#hold fire

[jbowerherondale]

[hold-fire]

i finished it...

66,971 words. 157 pages. 12 months and 4 days.

[iheartmoosiq]

I’m a sucker for beautifully layered vocals, which is exactly what San Scout gives us on the London duo’s latest gorgeous alt ballad, Hold Fire. We’re no strangers to the pair’s chiffon glazed indietronica and alt pop, but this is simply transcendental. As always, they’re a straight shot for a heart that also loves bands and projects like Aquilo, The Japanese House, and even Bon Iver or Francis and the Lights, with some of LANY’s lovesick fluorescence. You can stream more of San Scout’s melting tunage on Soundcloud, here.

[hold-fire]

Hold Fire, a World War 1 story.

The Great War was supposed to end all wars, but it didn’t do that, the devastation was catastrophic, yet beautiful things took place on the grim battlefields. Flowers grow, birds sing and love blossoms. War was not kind and some believed it was the moment in time when God lost his power over the world and Lucifer took his place. The tragedy and havoc that took place were events created by unholy hands. 

We follow Australian soldier Alexander Handcock from 1915 at the Gallipoli peninsula, where the love of his life finds him. Thomas Burn, a soldier who was below him in the pecking order, and also slightly younger. During this time being homosexual was more than unacceptable, it was criminal. 

Alexander and Thomas must face the hardships and struggles of having to hide their true identities as gay men, in love, while dealing with the horrors of war. Both fight for peace, to be able to go home with one another, but they must govern the war first and how it will change things forever.

[hold-fire]

WTW SIDE CHARACTER WEEK - DAY 1: INTRODUCTION

April 23, 1915: Aegean Sea

One boot hitting the deck below him he almost lost grip of the ropes trying to free his other foot, a young sailor’s hands wrapping around his sides quickly. Alexander looked at him when his feet were on the ground, he had a sweet face round with deep blue eyes, slightly sunburnt. He’d remembered him from earlier that day. He’d walked into him by accident on the way up to his section, “almost had a tumble there,” his voice was bright.

[hold-fire]

WTW SIDE CHARACTER WEEK - DAY 2: RELATIONSHIPS

Connor Myers

Myers was Turner's partner and superior, leading the crew Turner worked in. Their relationship came with secrecy and fear, but when the opportunity made itself apart they were soft and tender with each other. They could talk for hours about their lives before joining the navy, what they would do after the war. Plan their lives together.

Alexander Hancock

Hancock was the first person Turner came out to, indirectly. With Hancock’s open heart and closeted sexuality, he was able to aid Turner in his self-understanding. Turner filled with self-belief from the kindness Hancock showed him. Hancock and his connection were strong and everlasting.

[forensicated]

04x12 - Hold Fire

Traffic is running slow in Sun Hill and it's holding up response times to incidents. Ken and Yorkie run to a serious RTA where one of the cars is on fire because it's quicker. Taffy and Malcolm have to drive on the path to get through to help them. Ken's jacket catches on fire and he burns his hands, but he's lucky compared to Yorkie who is still helping the passenger when the car explodes. He's blown clear but is unconscious as Malcolm runs over to help him.  He has to begin CPR as he's swallowed his tongue.

Ted is supposed to be at his firearms refresher course but he attends the station instead.

Ken feels guilty that he couldn't get both victims out and Yorkie away fromt he car before the explosion. Malcolm comforts him and leads him into the ambulance.

Christine and Bob argue about a report of one of the new PC'. (It’s not made clear but from the ‘he’s only been with us five minutes’ point, it’s likely Ramsey) Christine claims he's not helping if he doesn't tell the truth. Robin interrupts to tell them about the RTA accident and two officers being injured. Christine leaves to attend the scene, warning Bob to complete the report just as she's suggested.

Viv and Jim are undercover but Jim's attention is taken by the Space Invaders type computer game because their suspect isn't there yet. Jim adds sound effects whilst playing too. Viv teases him for being a big kid.

Yorkie is transferred to a bed to be examined whilst Ken is frustrated at having to be pushed around in a "geriatric go-kart" of a wheelchair whilst he's checked over. His hands have been wrapped in plastic and he feels stupid but Malcolm tries to cheer him up by telling him it'll stop him picking his nose.

Taffy tells Christine that the car lost control and went into the side of the trailer. The body hasn't been removed from the car now the fire is out because the fire chief is suspicious about the way the car went up because something doesn't add up.

Bob tries to complete the report and resorts to looking in a thesaurus for different words to sum up 'lacks initiative'.

Ted finally makes it to the refresher course..The man signing him in is not happy with him for being late, nor is the instructor who reminds him that being in the right frame of mind when using firearms is paramount.

Ken worries when he sees Yorkie out cold again. The nurse tells him and Malcolm that the doctor sedated him to put his dislocated shoulder into place and he's just sleeping it off. Christine visits Ken and Yorkie and reassures him that he and Yorkie will both be alright. Ken claims that he was 'just in the right place' when the man that he saved is wheeled in.

Viv is playing a racing game when the suspect arrives. Jim clocks him and then swaps with her so she can check him over without it being obvious that he’s being watched by one person. They suspect that he might be laundering drug money.

Ted misses the mark massively when shooting targets. He gets bollocked for reloading without permission from the instructor. The instructor refuses to let Ted go for lunch with the others, working him through it to try and bring him up to scratch as he’s aware that something is bothering Ted but thinks it might just be because he’s rusty at first..

Robin calls Christine whilst she's at the hospital and tells her that there's something dodgy with the burnt-out car. As far as the DVLA are aware the car was taken as part exchange for another and hasn't been resold yet. She asks him to give her a few minutes to think about it and she'll ring back.

So far, Jim and Viv's suspect has fed at least £30 into a particular game machine.

Ted's shooting skills are still below par. The instructor makes him hand the weapon over and tells him he knows he wasn't even trying to hit the target and not to return for the afternoon as it’d be a waste of time. The instructor reports to Derek that Ted failed the course - but that he failed because he wanted to. Ted spends the afternoon at the pub. Mike suggests it might be the wrong time of the month for Ted and suggests that they leave him alone and let him come to terms with whatever is upsetting him by himself.

Sadie talks to Ted and tries to cheer him up. Ted is having a crisis about what it means to shoot another person and seems like he could have lost his nerve.

Christine feeds Ken his dinner whilst they discuss what the RTA being suspicious could mean. It could perhaps be a ringer - which puts the man that Ken saved into question. Was he aware and is he responsible? Ken suggests he and Yorkie keep watch over him whilst they're there. She tries to send Malcolm to help out so the boys can rest but Burnside has made him the exhibits officer so she tells him to call CAD and get one assigned immediately.

Jim and Viv follow their suspect when he leaves. He heads into a builder's merchant and speaks to a man in a red transit van who slips him extra cash. Viv is asked to attend the hospital to watch the patient that Ken saved but she asks to delay it for a few minutes and for a police van to be sent to the merchants. She goes over and speaks to the man who they'd been watching and pushes her luck, telling him she wants 4 bags of cement for the price of 2 and that she was sent by a mutual friend. After a little bit of chat, he slowly gives in and agrees to help her out.

Burnside is pissed off Christine didn't call him when the crash turned out to be dodgy and doesn't buy her excuse that they didn’t know what it was at first..Frank tells her that the Fire Officer now suspects explosives were being carried and that the fact that it could be two crims out on a job means he should have been told.

Ken is befriended by an elderly man who is in for a hip replacement who keeps walking around the ward.

Bob is still typing up the report and ends up balling it up and binning it, moaning that it has nothing to do with actual police work.

Viv takes her receipt to the dodgy bloke who has loaded up the forklift with what she asked for. She leads him over to her motor that's parked just outside the merchant's yard… of course, it’s a police van. "I fancied you!" he sighs, getting in the van.

The car that was linked to the burnt-out car has been checked over and it's kosher. Frank insists they're still big villains and that they'll "come to claim their dead" in a few hours. As Viv arrives, 2 men walk by her with a wheelchair… Fortunately for them but not for Viv, Ken, or Yorkie, a man is kicking off in the stores as he’s obviously high on something. Viv names him as Roger Webb or as Sun Hill knows him; LSD Webb.

Ted returns to the station and passes Bob in the corridor. "I'm fed up with this bloody job." Bob mutters. "You and me both mate...." Ted growls in response.

LSD escapes into the ward and throws things around, causing chaos. Ken tries to go help them but LSD is caught and sedated seconds later by the medical staff after he leaps over a flight of stairs. In that short amount of time, the suspect Ken should have been watching is kidnapped off the ward by the two men with the wheelchair. The old man Ken befriended thought they were plainclothes coppers so did nothing to intervene or alert Ken or the staff.. Ken can only watch from the window as the suspect is bundled into a car!

[violetcancerian]

4, for the book ask!

Did I discover new authors that I loved this year???

YES! The one that comes to mind is Chelsea Banning, who wrote "Of Crowns and Legends", it's an Arthurian retelling set 20 years after the death of King Arthur