mostly free resources to help you learn the basics that i've gathered for myself so far that i think are cool
everyday
gcfglobal - about the internet, online safety and for kids, life skills like applying for jobs, career planning, resume writing, online learning, today's skills like 3d printing, photoshop, smartphone basics, microsoft office apps, and mac friendly. they have core skills like reading, math, science, language learning - some topics are sparse so hopefully they keep adding things on. great site to start off on learning.
handsonbanking - learn about finances. after highschool, credit, banking, investing, money management, debt, goal setting, loans, cars, small businesses, military, insurance, retirement, etc.
bbc - learning for all ages. primary to adult. arts, history, science, math, reading, english, french, all the way to functional and vocational skills for adults as well, great site!
education.ket - workplace essential skills
general education
mathsgenie - GCSE revision, grade 1-9, math stages 1-14, provides more resources! completely free.
khan academy - pre-k to college, life skills, test prep (sats, mcat, etc), get ready courses, AP, partner courses like NASA, etc. so much more!
aleks - k-12 + higher ed learning program. adapts to each student.
biology4kids - learn biology
cosmos4kids - learn astronomy basics
chem4kids - learn chemistry
physics4kids - learn physics
numbernut - math basics (arithmetic, fractions and decimals, roots and exponents, prealgebra)
education.ket - primary to adult. includes highschool equivalent test prep, the core skills. they have a free resource library and they sell workbooks. they have one on work-life essentials (high demand career sectors + soft skills)
not the "free resource" part of this post but sometimes we forget we can be tutored especially as an adult. just because we don't have formal education does not mean we can't get 1:1 teaching! please do you research and don't be afraid to try out different tutors. and remember you're not dumb just because someone's teaching style doesn't match up with your learning style.
cambridge coaching - medical school, mba and business, law school, graduate, college academics, high school and college process, middle school and high school admissions
lingq - app. created by steve kaufmann, a polygot (fluent in 20+ languages) an amazing language learning platform that compiles content in 20+ languages like podcasts, graded readers, story times, vlogs, radio, books, the feature to put in your own books! immersion, comprehensible input.
flexiclasses - option to study abroad, resources to learn, mandarin, cantonese, japanese, vietnamese, korean, italian, russian, taiwanese hokkien, shanghainese.
fluenz - spanish immersion both online and in person - intensive.
pimsleur - not tutoring** online learning using apps and their method. up to 50 languages, free trial available.
incase time has passed since i last posted this, check on the original post (not the reblogs) to see if i updated link or added new resources. i think i want to add laguage resources at some point too but until then, happy learning!!
Credit for this image goes to @dissolving-time. Story is mature for some language. This is another story from the Coach Stone universe. I hope you all enjoy it. :D
If you’d like to see more of these stories, please join my Patreon.
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Stone Cold
“Coach said you have to get your shot, bro.”
I gazed at the meathead that had once been my fellow prisoner. He’d already donned the dog tags that were locked in his footlocker. Muscle rippled over his body as he gazed at me holding one of the biggest rifles I have ever seen in my life.
“Chapman, do you know what that is?” I asked as I eyed the gun warily. The caliber alone would be enough to splatter my brains all over the wall.
“The name’s Champ, bro.” He said it so casually, so matter-of-factly. Had they really brainwashed him so thoroughly?
“Your name is Lance Chapman, from Enfield, North Carolina. You specialize in computer programming, like me. We were brought here against our wills, remember?”
“Nah, bro.” “Champ” let out a deep vapid chuckle. His camouflage draped over his legs, but I could see the hints of growing muscle bunching, just waiting for a good pump to press them tightly against the confines of the cloth. “Coach wants my bod first, my brains second. Huhuh.” He grinned at me, revealing perfectly white and straightened teeth.
I’d hoped to reason with him, but it was clear he was beyond that. I brandished my own pair of dog tags. Like I said, computers were my thing, both programming and the hardware. It took me a while, but I managed to get my lockbox to open, too. And without reducing myself to a wannabe army poster boy. “I have my tags, Champ. You can’t keep me here. You know once I get my tags, I’m supposed to leave. I’m supposed to report to Coach, remember?”
“But you’re not gonna, are you, bro?” he asked seriously as his brow furrowed. “You just wanna get out.”
“I have to get out to see Coach, now don’t I?” The exit was right there in bold black lettering. The lock had already disengaged on cue when I seized my tags. I just needed to get past him. If I could distract him somehow or incapacitate him, I could run.
Chapman spread his legs in a broader stance as he planted himself firmly in front of the door. “You’re not ready to see Coach yet, little bro. And Coach hasn’t called you.”
“I am ready.”
“Prove it.”
I knew a few basics from martial arts training in my youth. I’d been fortunate enough to keep up the practice in my free hours. The meathead in front of me may have had a weapon, but we were in tight quarters. It would be difficult to get that barrel pointing at me if I could stay close. And while he may have had raw strength, I had experience. I also still had my wits about me. I sighed and let my shoulders droop as I approached him. “Look, Champ, just ... let me go, okay? You and I both know this is wrong. It’s against the law to kidnap someone.”
“No can do, little bro. Coach says we need more training. Coach says we have a project to help with. Coach says muscle CHAMPs like me need to train and obey. I listen to Coach. I obey. This Champ o—”
The mantra was what I was waiting for. It doesn’t matter how big you get if you haven’t got the trained reflexes to deal with a sudden change yet. And Chapman’s mind had been either short circuited or rewired to reinforce his thuggery. I’d heard it enough times through the door. It wasn’t soundproofed. I think that was deliberate on the part of this “Coach” to give us a taste of what’s in store. Demoralizing a captive is a large part of ensuring that he or she remains compliant, after all. And I’d heard enough, “This meathead obeys,” to know this was a fulltime operation made heavy on the brainwashing. It had to be to change someone so drastically. This wasn’t just a sign of subtle change. This was downright breaking them and building them back up again into the equivalent of obedient machines.
In this case, it played in my favor, and I hate to think of it this way, but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was grateful for it. The mantra made him vulnerable. I laid a hand gently on his shoulder, being sure to get close enough that he couldn’t put the barrel against me. His eyes were glassy and unseeing as he uttered the mantra that he and everyone else like him had been conditioned to speak.
Then I took him down. It was simple to sweep his feet out from under him, and the move flowed like water. Bruce Li would be proud. I followed up with a heavy blow to the side of his head with my boot. Part of our imprisonment had included removing our personal affects, so I had no idea where my street clothes were. I didn’t give the blow enough force for any serious damage, but it would be enough to daze him, maybe even knock him out if I was lucky.
I threw the door open while he groaned on the floor. I managed all of maybe two steps before my arms was seized and I was slammed against the wall. I swear, my bones vibrated from the impact. I saw a helmet with a reflective visor and the broadest chest I had ever seen in my life. This man was huge. And unfortunately for me, he was also very skilled. My arm was yanked behind my back faster than I had time to process. He pulled, and I felt my socket strain to send stabs of pain through my arm and neck. Another faceless mook strode forward. But unlike Chapman, this one was decked in full body armor.
“Well done, recruit. You’ve passed Coach’s test. You will serve in Coach Stone’s cyber unit and in Research and Development. You will obey.”
“Like hell, I will,” I swore. That rewarded me with another painful jerk of my arm while a targeted blow forced me to my knees.
“Meathead recruit will comply.” The man withdrew a syringe from a side pocket and tapped the chamber to dislodge any air bubbles, then pulled off the protective cap with a deliberate casual air of the well-practiced. The substance was green, and the soldier had no qualms over pulling my sleeve up. I squirmed, but a yank of my other arm followed by a crushing iron grip on my free arm left me tense as he stabbed the needle into my arm and depressed the syringe. He removed the needle casually and replaced the cap, then inserted the syringe into another pouch.
The two visored faces stared at one another for the briefest of moments in a silent exchange. Then they nodded as the one who injected me rose, turned and entered the room where I had been held prisoner. A low groan emanated from the space, followed by a series of loud cracks.
“Rise, meathead. Follow.”
The voice that emanated in reply was deeper than I remembered. “This meathead obeys...” An even greater shock greeted me when the lumbering brute emerged. Chapman’s muscle mass had increased dramatically, and the man’s skull had completely reformed. Sharp, angular, square features blunted his face now, and his eyes were a vivid shade of green. The oversized gun didn’t look so ridiculous for him anymore.
“What the hell...?” I murmured.
“Meathead Champ will listen to orders. Meathead Champ will obey. Meathead Champ will fire on his roommate on command. Meathead Champ will prepare to fire now.”
“What?” I balked. I wanted to squirm again, but once more, my captor brought me to heel. I tried to shift out of his grip, but the hold was too strong. Even if I went limp, he’d still be able to haul me back up again. That didn’t stop me from trying, however.
I heard a whine not unlike the sound you hear in a sci-fi movie when a blaster is being charged or a bomb is being primed. The barrel was soon directed at my face. My heart hammered as Chapman uttered his mindless acknowledgement.
“Meathead Champ obeys. This meathead is ready to fire.”
“Fire.”
There was light, a strange tingling that bordered on the pleasant, and then blackness. I came to in an empty barracks. When I rose, everything felt ... heavy, awkward. The sight of the muscles bulging against the fabric of my shirt was more than enough to unsettle me as my throat clenched and my mouth went dry. I wanted to scream, but at the same time I knew better. I journeyed over my torso, my arms, everything. All of it felt in order, albeit significantly enhanced. It was my face I dreaded the most. And true to my fears, I could feel each sharply defined contour from my own transformation that was doubtless facilitated by the rifle. As a test, I ran through pi to see just how far in the infinite decimal sequence I could get. Then I searched through the other parts of my brain. I felt no compulsion, no absentmindedness, no blank emptiness or cotton or wool. I was clear, surprisingly so, given how quickly my mind seemed to jump from place to place.
“Comfortable?”
The question came out of nowhere, and I balked and bawled as my body sent me crashing into another bunk with the increased force of my new mass.
“Well, clearly not anymore,” the voice replied urbanely. I rounded on the figure only to see a man standing at least a head taller than I. His manner was relaxed and composed. His blond hair flickered like silver in the light. And though he was completely relaxed, his body oozed that smug command and intimidation that subconsciously demanded respect from those around him. “Please, take a moment to acclimate yourself. I find a blow to the shins is never pleasant.”
I decided to stick with sitting, rather than rick another launch with a body I had absolutely no experience with. “Who ... are you?” I winced at the depth of my voice. Logic only dictated it would have changed with the rest of my physique, but I had hoped it wouldn’t.
“A scientist of sorts. Biochemistry is my specialty, though I’ve branched out into many other fields.” He chuckled. “Why don’t you just stay there and we’ll have a nice chat between the two of us?” He lowered his broad frame onto the bed I had just launched myself from and gazed at me with vivid blue eyes. “My name is Stone. And you doubtless have many questions and expletives you want to voice, most likely not in that order.”
I felt like a broken record as curse after curse and swear after swear flowed out of me in an invective tirade. Denunciations and questions boomed from me like the retort of a cannon, emphasized by a number of curses and swears until that was all I heard winding down ... and down ... and down....
“Are you finished?”
A plaintive, almost defeated, “Fuck,” hissed from me as I rested my head in two massive hands.
“Glad you could get that out of your system. Now, do you have any real questions you wanted to ask me?”
“Why?” I finally managed to ask.
“You’re a programmer. You should understand. If a program doesn’t work the way it’s intended, you go into the code, find the bug, and fix it. Sometimes it’s messy work, but the end result is worth it. I’m doing that on a global scale, or at least I will in time. Getting rid of bigotry, erasing the divide between the strong and the weak to produce a better world for everyone.”
“You broke Chapman.”
“Champ is happy where he is. He chose it. He wanted it. You two had virtually the same IQ scores and talents, at least when it came to computer engineering and programming. Unlike you, though, Champ was fighting conditions that would make it so that he could never enjoy the same level of fitness and activity that you do. Such a lack eventually results in fantasies, a longing to experience what one never has had. Chapman threw it all away because he reveled in the chance to grow and swell. And, I admit, I fed that desire while he tried to hack the mainframe. I let him see where he would ultimately end up. And I gave him a simple choice. He accepted my offer to obey. He lied to you, pretended to fail, and complied with everything I told him whenever he signed in. He is living his fantasy now, and is deliriously happy to be receiving training as a part of my Meatheads.
Rage curled my lip, but I couldn’t do a thing. I wanted to lunge at the man, strangle him, but my body wouldn’t comply. All I could do was sit and watch.
“You may have noticed by now, but my meatheads can’t do anything against me. I’m their authority figure, their alpha. Or as they like to call me, Coach. You can’t attack me because I told you to stay there. And though you may want to deny it, I know that deep down, you’re enjoying the sensation of your new body just as much as Champ is.”
“How?”
“My formula.” He shrugged his massive shoulders. “It’s not perfect yet, but the iterations I’ve produced from my original notes have been very useful in extending my control. I don’t want to be a dictator, but I’m not about to let the world stay as it is either. Shadow politics, assassinations, pointless bombings and wars, genocides, suicides. This world is a mess. I have the tools to fix that mess once and for all. And I intend to do just that. To sum it up for you, I’m my original test subject. And the formula worked wonders for me as a result, but it also rendered me ... incapacitated for a time. As a result, much of my research was lost, and I’ve had to rebuild using different iterations of my creation until I can find that special mix. On the plus side, as derivatives of my original formula, it seems that anyone exposed automatically becomes subservient to me. It makes things much simpler when dealing with intruders and espionage. It also helps with recruiting.”
“Then why didn’t you just ask me?”
“Because I wanted you to sample the goods. That, and because there are still those who can resist the full effects of my injections and other sources of integration for a certain period of time. As I said, the formula still needs work. But I like to use the less effective iterations for special cases like you. Your specialty in coding and computer engineering is something I need right now. And I want you to keep your mind focused on the task at hand, rather than on weights and muscle. That’s why I’m assigning you to our MEAT department.”
“And if I refuse?”
“I think we both know you can’t.” Stone smirked. “For the record, MEAT stands for Muscle Enhancement and Accelerated Transformation. You’ll be helping us to design and improve a number of methods and technologies to help smooth subject transitions into becoming Meatheads. And more importantly, on how to preserve their skills and knowledge while still incorporating them into the collective. In other words, research and development. Your specialty, if I recall correctly.”
“I don’t want to.”
Stone chuckled. “On the contrary. I think you do.”
“I do—” My tongue stuck. My jaw locked. I tried again. “I do—” Again, I had the same problem. Again, I couldn’t finish. “I ... do....”
Stone’s smirk widened into a sneer. “Glad we got that settled. Oh, and for the safer ones, I want you to experiment on yourself. I’m intrigued to see just what a smart obedient Meathead will look and act like.
I groaned another curse, which only further emphasized my captor’s glee. “Spoken like a true Meathead.”
“Whatever....”
“That’s right. Whatever I say, Meathead.” The cocky arrogance was gone, leaving behind a chilling glare that could cut through diamond. “And you will address me with respect as either Coach Stone, Coach, or Sir. Do I make myself clear?”
I clenched my mouth shut.
“Answer me,” Stone demanded.
“Yes, ... Sir.”
“Good.” His eyes flashed as he rose from his position. “Now follow me. I’ll guide you to your lab. You have a lot of work ahead of you, don’t you, Meathead?”
I couldn’t stop myself as I rose to follow him. “Yes, Sir, Coach.”
“That’s right.” He chuckled. “On second thought, let’s get you dressed first. Then we can visit the lab.”
“Whatever you say, Coach.”
“Good boy,” he purred. I shuddered in revulsion, both at his cold dominance and ... at the jolt of pleasure that surged with that acknowledgement. If that was how it felt now, how would I feel after a few months or years of working under him? Would I be able to resist?
...
Would I even want to?
I shuddered again. Hopefully, I would be able to find a solution before Coach made me a permanent team member. Or worse yet, before I did.
Breaking Through The Iron Wall - Aone Takanobu x Reader
Chapter 4
The squeak of trainers stubbing themselves on the gym floor echoed throughout the massive establishment. Around a dozen boys in volleyball uniforms were scattered around the court, spiking and blocking balls with ungodly strength. It was truly mesmerising seeing a spherical piece of foam being smashed around the court at an immense velocity, even when their hands met with the ball - the force didn't phase them one bit. That was truly amazing.
Futakuchi must have noticed myself and Aone entering the gym through the corner of his eye, he immediately dropped the ball he held in his hands. Soon, his annoying smirk regained its composure upon his face. "What is their highness doing here? We are but a simple sports club, after all." That boy seemed to poke bucket loads of fun out of messing with people. Tired of his jests, I folded my arms and sighed, feeling rather ticked off my his words. At that moment, Aone must have sent him a look, as Futakuchi soon came to his senses and asked me a question. A question that was certainly very out of the blue. "So... Your highness, it seems that our team is in need of a manager; seeing as though our last manager - Nametsu - is in Greece because of a foreign exchange program."
"And what am I meant to do about that?" I replied curtly.
"Well, pretty, pretty please could you be our new manager?" He spoke in the voice of a little girl, furiously batting his eyelashes whilst swaying from side to side, with his hands cupping his face.
"I'm sorry but I don't know much about volleyball. Wouldn't someone else be better at the job other than me?" I inquired, seriously confused.
"However, I do see that Aone was the one to bring you here, and you wouldn't want to disappoint him, would you? Futakuchi's face switched from that of a child to his devilish smirk, knowing the right buttons to press in order for me to accept his offer.
"Wouldn't you need the captain's approval first?" I asked, trying to worm my way out of being the manager in any way possible. "Or the coach?"
He snickered, "I see what you're doing. Moniwa! Coach Oiwake! Come here!" He belted across the gym, beckoning his hands towards himself. A boy with choppy, black hair wearing the number 2 and a man with his hair slicked back with a stern disposition made their ways towards Futakuchi. There weren't going to be any chances for escape after that.
The captain seemed as if he didn't want to entertain Futakuchi and what he was going to say. Everyone was probably thinking that too.
"Captain..." Futakuchi cooed, falling into his childlike state again, "Don't you think it'd be great if this person here became our manager, they've already met Aone and myself?"
"Don't ask me leading questions, Futakuchi. It is their choice to join anyway." The captain turned towards me, shooting me a look of compassion. I did need to join a club, but none I had came across interested me. If I did want to join, I would have already known people, which was obviously a bonus. Pondering for a little longer, I wondered what clubs Hiroko and Rea did? Surely they'd be less demanding than being a manager. Futakuchi also wouldn't be a part of their clubs. Seeing his grimace each day, would have surely drained me.
I nodded in appreciation towards the captain. "Thank you. I'm not acquainted with the rules of volleyball, so I don't think I'd be the best fit."
Once again, Futakuchi started to open his mouth, "But Moniwa! There hasn't been a single other applicant for the position, and we could teach them over time." I could tell he wasn't going to give up anytime soon, the thought of that and how draining his consistent begging would be, I began to cave.
"Maybe you could give me until tomorrow to think about it? I think I'd make the better decision if I think it over properly" However, I knew all too well that no would probably still had been the answer.
"Yeah, that's completely fine. I'm Moniwa Kaname by the way." He held out his hand before me.
"Thanks, (L/N) (F/N)." I then took his hand in mine and shook it, and his grip was certainly more intense than any I had felt before. "Goodbye, I'll see you tomorrow." I swiftly turned around and headed for the outside, wanting to be out of that situation.
And of course, Futakuchi had one more thing to say, "You better say yes, your highness!" Turning around again, my face met his and glared at him, and I ushered him away with a curt wave of my hand. That thing was infuriating. I tried to keep my walking at its fastest pace possible so I wouldn't be in view of the gym anymore. From checking my watch I noticed I had a decent amount of time before my train came, so maybe I'd do a bit more reading when I arrived at the station.
Walking down, my velocity was set at a mere saunter compared to the jog this morning, the afternoon air hitting my face making me feel somewhat refreshed. My head remained empty for the rest of my stroll, there was no need to think, I was walking down the path solitaire - just admiring whatever new things came into my view. Seeing as though, I didn't really get the chance to that morning. This place was just a completely different world compared to my last hometown.
After arriving at the station, I set my bag down beside me and fumbled around inside it for my book. I had read quite a large portion of its contents earlier, the new page about the oak-leaved geranium. Giving it to someone would mean that you believe that your friendship with the recipient was true, so true that your bond could never be broken. It could also mean that you believe that your friendship outshines every other one in existence. Once again, I thought how beautiful it was that something so powerful could be expressed with something so delicate, something that could easily die if not taken care of. Maybe that was the whole concept behind the language, if you let the flower die - the meaning of the flower would die with it. I sat in thought for minutes more, contemplating the meaning of things we can and could say.
Not so long into the future, the train pulled up. Sparsely packed and there didn't seem to be anything wrong with the vehicle's integrity, quite a pleasant situation - given the shenanigans of the earlier hours of the day. I plonked my body down onto a seat by myself, gazing out the window, this time my thoughts interrupted by the choice I had to make. 'Should I join? But what if there's a person better fitted to the job and they don't get the chance. After all, their original manager was still joined onto the club, she could still come back. But that meant my job wouldn't last that long." I thought to myself, waffling on and on inside my head - almost panicking in a place where nobody could hear. I just couldn't seem to calm my subconscious down by even one peg. I regret to say that the rest of the journey, my mind stayed locked in the state of internal pandaemonium.
I hopped off the train, my head still stirring inside of me. I didn't even acknowledge my parents when I came through the door, I simply clambered up the stairs and flopped straight onto my bed, my head drowned into my pillow. Only coming out for air when I realised what I had said to myself earlier. I'd simply ask Hiroko what clubs her and Rea were in. Propping myself upon my headboard, I typed the digits I had been given by Hiroko.
"Hey Hiroko. It's (Y/N), just a quick question. What clubs are you and Rea in?"
-
It barely took her thirty seconds to reply.
-
"Hey!!!!!! I'm with Rea right now! She is in the computing club but she ditches everyday :( I'm in the rowing club but we can't take anymore members. Why'd you ask?
"I've been asked to manage the boys' volleyball team, but I don't really want to."
"OMG!!! That's so cool! Imagine managing a team that's practically famous!"
-
Famous? Why would a public school like Date Tech be famous? I thought that was a little weird, so I questioned Hiroko about it.
-
"Famous?"
"Didn't you know?!?! They're basically famous in Miyagi for their iron wall of blocks!!"
"Oh, that's pretty cool I guess. Sorry for troubling you."
"No problem! See you later!"
-
I thought that it may be cool to manage a 'famous' team, and I wouldn't be the one playing the sport everyday. All I'd have to do was put little things together and keep players like Futakuchi in check. After all, my plan of joining a club with Rea and Hiroko wasn't going to work at all, maybe I'd even get to miss school to go to their matches. I did have to join a club at some point, and there weren't any that caught my attention. Even if I didn't like it - I'd only have to stay until their actual manager got back from Greece.
Didn't Futakuchi say something about disappointing Aone?
"However, I do see that Aone was the one to bring you here, and you wouldn't want to disappoint him would you?"
Did he really mean that? I hadn't even known Aone for 24 hours - wouldn't disappointing him in that way seem strange? But, from what I'd seen Futakuchi do; he was probably just trying to pull my strings for himself. But why was he even trying to do that in the first place? Was he really that desperate for a manager?
I took one deep breath in, attempting to not let the questions drown me again. But other than the grimace, were there really any negatives that came with being their manager? Maybe being their manager would be a good thing to me...
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Hello All, instead of posting my normal content relating to cars and/or trucks, I will be taking a deeper dive into my daily life, particularly regarding the software engineering immersive program that I am currently undergoing, which is a technology bootcamp. For a couple of months, I am going to sway away from discussing different sectors within the automotive industry while I focus strictly on technology, but automotive is not going anywhere so stay tuned for big announcements following;)
What Is It?
Currently I’m completing General Assembly’s Software Development Immersive, which is a “12 week award-winning program that has expert instructors and career coaches, and connect graduates with 19k+ hiring partners to get them jobs at A-list companies.” It is slated as your best course for career transformation. The company boats 9,000+ hires, as it states that they are the leader in placing their grads into high-growth, and high-pay tech jobs. Yes, this is all accomplished within 12 weeks. I’m sure you’re asking, “Are these jobs guaranteed?” Of course not, but the company is quite confident. Continue reading as to “why?” after this quick infographic below illustrating what you can expect from this program.
Im currently entering into my 5th week of this program. On our first day, a General Assembly employee bursts in our classroom, after getting another graduate hired, and asked, “Did you guys here about our last cohort?”, which had ended a couple of months prior. We had no clue what she was referring to but then she claims that their last cohort had a 93%+ hire rate. Impressive right. Thats a way to bring some motivation if you had any doubts before. Who knows if this was the truth, but they were all very excited and I have personally heard from some earlier attendees about the jobs that they received after the course and some even during the last week or 2 of the course ending. Before this starts sounding like a fantasy world where you can spend the 3 months and someone else can spend 4-5 years getting a computer science degree and you both end up with the same job (very possible), I’m going to break things down a bit.
Tuition Options?
First, starting with cost, I feel that the tuition share agreement is the best payment option and allows many people who can’t afford it to have a chance at something that can be life changing. It is not yet available in all states, but it’s a great option if you are not trying to pay $14k(approximate tuition cost) out of pocket and upfront(or in a few payments). Focusing on the $0 upfront income share agreement, it is structured very fair in my opinion. You are only required to pay an upfront $250 deposit until you land a software engineering job (ex: web development, full stack, etc) and depending on your location, entry level is probably hovering around $60k and above.
So if you don’t land a job, you are not at the hands of a huge loan that you cannot afford and most importantly, you’re not out of $14k+ that many pay to take the program. If you have additional experience in UX/UI design, and/or other skills for that matter, your pay can be a lot higher.
Income Share Agreement?
As far as General Assembly not offering the income share agreement not being offered in all states, specifically New York at the moment, I believe that it has to do with the amount of jobs being offered and the amount that are vacant. Here in the Greater Atlanta Area, the tech scene is taking on massive growth along with an abundant amount tech jobs that have yet to be filled. Whether it’s startups, fintech companies, or larger corporations, there is a massive demand for tech jobs in many industries here. I’m not sure of the availability in other cities and states in respective to the amount of tech workers seeking employment.
Adding to the tuition share agreement option, applicants are also subject to a more strict batch of pre course work, along with an evaluation to see if you are prepared and can be successful at this program. My pre course work (estimated to take 40 hours if you have prior knowledge) took me at least 60+ hours, and thats literally. Going through the pre course work, I decided to take notes and continue to reference them even when the program started so that I could truly retain the information, just as I would with another language until I could demonstrate it effortlessly.
Negatives?
The only negative to this income share agreement is that the total amount paid for the course increases to approximately $20,000, instead of the $14,000 that you could sign up for up front after getting accepted. Although this $20,000 will be paid for over a multiple of years (small monthly payments ranging from $300-$800 per month), depending on how much income you are making per year with the lower end being around the $50k end and the upper being $100k+ end.
That is where the trade off comes in, as you decide whether you would want to pay $14k up front or $20k over a multiple of 3-5 years. Simply put, both options come with what some will see as a hefty price but when compared to the average college tuition for 3-5 years, it is significantly less. So is it worth it? My simple answer: Yes, but its not for everyone and also depends on how much time you willing to dedicate!
What does it take?
Personally, as I’m approaching week 5 in the 12 week program, I would say that it is well worth it. This may not be the same for everyone else. There are so many factors that go into this decision and realizing if it is worth it for you or not. First off, the program is 12 weeks long and runs on a very strict schedule, from Monday – Friday (9am-5pm). All of my cohort(class) had to quit their jobs, and/or whatever else they were doing including school, etc. This IS NOT just a 9-5 job for three months. Ample time is required outside of class for this program to be worth it. You get what you give. Currently, it is very normal for me and my “codemates” to spend another 20-40+hours outside of class per week, on top of our current 9-5 days.
Being Prepared?
Handling this amount of work in such a short period of time is life changing mentally, physically, socially, and financially of course. Savings is required as it’s almost impossible to take on a full time job during this time. Knowing how to handle stress and pressure is also very important, as there will be a lot of ups and downs during the course. Another importance is your family and support. Your time will be very limited during this time, so just be prepared to be a bit disconnected during this time.
For me, personally, I had no real coding experience before starting the pre work for this program, but doing a lot of studying in the year prior to signing up for the program certainly helped with knowing different technologies and frameworks, and what they were used for. Regardless, free time gets pretty scarce during this time of development. It is extremely tough to stay consistent with a certain level of focus each and every day in this program, as it’s basically like learning a new language. So, being prepared is very critical.
The Daily Grind?
Each and every day has a structured schedule that we are given at the beginning of the cohort. The days normally start with lecture, or a quick meeting if it’s project week. Throughout the day, we go through enormous amounts of material, but it’s never just a lecture. Practice, practice, and more practice! Daily learning on how to structure, develop, and implement responsive webpages and applications from the ground up. This is where General Assembly separates itself from just trying to read and learn to code online, or even while pursuing a 4 year computer science degree while spending meaningless time on classes and material that you don’t need or ever use again.
As the saying goes, if you want to learn Chinese, the fastest way is to get dropped directly into the middle of China! This is the exact same. You’re being thrown right into the programming fire everyday, but in a good way. All of the new information learned is always directly followed by practice, as you jump right into the CLI(command line interface) and your IDE(integrated development environment). HTML, and CSS fly by within the first couple of days and then you will be jumping directly into Javascript. After that, you are off and running, and thats when the real challenge starts and the bulk of the course begins.
Is It Really Worth It?
All in all, I think it is definitely worth it if you have a passion to work in tech, whether to create your dream company or to work for another. This is the case, but this immersive program is not something that you spend a little time on and make it into a small side gig. If that’s what you’re looking for, then programming may not be ideal for you. It takes intense focus and dedication to be successful in the field. One mistake can crash an entire program, or maybe even delete an entire database and cause the company to crash. What if someone deleted the entire database of Uber drivers because they told the computer an incorrect command? Of course this would not happen, as their infrastructure has too much sophistication for that to happen, but the company would literally be out of operations for who knows how long and this would cause the end of one of the biggest companies that the world has ever seen.
If you’re not passionate about it, and that goes for anything in life, then you shouldn’t waste your time and/or money. It is also only worth it if you have time. This point needs to be emphasized. For example: If you have a family and can’t afford to quit your full time job, this is not a good idea. I’ve found that many who go through these programs don’t have many responsibilities at the moment, or they have wonderful supporters around them who help them throughout the duration. The immersive is very time consuming, and some may find it easier than others, but the amount of time that has to be put in is undeniable.
In a quick rundown, within 5 weeks, I have learned HTML, CSS, Javascript/jQuery, started creating our own servers, learning node, express, mongoDB, certain data structures and science, and so much more underlying information. This is not everything, and has taken massive work outside of class along with in class work and lecture. Just 5 weeks ago, I wouldn’t even know where to start.
Why Would You Put Yourself Through Such a Daunting Task?
For me, taking this leap was about being creative and bringing my ideas to life, as I push to provide immense value to this world for decades to come. My friends have always told me that I have all of the ideas, but to me they meant nothing if I could never bring them to life. I avoided obtaining these skills for the simple reason of believing that they were too time consuming, or that it was too old to start now, or simply because of me believing that I didn’t belong in that time of environment (the common imposture syndrome). Whether you’re a cook, waitress, sales associate, truck driver, garbage truck operator or whatever it may be, you can be successful not only in this program, but in this career field as a whole.
All of these technologies are fairly new, relative to our society, and if you spend 10+ hours a day on something while someone else maybe spends a hour every few days, you will be amazed at how far you can go. If you are thinking of a career change, or simply love the tech field and need this sort of structure to learn, I will highly advise taking General Assembly’s Software Engineering Immersive if time and your situation persists. You will also hear the phrases “Web Developer”, “Full Stack Developer”, etc associated with software engineering as a lot of the knowledge intertwines.
Youtube Series Update?
Last but NOT LEAST, stay tuned as this will be just an intro to these blog and content posts regarding my Software Development journey. I aim to produce this content for the remaining 7-8 weeks in the course, while also producing content beyond the program as I work on different projects and aim to connect with like minded people in the industry. In the upcoming posts, I will link a youtube video that goes into depth about my particular General Assembly Immersive location, in the Greater Atlanta Area. Stay tuned, and be blessed!
here comes the new multi-chapter sprace fic! posted on ao3 here! i would recommend reading on ao3 because the italics don’t transfer over to tumblr automatically!
hmu to be added to the tag list!
Race hated school. Or at least, he hated being at school. He was actually a really good student, one of the best in his district, but there wasn’t a single thing he hated more than being at school. In fact, he almost didn’t go to college because he wasn’t sure he could handle another four years of teachers yelling at him to ‘stop pretending and speak up already’.
You see, he hadn’t spoken since he was thirteen years old. When his father was innocently driving him and his little sister to the movies one Saturday night, a driver without his lights on t-boned the family as they tried to turn into the parking lot.
His father was killed on impact, his daughters left screaming for help from the backseat. Race was nearly thrown out the open passenger seat window. His head hung limply out the side of the window at an unnatural angle. The paramedics were nearly certain his neck had snapped from the force, but as he regained consciousness, he tried reaching for his sisters behind him and they rushed him to the emergency room. He was only thirteen at the time, his sisters just nine and seven with a three-year-old little brother at home in bed with his mother, both completely oblivious as to what had just happened to their family.
His father would never be able to surprise his kids with the bonus he’d been given from his job that he had used to book the family a holiday vacation. His sisters would have matching scars across their chests and stomachs from how tightly their seatbelts had held them to their seats and one had broken her wrist trying to shield her little sister from the shattering glass of the left side window. And Race? His windpipe was so bruised he was on a ventilator for weeks. They tried speech therapy, they friend three different surgeries, and just about anything under the sun, but he never spoke again.
He spent the rest of that summer learning sign language. His mother was an elementary school teacher and had even agreed to learn with him just in case she ever had a deaf or hard of hearing student. His oldest sister learned the basics online and could translate most of what she needed, but it was never the same.
For years after they treated him like he was a fragile piece of glass that could break if someone so much as looked at him the wrong way. His mother even homeschooled him for his last year of middle school just out of her own fear of how his classmates and teachers would react.
He hated his life. People would try to encourage him to stay positive, that there were still so many things to be happy about, but for him it was the worst thing he could possibly imagine. He was a singer, through and through. His dad was his school choir instructor and after that’s accident, the program fell apart. His mother never understood how hard it was to be told his dream wasn’t possible anymore. For a kid barely a teenager to be told he had to give up his passion in life was like clipping his wings mid-flight. He was heartbroken.
He had so much free time he turned to anything he could possibly think of to fill the gaping hole in his life. He learned about a dozen instruments, he tried writing songs, and even tried vocal coaching other kids, but he was miserable.
He started high school and no teacher would give him the time of day, let alone any of the students. To them, if you didn’t answer questions in class, that meant you were dumb and nobody wanted to be friends with the kid who always had bags under his eyes and never said a word to anybody.
In fact, he made it through high school with a nearly perfect GPA and not a single person noticed. He walked across the stage at graduation and all of his classmates just looked around in confusion when his name was called.
Still, he thought it would be fine once he got to college. He planned on taking as many online courses as the school allowed and coasting at the back of the class through any that weren’t offered online. However, he was forced to room on campus by the school for at least one year, so he desperately requested a single room and for once in his life, something finally went his way. He still had to explain his situation to his RA, but other than that he couldn’t be happier. He had one class that wasn’t offered online the first semester and he felt more comfortable than he had in years. The week before classes started was the biggest relief of his life. He could walk around campus with headphones in and nobody would bother him, he could wave to his neighbors down the hall and none of them would strike up a conversation, and he was able to get so ahead in all of his online classes that he was able to get a job on campus restocking shelves at the campus library. It was easy, he would check in at the beginning and end of his shift and no one would try to talk to him the entire time.
You see, he had a voice text app on his phone that he used when he had to initiate conversations such as his job interview, when he checked into work everyday, or when he went to the student center to pick up his textbooks. It worked just fine when he had time to type up exactly what he needed to say, but when he would get bumped by someone in the hallway or get asked to help someone at work, people weren’t exactly cooperative when he couldn’t apologize or explain why he just seemingly ignored what they had just said to type something into his phone.
So when classes officially started, he really wasn’t looking forward to being the asshole who ignored people’s questions and didn’t speak to anyone again.
In fact, he even showed up to the first day of his only in-classroom course in a hoodie and sweatpants, his glasses on, and earbuds in, just hoping nobody would come near him. He took a seat near the back of the lecture hall and took out his computer, setting up a new document to take notes. He kept his earbuds in with no music playing, hoping that would make the students around him believe he wasn’t paying attention and therefore, not ask him any questions, which worked perfectly fine until he got up to leave.
The class had gone so well with his plan and there were dozens of other kids just like him who hadn’t asked or answered any questions without any judgment that he had honestly forgotten that he might need to talk to people on the way out. As he collected his things and stood up, he bumped into the kid behind him, both of them dropping their things on the ground. Race scrambled to get out his phone and type out an apology, but he clicked it once and it was dead. His heart sank as he tossed it into his bag and tried to figure out some sort of fake signs so the guy would understand his apology.
He gulped as the guy stood up, shorter then Race by a few inches, but visibly much stronger and with a face that looked like it held a resting grimace. He hoped it wasn’t just because of their encounter. Still, as he looked Race in the eyes, his expression softened and the blond fumbled with his hands for a second before just signing a regular apology.
He smiled nervously, hoping this guy wasn’t about to punch him or something, but what happened next was definitely not what he expected.
PLEAAASE write that post about what you can do with an English degree! I'm getting mine rn and everyone's either assuming I'm going to teach, or trying to push me into the med field instead :\
look, english degrees are awesome okay. i’m going to try and make this as brief as possible but am here to elaborate on anything anyone has questions on.
what everyone thinks you can do with an english degree:
teach
write a novel i guess
teach when the novel writing doesn’t work out
what you can actually do with an english degree:
whatever the fuck you want (no really)
first, there’s different types of english degrees**based on the US education system, which i’m most familiar with
literature! guess what you get to do with a literature degree? a lot.
skills: close-reading, critical thinking, problem-solving, potentially translating, communication (written for sure, maybe verbal as well), self-direction, detail-orientated, editing, style guides
stuff: archival work, curation, history if you specialize in an era, making digital humanities projects if you want to work with computers or apps, working abroad (especially if you want to do comparative lit), social justice work, public events including readings and vigils, copy-editing, writing (and we’ll talk more about what “writing” really means on the job market in a second), non-profit work, academia/professor, library work if you’re interested in information science, consultant, book history and printing, publishing
creative writing!
skills: close reading, critical thinking, translating, communication, editing, creativity, design, art, self-direction, analytical thinking, problem solving, giving and receiving constructive feedback, art
stuff: write that novel! or short story! or chap book! or poem!, marketing/advertising, storyboarding for tv or movies or video games, creative development, script writing, social justice work, non-profit work, academia/professorship, campaigning, travel writing, content development for corporations or charities or whatever you want, social media coordinator (guess what, that starts hiring at around 50k now), administration, public relations/press releases, creative director, creative consultant, medical humanities, publishing
technical writing/communication!
skills: collaboration, communication, technical skills, design, problem-solving, analytical and critical thinking, qualitative and quantitative research methods, documentation, development, project management
stuff: user experience, front-end design (web/software/interfaces/etc.), document design, technical writing, medical writing or design, app design, report writing, grant writing, editing, academia/professorship, political campaigning, social media coordinator, software engineering, programming, risk management, project manager, program development/administration, game designer, accessibility and assistive technology developer, consultant for the government/industry/non-profits, proposal developer, business plan developer, publishing
linguistics!
skills: sociology and anthropology, syntax, editing, writing, typically competencies in many languages, cognitive science and psychology, speech therapy
stuff: computational linguistics (PROGRAM COMPUTERS AND AI TO SPEAK?!), assistive technology developer, develop grammar and editing programs for technology (squiggly lines), academia/professorship, translator, forensic linguist, teach foreign languages or english as an additional language, lexicographer meaning you get to basically archive human language for everyone and that’s fucking cool, tech writing, programming and coding!, speech therapy, user researcher/field researcher, speech therapist and setting you up for speech pathology, consultant for the government/industry/non-profits, voice/dialect coach for actors or voice actors
and many more! (rhetoric, writing studies, teaching english as a second language, others i’ve forgotten)
guess what all these skills and jobs are likely mix-and-match! take classes across the board, figure out what you’re interested in, and chances are your english degree can be used toward those careers!
also guess what there’s different types of teaching you can do too! elementary, middle school, high school, vocational or technical colleges, community colleges, universities, corporate training, government training, specialist training, writing centers, teaching abroad, tutoring, instructional design, curriculum development/educational program development. teaching is also awesome and you can do a lot with the teaching focus beyond being just in the classroom if that’s where you want to go!
but i only want to write!
don’t worry dude there’s tons of writing out there for you to find comfortable employment in. here’s a few i can think of off the top of my head:
creative writing: scripts/screenplays, video games, novels, short stories, poetry, journalism, blogs, freelance digital writing, travel writing, think pieces, editorials, marketing campaigns
technical writing: grants, documentation for engineers/programmers/factories/products, SEO content, web content, medical writing, contract writing, business plans, proposals, job descriptions, freelance or contracted writing, user experience test plans and reports, codes and software scripts
civic writing: press releases, speeches, journalism, non-profit grants, charter documents, legislation or other legal documentation (usually hired by contract work)
tips
make your minor count. you want to write video game scripts? minor in something related to the industry (game studies is even a thing now in several universities). you want to write science books? minor in astronomy. want to write speech programs for AI robots? minor in computer science or human factors. go go go!
learn how to translate your soft skills to hard skills. english majors, generally, have a lot of critical thinking, analytical, and detail-orientated skills. think of specific projects where you’ve used those and talk about *those* on job materials (we can make our qual life quantifiable, #trust)
be adaptable. english degrees (and by extension, humanities degrees) are some of the most flexible skill sets out there. don’t pigeonhole yourself into roles that don’t fit what you want to do (i can’t tell you how many colleagues i’ve had that did editing jobs even though they hated editing and wanted to do design work instead. #DegreesCanDoTwoThings)
know that “publishing” and “editing” and “writing” have much, much more potential than what you might think initially. publishing jobs exist everywhere if you’re willing to work outside of creative fiction (university presses, magazines/newsletters/blogs, documentation for corporations, data-driven or science publications, etc.). these jobs are competitive, but they exist and you can get them
get experience working with cross-functional or cross-disciplinary teams. find opportunities to join clubs or orgs outside of your major that are doing projects you want to do. want to write movie screenplays? join film club, meet people who want to make films! showing that you can work with a bunch of different people from different knowledge bases/disciplines/skillsets will take you a lot farther on the job market
*dabs at forehead* obviously this isn’t exhaustive, there’s more out there! anyone who wants to chime in or add please do!
Play That Funky Music, Skate Boy: A Guide to Selecting Music for Your Fics
Hello YoI Friends, Fans, and Ficcers! We have teamed up to help you overcome the roadblock in your fic writing process known as music selection. You want Victor and Yuuri to paint their feelings all over the ice, but you also want your fic to be realistic. You might be sitting at your computer wondering, is it this frustrating for real life skaters to choose their music? (Yes. The answer, is yes.) But we are here to help!
Who are you people? Who exactly is “we?” And why are you qualified to make this post?
We are PoetSnoreate and LittleLostStar. Poet Snoreate runs the SpiceCapades (aka this blog), your destination for all the info you need to write a more accurate skating fic or, if you just want to know more about figure skating. A former competitive skater and sister to a current skating coach (codename: Toepick), PoetSnoreate grew up in and around the sport of figure skating.
LittleLostStar is the author of fan-favorite story Setting Sun and ten other Yuri on Ice fic gems, including the new fantasy AU We are Wanderers Still. A human treasury of music genres, styles, and artists, she incorporates her knowledge into her fics and generously helps other authors in their search for the perfect piece to write to or, in this case, write about!
Both of us are friendly and you can stop on by our blogs to follow us and say hi!
Note: PoetSnoreate wrote this intro. And every word of it is true.
Let’s delve into the hows, whys, do’s, and don’ts of music selection under the jump!
Section 0.1: (I’ve had) the time of my life, +/- 10 seconds
Programs have a time limit. If you exceed this time limit, you will be penalized, and eventually asked to leave the ice. The time limits are as follows:
Men’s/Ladies Short Program: 2:50 Maximum.
Men’s Freeskate: 4:30 (+/- 10 seconds)
Ladies’ Freeskate: 4:00 minutes (+/- 10 seconds)
Most of the time, especially with classical music, the piece will have been edited down to fit these time constraints. You do not have to personally edit your chosen piece for the sake of your fanfic. Please trust LittleLostStar on this. She spent four hours fretting over how to cut up Tchaikovsky’s “Slavic March” before her beta editor stepped in to shut down that malarkey.
Section 0.2: Slow. Now Fast. Now Faster! Slow Again. Fast Again! Oh my god faster! Whew.
(or: Your routine needs structure)
(or or: This is not quite what they had in mind when they told Chris to practice the rhythm method)
Music is carefully selected based on the program for which it is being used. Short programs are often skated to more uptempo music, because it is easier to sustain high energy for a shorter program. Freeskates are often performed to slower pieces.
You will see variations in mood/tempo in both programs. Short programs often follow this structure: fast music, slow music, fast music, and into a big finish! Free programs often follow the opposite: slow beginning, big middle, heart-wrenching (or uplifting) slow ending to a moving crescendo! These are typical structures, but not a rule, per say. Skaters have different strengths, weaknesses and their programs will be tailored to what they can do best.
Section 0.3: Sing, Sing, Sing! (Or not to Sing, Sing, Sing...No, seriously don’t use this piece)
In the old days of skating, only instrumental music could be used, which is why skating is often associated with classical music. Then, the ISU deemed that music with vocals would acceptable, so long as the vocals were acting like an instrument. Think of your favorite film score in which a choir “Ooohs” and “Aaaahh’s” dramatically during the big climactic scene. That’s what we’re talking about.
When Ice Dancing became really exciting in recent years, the ISU moved to allow Ice Dancers to use music with lyrics. After a few years of this, they finally capitulated and allowed skaters across all disciplines to use music with vocals. So now, anything goes (including the score to Anything Goes!) within reason, that is.
This means no music with explicit lyrics. I can’t find out if this is a set rule, but no one has pushed this envelope and I don’t think anyone will for a while. I’m sure if you choose your favorite rap song, judges will frown upon your choice (unless it’s from Hamilton. Everyone loves Hamilton, and so they should). A pair team from France used the 50 Shades of Grey soundtrack, but none of the songs they chose were graphic or used “bad” language.
Now, what sorts of songs should you pick, and from which genres?
Section 1: Classical
(or: You have no fucking excuse to use Swan Lake for the billionth time)
Because skaters could only use instrumental songs for so long, certain pieces of music have become so ingrained in the sport that they’re impossible to get rid of, like that creepy uncle at a family reunion, only with powdered wigs. Skaters have lots of terms for these pieces: “classics” (if you like them), “Old Warhorses” (if you’ve been around awhile, just like them), or, if you’re Toepick, “Skate Bashers” because they make you want to bash your head in with the nearest skate after hearing the same piece of music for the umpteenth time at a competition. Note: this is a little hypocritical, as Toepick has, in fact, used two of the aforementioned “Skate Bashers” in her career.
I prefer to describe these overused pieces as “Boomerangs” because they cycle back. Generally, every season you’ll see a few skaters performing differently choreographed programs to the same overused piece. Or, there was that one year where six different skaters in the Junior Ladies’ bracket were all doing Malaguena.
Here’s a short list of overused classical music: Swan Lake, Carmen, Malaguena, Claire de Lune, Romeo and Juliet (both versions), Nessun Dorma, Firebird, Sing, Sing, Sing! Tosca, Scheherazade. Rhapsody in Blue, that one piano concerto by Rachmaninoff
Now, what do Swan Lake, Carmen, Claire de Lune, Romeo and Juliet, Nessun Dorma, and Rachmaninoff have in common, besides overuse? They’re all from the Romantic Era of classical music. To quote from Wikipedia: “In the Romantic period, music became more expressive and emotional, expanding to encompass literary, artistic, and philosophical themes.” If you’ve heard classical music that’s big and emotional and full of feelings, it’s probably Romantic. Beethoven is an excellent benchmark to show the evolution between the rigid, mathematical High Classical era and the more fluid Romantic era, since his career spanned both. Contrast the first movement of his first symphony, which is tight and precise (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2VKpV9im8g) with the slow build and huge emotional swells of the second movement of Symphony no 7: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgHxmAsINDk .
Romantic Era music is popular for a reason; it’s emotional, varied in tempo, and almost always stunningly beautiful. And the nice thing about it is that there are dozens of Romantic composers, including Chopin, Brahms, Dvorak, Tchaikovsky, and many many more. You can start with some of the big names and try to find their lesser-known pieces, or fall down a Spotify Related Artists rabbit hole and find someone entirely new. And if you’re not sure at all where to start, here are a few of LittleLostStar’s suggestions:
Chopin, Piano Concerto no. 1, II. Romanze – Larghetto https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIackkOX2BU
Dvorak's Symphony no. 9, second movement: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOX15agZ3-0
Smetana's "Ma Vlast": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Lvvjsg8_xI
pretty much any portion of Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKX0ef1TZWA
Shostakovitch’s piano concerto No 2, second movement: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHpmHhi1Rxk
Debussy's "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWmUfIhAukU
Ralph Vaughan Williams' "Fantasia on a Theme for Thomas Tallis": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIhZbvlCjY0
Section 2: Movie scores which are not “The Mission”
Movie scores are amazing, and people don’t always give them enough credit. While there are certainly more than a few films with non-memorable scores (cough EVERY MARVEL MOVIE cough), think of all the films whose music has permeated our culture: Star Wars, Jaws, basically anything by John Williams. After classical music, film scores are an easy place to find emotional music for skating, but there are some pieces--such as “Gabriel’s Oboe” from The Mission--which are also far too overused.
There are movie scores such as Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Mask of Zorro which were only popular in the skating community for a short time. While they saw overuse during this period, they never quite made Skate Basher status and are fun and refreshing when they resurface with a bright-faced new skater. Others, like the soundtrack to Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and the 1960’s Romeo and Juliet theme have produced some of the coolest programs known to skating history. But those programs inspired other programs, which inspired other programs, and thus have relegated themselves to the ranks of the overused.
If you’re interested in going for the big emotional swells via cinema, here are a few options:
The one piano piece everyone adores from Amelie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hprOTiv3fU
“Transformation” from Beauty and the Beast (1991)*: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH9RTuaUL8k
“The Heart Asks Pleasure First” by Michael Nyman from The Piano: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NsQBKr_x-P4
From John Powell’s stunning How to Train Your Dragon score: either “Test Drive” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5N3q68e7OQ) or “Coming Back Around” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbbsCTafRNw ). The latter, in particular, has a really great buildup that would be suited for Yuuri’s stamina, since it gets very energetic right at the end.
“Define Dancing” from the Wall-e score: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-7LIojfezw
“Transformation” by the Bulgarian Women’s Choir from Brother Bear, that Disney movie you don’t remember: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4S9csXngPNg
And if you’re feeling daring:
Junkie XL’s score for Mad Max: Fury Road was a furiously energetic jolt of adrenaline. A song like “Brothers in Arms” would be a very bold choice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xllG3fSUAOw
The Chemical Brothers scored a frankly excellent film called Hanna from 2011, and it has no shortage of bizarrely awesome electro songs, but “Container Park” is the best: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBmwcuLa1as
*LittleLostStar has no idea why we suddenly need to specify the year of this film’s release because there has never ever been another version of the best Disney film ever made and we needn’t speak of this matter again and also this is her favourite film of all time, so if you use “Transformation”, please let her know, because she’s probably going to read your fic and squee.
Section 2.5: What about Broadway tho?!
Don’t worry, fam, we gotchu.
As a current (not-so) starving actor (PoetSnoreate) and a former theater kid who once had dreams of being the next Idina Menzel (LittleLostStar) we would be remiss if we did not include the third most popular source of music for skating--BROADWAY!
Before lyrics were allowed, the sweeping scores to classic shows were brought to life on the ice by talented skaters. Sometimes so much so (in the case of West Side Story) that they became Skate Bashers. Rogers and Hammerstein were also a popular choice, The King and I and South Pacific were/have been fairly popular, but have yet to reach Skate Basher status. Other popular musicals that are on their way to becoming Skate Bashers include Phantom of the Opera and Les Miserables...and let’s face it, if we have to see someone skate to “Bring Him Home” one more time, we’re going to be le miserable.
(Get it?! Le miserable? Is this thing on? *tap tap*)
Here are some fun options from people who are not Andrew Lloyd Webber:
“You Can’t Stop the Beat” from Hairspray (note: the linked version here is from the 2007 film, which absolutely blew the Broadway version out of the water in my opinion): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjOXwuBQT1o
“King of New York” from the film Newsies (or the Broadway remake): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmPnz4g9HGQ. It is an excellent replacement for your more swing-adjacent Skate Bashers like “Rhapsody in Blue”
And while we’re at it, stop using “Sing sing sing” and use the finale from Chicago instead: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luef1H24hU8
Print off a list of the major songs from Wicked (everything over two and a half minutes that doesn’t include the Wizard, because all his songs are the worst). Pin it to the wall and stand a few feet back. Throw a dart. Congratulations, you’ve got a piece from Wicked. They basically all work.
While we’re on Stephen Schwartz, selections from Hunchback of Notre Dame would be super baller: “Bells of Notre Dame” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4COfl8DMB8) and “Heaven’s Light/Hellfire” for some real AF energy contrasts: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eODy_sHpjaQ
“A Piece of Sky” by Barbra Streisand, from Yentl. Ask your parents, kids. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_s8NpVhwgnA
Section 3: Yes, you can use modern songs. No, Tswift probably won’t let you use hers.
While programs that are more “traditional” still tend to score better, more and more skaters are making bolder music choices; they’re picking older pop hits, songs from classic singers, and even current chart toppers for their programs. This most recent season featured programs to 1980s classics like “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This” by the Eurythmics and “Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie. Elvis may have left the building, but he showed up at the ice rink. Electro Swing is another popular choice; Caro Emerald crooned her way across several disciplines to create some interesting programs with the genre. Currently, most skaters will only select modern music for one program and keep the other in the more traditional vein.
Wacky, wild, and fun music (including disco and techno) tends to remain the purview of the Exhibition...along with the best choreography. Skaters every now and again will insist on skating their exhibitions to overused songs such as “Fields of Gold,” “Arms of an Angel”; but most of the time, the exhibition is where we get unforgettable programs like the infamous “Sex Bomb.” And the time Joe Johnson skated with a slice of pizza on his head.
Skaters don’t personally have to pay copyright to use their music, but they do have to turn in the names, titles, and composers of their pieces ahead of the season, so that rights can be secured by arenas (in their home country) and then by their Federations/other arenas where they’ll be competing. It’s a very convoluted process, and we don’t know the exact details of it (sorry). However, this is why you often don’t see skaters skating to the new big thing, because they have to be ready ahead of time with their selections, and also because programs take time to prepare and perfect.
While LittleLostStar was all set to provide a list of suggestions, the truth of the matter is that if you think a song will work, it’ll probably work! There are videos out there of routines set to “Umbrella” by Rihanna, “Cheap Thrills” by Sia, and “Hand Clap” by Fitz and the Tantrums. Johnny Weir’s routine to Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance” famously inspired Yurio’s ice slide heard ‘round the fandom in the “Welcome to the Madness” EX. So, really, go wild.
...Okay, she can’t help herself, here are some suggestions:
“Paradise” by Coldplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1G4isv_Fylg
...okay, and also “Fix You”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4V3Mo61fJM
“All These Things That I’ve Done” by The Killers. Bonus points if you perform it in a blood-stained shirt and camouflage pants, and double bonus points if it’s a pair skate with someone dressed in a sexy nurse’s outfit. Sextuple billion bonus points if you understand that reference. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZTpLvsYYHw
“Some Nights” by fun., which is bombastic and wonderful: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qQkBeOisNM0
A classic for a reason. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFWDGTVYqE8
“I Am Chemistry” by Yeasayer is one of the best songs ever, with one of the goddamn weirdest music videos ever, and would make a really interesting FS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XzqCUbiPc4
The Final Movement
We hope you’ve enjoyed our handy and comprehensive guide to choosing the music for your YoI fic.
