“Art In The Blood…Takes The Strangest Forms”

Hey, I’m Sophie <3 she/they, aroace Sherlock Holmes • Doctor Who • TMA Book lover, deer hugger. iykyk

[ratblazer]

reverse gatekeeping. I am on my knees begging people to engage with the source material

[contact-guy]

the Empty House - part 6

-Part One

-Part Two

-Part Three

-Part Four

-Part Five

shoutout to my exvangelical spouse for giving me some pointers about the gay parts of the Bible...I have a lot of thoughts around resurrection myths in Christian societies and how the Holmes canon plays with but also subverts that archetype, which I will hopefully be able to explore in a semi coherent fashion in coming stories!

the next story is A CASE OF IDENTITY!

This is in the Watson's Sketchbook series!

[senatortedcruz]

she let me hit because i care for all creatures in the forest great and small

[vetchtibbles]

I have not felt normal for even ten seconds today

[contact-guy]

the Empty House - part 5

-Part One

-Part Two

-Part Three

-Part Four

Sherlock Holmes & the Adventure of Making Up For Three Years of Touch Deprivation

This is in the Watson's Sketchbook series!

[contact-guy]

The Empty House - part 4

-Part One

-Part Two

-Part Three

Holmes is quoting Dante's Inferno - there were so many good lines to choose from, but this one had a little bitchiness to it that felt character appropriate.

This is in the Watson's Sketchbook series!

[contact-guy]

The Empty House - part 3

-Part One

-Part Two

"I moved my head to look at the cabinet behind me. When I turned again Sherlock Holmes was standing smiling at me across my study table. I rose to my feet, stared at him for some seconds in utter amazement, and then it appears that I must have fainted for the first and the last time in my life. Certainly a grey mist swirled before my eyes, and when it cleared I found my collar-ends undone and the tingling after-taste of brandy upon my lips. Holmes was bending over my chair, his flask in his hand. “My dear Watson,” said the well-remembered voice, “I owe you a thousand apologies."

(this is in the Watson's Sketchbook series! but it's also a great standalone to send to your friends to illustrate why sherlock holmes is gay)

also - shoutout to @haedraulics for doing a sketch of mid-hiatus Holmes with long hair that captivated my heart so much I needed to include that idea!

[cowboyhatesithere]

I love personalization. I love stickers on water bottles and on laptops. I love shitty marker drawing on the toes of converse. I love hand embroidered doodles on jeans. I love posters on walls. I love knick knacks on shelves. I love jewelry with goofy charms. I love when people take things and make them theirs.

[contact-guy]

The Empty House - part 2

"I struck against an elderly deformed man, who had been behind me, and I knocked down several books which he was carrying. ... I endeavoured to apologize for the accident, but it was evident that these books which I had so unfortunately maltreated were very precious objects in the eyes of their owner. With a snarl of contempt he turned upon his heel."

THE EMPTY HOUSE, part 2 - (part 1) - Several reunions, which do not go exactly to plan.

This is in the Watson's Sketchbook series!

[contact-guy]

the Empty House - part 1

It is the spring of the year 1894, and Sherlock Holmes has been dead for three years. Watson's Sketchbook returns with THE EMPTY HOUSE - part 1! Bonus points to whoever recognizes what classic of Victorian literature Holmes is quoting on the first page.

notes under the cut:

Holmes references dressing as a woman in the Adventure of the Mazarin Stone - I always wanted to see more of that disguise:

Watson is in mourning. Men did not wear as elaborate mourning as women in this era, but the extra wide hatband was one way to convey a deep personal loss. Who that loss is referring to is probably not something that Watson is entirely honest about, even to himself:

There's a theory from Madeleine B. Stern that Holmes's bookseller was a real life person named Alfred B. Clementson, and that he impersonates him in Empty House, so I nabbed that name.

Looks like these guys are okay, after all :)

[official-lucifers-child]

every time i think, i take 10 damage

[biglawbear]

And every time we kiss I swear I could fly

[justtwomushrooms]

btw people,

in the depths of my Sherlock Holmes obsession, I downloaded all The Strand Magazine pieces that contained a Sherlock Holmes story and added them up as the collections that they would later be released in (with the magazine cover and table of contents and correct page numbers and everything)

so if anyone would want that, here:

[the-bedheaded-league]

One thing that so many people get wrong about Holmes is saying that he’s anti-social and bad with people. He’s awkward, of course, in a very classically autistic way, but when it comes down to it, he’s actually pretty good with people a lot of the time. How do we know this? He has a shocking number of acquaintances who are fiercely loyal to him.

There’s Watson, obviously, but then there are the Baker Street Irregulars, who are clearly in it for more than the pay he gives them - they always seem delighted to help him. Across various stories, Watson runs into a number of people who do whatever he wants as soon as he so much as mentions Holmes’ name. Many of their cases could only be solved because Holmes has a network of convenient people who will do basically anything for him. We don’t know what Holmes did to earn such loyalty, but we can guess - he helped them. He was kind to them. We know that he is often much kinder to the outcasts and downtrodden of society than anyone expects him to be, because we see it in his behavior.

I think that this really ties in so neatly with Holmes being both autistic and queer (however you choose to read his queerness). He doesn’t care about the rules of “polite” society, so he often insults people who consider themselves his superiors. But he is always kind to those who aren’t used to receiving kindness from the world, because he knows what that feels like. That’s why the Irregulars love working for him - he makes them feel important! Honorable! Invaluable to his heroic work! He treats them with respect that no one else in the world gives them, and it’s not just because he’s trying to get something out of them. He actually respects them.

And above all, we know that he isn’t antisocial or bad with people, because Watson loves him so much. Watson, who is by all means a much more well-adjusted member of society, is more loyal to this weird little man than he is to his own country, which he literally got shot fighting for. Because Holmes has earned his love and loyalty. Because he’s a good person. And even if he’s bad at the official rules of polite society, he’s good at being kind. And that’s what really matters.

[transholmes]

Exactly!

Holmes has a great deal of respect for humans', I don't know what to call it, humaness? The weaknesses, the frailties, the fears, the mistakes made. Not to mention a good deal of compassion for it too.

And hope. Hope for better for humans, hope for the future.

[househatke]

Just a few Holmes and Watsons from over on m' Patre0n.

[contact-guy]

their asses are NOT making their valentine's day dinner reservation

[contact-guy]

the Final Problem - part 11

THE FINAL PROBLEM- part 11 - part 1 - part 2 - part 3 - part 4 - part 5 - part 6 - part 7 - part 8 - part 9 - part 10. This is the last part of the final problem, a bit of an epilogue. I’ve loved telling the story of the Final Problem and I hope you enjoyed reading it! This short story absolutely destroyed me when I first read it last year, and ever since I have been determined to tell my own version. I’ll be taking a small break from Watson’s Sketchbook as I go on book tour, deal with the multitudinous horrors of 2025, and put some work into a new original graphic novel that needs a little attention - but it won’t be long and I (and Sherlock Holmes) will be back with THE EMPTY HOUSE!

This is in the Watson's Sketchbook series!

[yourfaveisanavatar]

we’re all on the same page