Rie Reads

Hell if I know. Check About Rie if you're really interested.

[wsswatson]

you know what’s really irritating

when male academics constantly refer to men by their surnames and women by their first names

like you’d never go to a lecture expecting shakespeare to be referred to as “william” but it’s not at all uncommon to sit through an entire lecture in which jane austen is referred to constantly as “jane”

it’s such a petty thing but it just really rubs me the wrong way, like it has a real suggestion of respect and admiration/lack thereof

[theyarethelast-blog]

Looking for an inclusive new YA Sci-Fi series? 

There are some ideas which are fleeting. They leap into our minds, excite us for a time, and then fade back into the creative consciousness for someone else to discover.

My name is Elayna Mae Darcy, and They Are The Last is NOT one of these ideas.

They Are The Last is a novel I came up with when I was 13 years old - my first novel idea ever. What started out as a fantasy adventure heavily inspired by childhood loves of Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, spent many years as nothing more than an amorphous blob of narrative notions. But as I grew, so too did the story. Elements of science fiction greats like Star Wars, Firefly, and Doctor Who became part of my creative consiousness, which in turn helped mold me as a creator, and turned the story into what it is today: Part One of a young adult science fiction trilogy, which takes place on Alteria

What’s Alteria? It is a fantastical world across the stars, inhabited by beings who can wield the Light of their souls.

It is also where the central story of They Are The Last takes place, and it is where Piper Anderson begins her adventure. After a loved one from her past returns to help her escape from Edgemont - a dystopic juvenile detention center set in Earth’s not-too-distant-future - Piper finds herself on a journey with the friends she thought she’d lost, to save her home world that she never knew existed.

For twelve years, this story has lay in waiting for the right time, and over the course of the last seven months, the gears have finally been set in motion. Relentless nights have been spent typing, revising, and refining various drafts, all leading up to this moment. What was once just a dusty idea on my shelf can now can be a fully formed novel on your shelf, filled with all the necessary trappings a reader could hope for: a diverse cast of complicated characters, a perilous journey through space and time, and a shadowy villain who seeks to destroy all Piper holds dear. But there is one thing - and really, the most important thing - that this story is still missing.

Someone to read it. You.

This novel has been entered in The Nerdist Inkshares contest, and WILL ONLY BE PUBLISHED if the novel becomes one of the top 3 highest pre-ordered books. So read Chapter One today, and decide for yourselves if you will join the adventure. If you do, Alteria is waiting …

AVAILABLE NOW FOR PRE-ORDER ON INKSHARES

[skyerana]

Hey friends. Check this out. Grab a preorder if you can, share if you can’t. The first chapter is fun. I’m excited to see where this will go.

[riereads]

Alright folks. So I've got a first draft of this book and so far it's brilliant. You can check out the first chapter on Inkshares and, if you like it, preorder a copy and/or share it. Also feel free to give the author, @elaynamae, a follow on Tumblr. She's absolutely wonderful.

[riereads]

So I haven’t written in a while. The sad truth is that I haven’t had much time to read. By this time last year, I was well into the 20s or 30s for the number of books I’d read. As of right now this year, I think I’m up to five or six.

That being said though, the ones I’ve read I’ve greatly enjoyed. Just a quick blip about each and high recommendations for all of them

The Way of Kings and Elantris by Brandon Sanderson

So I read The Way of Kings at the end of last year, but I’m including it on here because it enticed me to read Elantris, also by Brandon Sanderson. Lots of people know Sanderson as the dude who finished The Wheel of Time series, but I could never get past the first few chapters of the first book. This dude knows his stuff. 

The worlds Sanderson creates in The Way of Kings (the first of a loooooong series still being written) and Elantris (a nice stand alone that wraps up most of its loose ends) are absolutely vibrant. The characters and stories are cool, but oh my god the way he builds worlds is amazing. I feel that, as a writer, I have learned so much about world building by reading Sanderson’s book. I’ve got my hands on the Mistborn trilogy, but I’m saving that for vacation.

At the very least, if you’re fond of interesting worlds and cultures, unique magic systems, and well rounded, interesting characters, check out his books. His fantasy is epic.

His Majesty’s Dragon and Throne of Jade by Naomi Novik

Alright. Think Napoleonic Wars AU where dragons are a thing. Not only are they a thing, but they’re an important part of how countries wage war. There you go. That’s the Temeraire series summed up. Do you like historical fiction? Like dragons? This series doesn’t have magic, but it doesn’t need it. The diversity of dragons is awesome and the writing style is one that I’m fond of. Good one to grab from the library or a used book store.

A Natural History of Dragons: A Memoir by Lady Trent, by Marie Brennan

So this was totally an impulse buy in a book store. It paid off. Majorly. I absolutely love reading environmental creative nonfiction. This book reminds me a great deal of Kingdom Under Glass by Jay Kirk, or any of Bernd Heinrich’s books. Both Kirk and Heinrich approach the outside world with reverence and wonder, but through a scientific lens. They share discoveries, but couch them in true tales of adventure.

Mirroring the style of these naturalists, A Natural History of Dragons is the first part of Lady Trent’s life, as told by an elderly Lady Trent. I’m not usually fond of first person, but its so beautifully written, that I couldn’t help but love it. And imagine Maggie Smith as Lady Trent. Seriously. You’ll understand when you read it.

The first three are out. I haven’t seen them in any used book stores yet, but they’re worth having on your shelf to throw at your friends.

Gossamer Axe by Gael Baudino

So I just finished this book tonight. I bought it a week ago. I mean, I kinda found it. I was wandering a used bookstore and it was just sitting out, not shelved properly. Normally, I don’t think it would have caught my attention, but I’d seen the name many times before on good LGBT books to read. It’s out of print, so I’d sort of given up hope of finding it somewhere. When I saw it though, I had to buy it. Let me try summing it up...

It’s urban fantasy, taking place from ‘86-’87. It’s also a tale of the Celts. Fairies exist. So does magic. And Christa is a harper turned hard rock/metal guitarist to try to win back her lover from the hands of the fairies. 

This books was hard to get through. I do want to make a point to stress that. The characters deal with a lot of really deep, heavy stuff. We’re talking about drug abuse and child molestation deep. But its a book about healing and growing and finding family too.

If you can find a copy, grab it. It’s well worth the read and well worth the search.

[readvitality]

Vitality is Looking for Interns!

We are looking for up to three interns to help us create the second issue. If you’re not sure what Vitality is, you can learn more at our website.

About the Internship:

These positions will be unpaid and require three to five hours of your time a week, depending on workload and deadlines. You will be working through July (when the second issue comes out). Since all of the work will be done online and at your own pace, this might be a good way for publication, journalism, or English majors to get experience and a reference for your resume without needing to spend much time away from classes.

It would be best if you had reliable access to a computer and the internet, as all your work will be done online.

You’d be considered a Junior Assistant Editor, with your name listed as staff on the website and actual issue. On top of that, you will get to see the second issue of Vitality behind the scenes (since you’ll be helping to make it!) and get a copy of the issue (and extra goodies) for free when it’s done.

Duties:

Reading through new submissions and checking that they adhere to our guideline requirements, as well as bringing attention to any pieces you think are particularly amazing.

Meeting production deadlines.

Responding to emails and tumblr asks through Vitality’s official accounts.

Helping to maintain social media sites through posting, reblogging, responding to comments, promoting the kickstarter/issue downloads, promoting our authors, etc.

Helping do light proofreading/checking over/brainstorming when necessary.

To apply, click here. Applications are due March 28th, 2015. We’ll be making our decisions by the first week of April.

[riereads]

If anyone's interested, check this out.

[cosmicsyzygy]

Look, I made a gif of this most awesome wizard at the Leaky Cauldron!

[everythingis19]

DUDE IS READING ‘A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME’ BY STEPHEN HAWKING

I NEVER REALIZED

[quasarkisses]

are you serious

I always assumed wizards just ignored science, because the fact that “magic” exists, can explain anything. But there are MuggleBorn wizards, ones who, until they were eleven, lived in the real world and learned science and things. Did they all just abandon that normal, muggle knowledge, like Harry did? It’s always been there, itching in the back of my mind.

FOUR FOR YOU SCIENCE WIZARD

YOU GO SCIENCE WIZARD

[dumb-of-ass-pure-of-heart]

can we point out that he’s doing wandless magic too

like voldemort couldnt even do that shit

molly fuckin weasley couldnt fuckin do that

who are you

[earthgirldonna]

pretty sure this whole series has been about the wrong wizard guys

[casey-jane-lewis]

Plot Twist: He is able to do wandless magic because his comprehensive understanding of quantum physics means that he is the only wizard/witch to actually understand how magic works.

[thatdarlingqueen]

always reblog science wizard

always

[mandorways]

WHAT IS THAT SENSE INSIDE YOUR HEAD OF WISTFUL REGRET THAT THINGS ARE THE WAY THEY APPARENTLY ARE? ‘Sadness, master. I think. Now-‘ I AM SADNESS

Terry Pratchett, Mort (via reverse-mermaid)

[riereads]

My girlfriend has never read any Terry Pratchett books. Good Omens was the first one I found. She's laughing so hard she can't get past the cast list.

[cleolinda]

[slitheringink]

My sadness is eternal. Rest in peace Sir Pratchett . :(

[riereads]

OK folks. There's a massive snow storm here. I've already got off of work tomorrow. I need a book I can read in one day. Because I feel like crap because I haven't been able to finish a book yet this year (and the two I'm reading are taking forever). So... Here's my criteria: Fantasy or scifi Preferably lady love in it if there's romance (or no romance. That's good too) No sexual assault (I'm sick of it being a crappy plot device that isn't handled properly). Something on the shorter side Please send some suggestions my way.

[riereads]

Some notes about RieReads:

I haven't actually finished any books yet this year. I am woefully behind on my reading lists.

I blame this on my new job. That's right folks, I'm a chemist now (as opposed to a museum educator). How that happened, I'm still not sure, but we'll see how this goes.

I also blame it on trying to do more writing, as that fell by the wayside after NaNoWriMo.

If you like the writing and want to see more, just shoot me a message and let me know. I don't want to put it here unless y'all want to read it.

I think that's all the things I needed to say. With that, I should probably go clean or something adultish like that.

[riereads]

Not only does Rie read. Rie also writes!

This is part of an art group type thing (I'm so eloquent sometimes it's painful) run by my friend over at honeybeestudio.

Prompt Eleven: Fairy Tales

Bad News Bears

So this is a short story that I've had floating around for about a year. It's part of a collection of short stories that I work on whenever I'm in the mood. The collection itself is called Animal Sanctuary, and I'm sure I'll put more of the stories online at some point.

This particular piece is the only one that really fits the Fairy Tale prompt. It's the first one I wrote and kick started the idea of Animal Sanctuary. As such, it is quite a bit different from others in the mix, as they are in a modern setting.

Anyway, enough of the chit chat. Here's Bad News Bears.

The young prince snuck into the kitchens, hoping to find some tasty morsels left behind after the banquet. He was still bitter about not being invited. After all, he was six years old. His grandfather and father, king and crown prince respectively, had agreed that he was too young. All day he had been tortured by the enticing smells of roasting meats, baking breads and pies, and countless other delicacies. All he had eaten for supper was a bowl of stew from the day before.

A strange shuffling and snuffling froze him in his tracks. A great, shaggy bear head rounded the corner, its nose to the air. The prince bit back a scream and scrambled back as silently as he could. He had heard somewhere that bears had poor vision and hoped desperately that whomever had told him that was right, and that the low light in the kitchen was enough to hide him. He backed into something huge and musky and felt, more than heard the rumbling growl from behind him. This time, he did scream and stumbled forward.

“You’re out of honeycomb and oats,” the second bear told him, smacking its lips. The prince whimpered. “The wine smells of hellebore,” it added with a snort.

The first bear shuffled into the aisle and sat beside the boy. “The meat’s rancid too,” it added with a grumble. It gave the boy a bored sniff and sighed, and shuffled off again. “There’s rust in the good iron pans.”

The boy blinked and swallowed. He tried to say something but only squeaked. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Who are you?” the prince asked, as politely as he could.

The first bear swung its head back into the aisle and blinked. “Why, we’re the Bad News Bears,” it told him matter of factly. “The stone work is crumbling in that corner.”

The prince stood up and brushed himself off. He straightened his tunic before bowing.

“Welcome to our castle,” he said. “I am the prince here.”

The second bear shook its head with a snort. “No, lad. You’re the king.”

[honeybeestudio]

Prompt Eleven

Submissions due Sunday February 1st at Midnight EST

Prompt Eleven: Fairy Tales

I know that several of the artists here, myself included, really enjoy fairy tales and all things magical.  For this prompt take inspiration from a specific tale and share your work.

Not sure what to do?  Check out this Wiki page filled with fairy tales from around the world. 

Submissions due Sunday January 25 at Midnight EST

To submit tag your post #honeybeestudio or submit directly to the blog by clicking “Submit your Pieces” on the blog header.

As always: 

-Any Medium is accepted (photos, illustration, videos, jewelry, etc)

-I may tag things as NSFW or give trigger warnings based on content when I reblog

-Follow to support fellow artists/creative souls.

-Message me with Questions or Prompt suggestions

[riereads]

My art friend started this awesomeness. I'm going to be using her weekly prompts for my writing. This week's prompt, I'll actually be posting here. The rest will most likely be on my personal blog skyerana.

[riereads]

cygnata said: 

Wanna read Le Morte d’Arthur in the form of a rare 1950s school reader edition? ;) Cause I have one you can borrow.

I've got a hardcover copy of Le Morte d'Arthur. I think it's going to take a while for me to get to it, so I don't want to do what I've been doing with people's books, which is borrow them to read, and then they join the pile of To Be Read.

cygnata said: 

I also HIGHLY reccommend you pick up a copy of Bulfinch’s Mythology. Again, I have one you can borrow.

My father has a copy of Bulfinch's Mythology, but I probably won't get to that one this year. I can only do so much mythology stuff before I need some good solid sci-fi.

[riereads]

So I finally started reading The Once and Future King. I've had this book on my shelf for 10+ years and for some reason I never picked it up.

Pardon me, but what the fuck was wrong with me? This book is brilliant. I'm not that far in yet, but I can't stop laughing while I read. And apparently don't notice what's going on around me because I get so wrapped up in reading it. 

I get the sense that Le Morte d'Arthur will be a bit of a let down after this. Perhaps I will be wrong. I am looking forward to finishing this up and being able to move on to A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court.

[riereads]

hey, if you find the author of the modern take on the book, would you mind sharing it with me? I'm curious because I didn't know there was such a thing.

PSA: Never reorganize your bookshelves. Ever.

Carmilla: The Return, by Kyle Marffin.

I haven’t read this yet, but my friend lent it to me when I mentioned hearing about the series on Youtube. She really liked it, so I don’t doubt that it’s good.

Edit: I’m not seeing a digital version of the book and I think it might be out of print? I know Angie got this one from a used book store.

[riereads]

So there went my productivity straight out the window. But that was hella fun and a good show. So. Watch Carmilla if you haven't. One of the nice things is that its in short snippets. I convinced myself that I'd watch a clip between doing other things. That didn't happen, but if you have more willpower than me, you'll be fine.

On a side note, you can find the book on Amazon for something like $0.99. There's another version of the book that my friend lent me but I haven't had a chance to start yet. It's a modern take on the book. Once I find the copy I was lent, I'll share the author.

Edit: Also my friend has a fantastic response to my "WTF even is this show?"

"I don't even know but it's queer and amazing."

And if that doesn't make you want to watch it, then I don't know what will.