate-questionings]

Something about The Haunting of Bly Manor, on Netflix, makes me think of your Halloween Bechloe fic! I've been doing my annual reread of your fics, and wow, even today they're still so dear to me! How are you? Have you completed your PhD? I wish you're well and okay! Sending good vibes and warm hugs!

Hi! I haven’t checked tumblr in approximately one million years so I apologize for my delay in responding! Thank you so much for messaging and for re-reading. :) I’m good! I did finish my PhD, I still live in NYC, and am now teaching at a nearby college. Sending good vibes right back at you!

[ratherembarrassing]

so.

i don’t even know how to begin.

glee meant so much to me, and then nothing, and these days it’s somewhere in the middle, but none of that ever touched the place santana lopez has in my heart, and by extension the person who brought her to life. how could it, when you grow around a thing. it’s there forever.

no one who has come into themselves after glee will ever understand what a true precipice naya stood on with santana. how could they, when everything that came after was so much for the better because she went first, and it was for keeps.

she did that. thank you, naya.

[obstinate-questionings]

Ok so, hi its the anon that asked for russian recommendations. I remember i asked for those when i was in high school and you have done me the biggest favour. Before I asked that question, I was really lost and didnt know if I should go to university or if i did, what would i go for? Because i was always feeling like i wasnt interested in anything. I read all the recommendations you gave and they changed my life. I'm in uni now and studying russian and i just wanted to thank you tremendously.

Oh, wow, thank you so much! Honestly this is delightful and really warms my heart. I'm so happy that you're enjoying your studies! Some of my best memories of college relate to Русский Клуб and Russian language and literature classes in all their weirdness and beauty. Please feel free to come off anon to fangirl about Russian literature whenever (although it may take me a minute to respond because I'm rarely on tumblr now). Thank you for sharing this with me! :)

[obstinate-questionings]

Adding my voice to the deserved many to say thank you for that wonderful bechloe series. What an extraordinary piece of fanfiction. I cannot imagine the amount of time and work that took but oh wow it was worth it. I love the parallel between all the people Chloe has unknowingly touched and moved in the story, and how many people you have touched and moved by writing it. I hope you can feel that. Thank you.

This is incredibly sweet and I'm so humbled by that comparison to Chloe!!! It really makes me happy that the story still continues to reach people & speak to them after nearly four (!) years. That whole series for me was very much a labor of love and I'm touched that others felt that! Thank you so much for reading :)

[obstinate-questionings]

I wanted to thank you for the November Days series. It actually came to me at a really hard time where I thought everything was hopeless. I was so relieved to find such a gem with characters that I am sure to never forget. The spirit and love that Chloe carries gives me hope that I can be okay too. Beca is truly who I resonate with though. I constantly think back to how much hatred I carried in previous years and her progression really makes me feel ok. Thank you for writing such a great work.

Oh anon, thank you for sending this. I’m so sorry that you were going through a tough time, although I very much get it. It really means a lot to me that it gave you hope -- and I also really hope that things are getting easier for you now. Thank you so much for letting me know that the story meant something to you, and I’m sending you good thoughts. <3

[obstinate-questionings]

Forgive me these november days certainly tugs at my heartstrings every time i read it. It is a masterpiece. I just wanted to ask you about all the references to russian literature. You seem to be quite an expert and through reading this piece, I also want to start getting my hands on russian literature. What do you suggest I do to get into the poems and novels? Also the history behind them? What are some starter books i should read? Thanks so much.

Oh, thank you so much for this!! I’m so glad to hear that the story has a place in your heart and that you enjoyed it. And especially that it has inspired you to dive into Russian literature! Haha. As you figured out, it’s an interest of mine (I studied Russian language and literature in college, although I ended up majoring in something else). I wouldn’t say I’m an expert, but I do like it a lot!

So, if you’re interested in poetry, I think Chloe’s favorites are probably the best to start with (Akhmatova and Mandelstam) – there are many translations of their works into English. (Blok is the most famous 20th century poet, probably, but he’s like level 301 Russianness; you don’t want to start with him.) As for novels, my gateway drug was Dostoevsky, so if you haven’t read him, I’d suggest reading his novels, which are still probably the best novels in the language (sorry Tolstoy). I started with The Brothers Karamazov but I think Crime & Punishment might be a better introduction to his work (though you should definitely get to TBK eventually; it’s just easy to get discouraged early on in that book by the complicated family and neighborhood drama and Dostoevsky’s terrible, terrible politics). Fair warning: I had vivid nightmares the entire time I read Crime & Punishment for the first time. But before you go to Dostoevsky or Tolstoy (Russian literature’s Golden Age), I’d suggest starting with the 20th century since it’s a little more accessible – for that, I’d say you should read The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov first. Oh, it’s so good! Dark and strange and funny and bizarrely moving. I also really recommend Dr. Zhivago (Pasternak). Once you move backwards to the Golden Age, check out Tolstoy’s short stories, and then make your way to Gogol’s Dead Souls. OH! And there’s a recent novel out called Laurus by Evgeny Vodolazkin that I really enjoyed; it very much captures the spirit of Russianness. As for understanding the history, the best best best recommendation I could give you for the 20th century (Soviet) history is Secondhand Time by Svetlana Alexievich. This was the best book I read this past year, one of the best books I’ve ever read?? It’s a collection of oral histories from people who lived through the Soviet period and it’s so transcendently beautiful and terrible and sad, just read it. There’s so so much more I want to recommend but this is already a really long response. So maybe start there and then let me know how it goes. :) Thank you again so much for your really kind comment!

[obstinate-questionings]

Ooh, did you turn 30 recently? Happy birthday if so!

Haha, I actually turned 30 in October, and just noticed yesterday that I hadn't updated my tumblr bio in a while. But thank you nonetheless!!! :)

[obstinate-questionings]

I know people have said it before, but I guess I'll just have to say it again: Forgive me these November days is fucking fantastic. It's honestly hard to put into words what you made me feel with these characters, and I'm just so grateful that you shared this masterpiece of a story with us. I just wanted to write this because, god, you really are such a talented writer. All the love xx

Thank you so much!!! Apparently you wrote this months ago but tumblr has never once felt that it is important to inform me that I have a message, so here we are. This is a really sweet ask and I appreciate it a lot. 😊 I'm so glad the story and the characters spoke to you! I hope all is well with you and sorry again that I missed this!

[obstinate-questionings]

How is your PhD coming along? Drawing upon your fics, I assume it has been going or has gone nicely; you are very talented at wording things - fictionally, at least, though I don't have any doubts for the PhD. What is it on? I've been reading your November Days series once again, I'm sure others will always too, because we are so thankful to see a character be made to resonate with ourselves, and I have claimed this series as canon to my mind. Would love to read Beca and Chloe's wedding, one day

Aw, this is really sweet! And haha, thanks for asking about the PhD! It’s a PhD in Religious Studies/Theology, and at this point I’m just writing the dissertation and teaching. My research focuses on theologies of radical social movements (particularly those associated with the struggle for black liberation in the second half of the 20th century). I could get more specific but it would probably be boring. I appreciate your confidence in my ability to write it! Thank you so much for letting me know that you enjoy re-reading November Days; it warms my heart that people still have feelings about it because I definitely still do as well. I have thought about writing their wedding before but decided to write something else instead (my second November Days fic)… But maybe someday! :) Thanks again so much for writing!

[cleareyesfullbeers]

I have no idea how to post fic anymore but. 1803 words, Beca gets a birthday present and baseball ensues.

This tweet (https://twitter.com/carolineframke/status/1013566693069619200), but Pitch Perfect fic. That’s it, that’s the fic.

[obstinate-questionings]

Oh my gosh i am absolutely in love with forgive me these november days and like whenever im down or just looking to procrastinate its my go to. I could literally read it over and over again and i promise you that the FEELS NEVER GO AWAYYYYY. I was wondering if you are ever thinking about adding more installments? Like maybe bechloe as parents? Or maybe some more ot3 moments? cuz Aubrey posen is the worlds best third wheel. I think that would just about kill me if you ever have more ideas for it.

Dear anon, thank you so much!!! This is really sweet and makes me happy. I'm so glad you still enjoy the stories. I don't have any plans to write other installments at the moment (I am currently writing a PhD dissertation so that's really where all my writing energy is going), but I have extensive headcanons about what happens next for Beca, Chloe, and Aubrey, so maybe someday. :) I really appreciate you letting me know that the series meant something to you, and I hope that I'll be able to share something new with you at some point!

[falseknees]

Time for Sunday art talk! Once again a big shout out to my Patreon crew supporting me and obliging me to create two comics per week! You are the best. Check it out if you’d like to support too!

[obstinate-questionings]

Hey! It's the second time I'm here to thank you so much for writing Forgive Me These November Days. I have no words to descibre how your story stuck with me. It's been two years since I've read it for the first time and I keep it with me so I can read my favorite parts when I need to feel that great feeling only your favorite books can give you. I love Aubrey and Chloe's characters and their friendship and how you took care writing their friendship. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.

Thank you so much for this. ❤️ As per usual, tumblr gave me no indication that there was a message in my inbox, so I'm sorry I am writing such a belated response. I really appreciate you writing and I am always so grateful to hear that those stories meant something to others (and I love that you singled out the Chloe & Aubrey friendship; that really warms my heart). Thank you!!

[naniiebimworks]

Weird Space…. Puffin…