Oh man!!! Did we have a FANTASTIC month!!! In fic we got vampires, werewolves, a demon ship, a mystery from the sea as well as original art and updates from past years!!! In this post, we will feature all of it including artwork with links on ao3 and Tumblr. So without further ado, herrrrrrrrre we goooooo!!!
Under the cut, unless Tumblr ate it.
On June 1st, @itsfabianadocarmo dropped a vampire aesthetic inspired by the Countess from American Horror Story: Hotel. Sooo incredible! It gave me chills! You can find it here.
On June 3rd, I ( @kmomof4 ) dropped Of Darkness, Vampires, and Soulmates. We are now six chapters in with updates every Wednesday. Ao3 link Prologue Ch1 Ch2 Ch3 Ch4 Ch5
Art by @spartanguard. Banner Prologue Ch1 Ch2 Ch3 Ch4 Ch5
On June 6th, @demisexualemmaswan dropped the first chapter of By the Moon’s Rise, featuring CS as werewolves. Oh my word! The pack politics going on...It is off to a fantastic start and I can’t wait for more! Ao3 link Tumblr
Art by @courtorderedcake. Killian
On June 9th, @snowbellewells dropped A Cottage By the Sea. An Enchanted Forest Lieutenant Duckling AU. The last chapter left me on the edge of my seat and I can’t wait to see where she takes this! Ao3 link Prologue Ch1
Art by @searchingwardrobes. (X)
On June 11th, @katie-dub dropped Awakening, her fic inspired by the TV show Being Human. I am not familiar with the show, but this fic, oh my WORD!!! I had no words, and so I reblogged with gifs. Can’t wait for more!!! Ao3 link Tumblr
On June 14th, @lassluna dropped her fic, Swan’s Hourglass, a Legend of Zelda AU. I absolutely LOVE her use of the side characters and Emma is absolutely bad ass!!! Can’t wait for more!! Ao3 link Ch1 Ch2 Ch3
Artwork by @eastwesthomeisbest.
On June 17th, @hollyethecurious dropped her Vampire Diary’s inspired The Craving In Between. Fun, intriguing, and spicy!!! Ao3 Tumblr
Artwork by @allons-y-to-hogwarts-713.
On June 20, @allons-y-to-hogwarts-713 dropped her original Angel!Emma/Demon!Killian aesthetic. Absolutely perfect!!! (x)
On June 23, @allons-y-to-hogwarts-713 dropped another aesthetic that I was inspired to write a fic for! The Moon... Tells the Sea is the tale of were-mermaid Emma and her mate. Ao3 fic on Tumblr aesthetic on Tumblr
On June 25, @eastwesthomeisbest dropped original Vampire!Killian artwork His Sweet Kiss. Breathtaking and sooooo chilling!!! (X)
On June 27th, @kymbersmith-90 dropped her Soliciting for Dracula: Outtake. So great to be taken back to that universe first presented during CS Halloweek last year! Ao3 Tumblr
On June 29th, @imlaxdris71 dropped her Shadowhunters AU, The Price of Blood. I am not at all familiar with Shadowhunters, but this fic is so awesome already and I can’t wait for more!!! Ao3 Tumblr
I was thrilled to provide artwork for this incredible fic!
We also had 3 fics from previous years events update last month!!!
@darkcolinodonorgasm updated One Day, her LadyHawke inspired AU that she kills me with every single chapter!!! We are now on ch5 of 7. Ao3 link Tumblr
Artwork by @sherlockianwhovian
@courtorderedcake updated Hallow, her epic tale of love, loss, and restoration with Emma and Dark One Killian on a journey through realms. We are now on ch18. Ao3 link Tumblr
And we’ve had two updates from @whimsicallyenchantedrose for her fic Until the Stars Are All Alight, her CS/LOTR crossover fic. We are now on ch10. Ao3 Ch9 Ch10
Artwork by @clockadile
Well, that’s it everyone! Wow! What incredible fic and art we were blessed with last month!!! Please make sure and give all our authors and artists lots of love!!! I’ll be back at the end of the month with a preview of what’s coming up in August as well as a roundup for July! Until then y'all!!!
There is, there is!!!! And August as well!!! I’ll be dropping the July preview post on Tuesday and a roundup post for June with links to all the fics and art will drop on Wednesday so be sure to keep an eye out!!
Hello everyone! Can you believe it? We are a month into the 2019 CSSNS!!!
We have been blessed with some INCREDIBLE fic already this summer and we have much more to come. This post will first highlight the fic and art that’s been posted so far, and then we’ll look forward to what is to come in the month of July! So without further ado everyone, heeeeeerrrrrrrrrre we goooooooooooo!!!!!
@welllpthisishappening opened us up this year with her short MC, All the Subliminal Things, a soulmate fake dating AU. Adorable and hysterical, as usual!! Artwork by @resident-of-storybrooke. She also closed out the month yesterday with the posting of her MC All was Golden In the Sky. I’m telling you the truth, that I’m already thinking this one may dethrone Blue Line as my favorite of Laura’s work. Again with artwork by @resident-of-storybrooke. She will be updating AWGITS on Tuesdays and Fridays for the next three months. Make sure and let her know how much you love it, because I’m sure you will!
@darkcolinodonorgasm posted One Day, a LadyHawke AU that I am BESIDE myself waiting for more of! With artwork by @sherlockianwhovian. Towards the end of the month, she posted Hidden Paths Between the Moon and Sun, the sequel to her Hades and Persephone AU, Until the Stars Are All Alight. Loads of fluff so far and a very delayed honeymoon for our favorite couple. Again with artwork by @sherlockianwhovian. Be sure to give them both lots of love for their hard work and wonderful results!!
@allons-y-to-hogwarts-713 posted original art Killian Falls for Siren Emma and Paranormal Photographers/Reporters. They were both absolutely fantastic!! Be sure and let her know!
@donteattheappleshook posted her sequel to last years fic Just Human. She named it, very aptly, Just Human Vol2. It picked up right where last years fic left off and is LOADED with feels! Artwork 1 and 2 by @djlbg. Be sure and give them both lots of love!!!
@thislassishooked posted her vampire AU MC Wake Me Up Inside. We have three chapters posted so far and it is INCREDIBLE!!! Artwork by @tennant-the-tigger. Make sure and give them both all the love!!
@let-it-raines posted her MC Not Your (Soul)Mate. This is a very humorous take on the whole soulmate trope. Artwork by @captainsjedi. Make sure and give them plenty of flails!!!
@shireness-says posted her oneshot A Drowning Soul Will Clutch at Any Straw. A beautiful fic featuring mermaid Emma and pirate Killian, with a TLK to boot! Artwork by @hollyethecurious. Be sure to give them all kinds of love!!!!
That is all for the fics and art we’ve had dropped so far. Make sure when you read that you give the authors and artists lots of love!!! Now, what do we have to look forward to next month? Well, I’m so glad you asked!
@snowbellewells will open us up tomorrow with a MC continuation of last years Run To Me (In the Dead of Night) and she’ll post a ghost story OS on the 29th. Artwork by @branlovestowrite.
@thejollyroger-writer will be posting Love After Death on July 3, an afterlife hotel/soulmates AU in which Emma runs the afterlife hotel that ghost Killian makes his way to. She will close out the month with a second OS on the 31st called What Happens in Berkshire where a statue of Captain Hook comes to life when Emma gives him a kiss! Artwork by @captainsjedi. She will be giving us another OS in August as well.
On July 10, @gingerchangeling will be posting Luck of the Irish. A OS where Emma comes home with more than she bargained for after reading an ancient curse. Artwork by @resident-of-storybrooke.
@lizzyc807shipscaptainswan will be posting a guardian angel vampire OS on July 12. Killian is a vampire that turns into a guardian angel of sorts when investigative reporter Emma just keeps getting herself into trouble. Artwork by @courtorderedcake.
@jarienn972 will be posting A Simple Spell on July 15. In which novice witch Emma casts a spell to find her True Love. Artwork by @cocohook38.
On July 17, @profdanglaisstuff will be posting her fic, The Very Witching Time. Emma is a witch that has to defeat a new danger rising that threatens her and everything she loves. She’ll need the support and help of her friends and a dog named Killian if she is to succeed. Artwork by @gingerchangeling.
July 19 @searchingwardrobes will be posting An Education in Southern Gothic, a ghost/possession fic. Based on a legend at a school she used to teach at. She will be posting a second fic based on the Cupid and Psyche myth in August. Artwork by @hollyethecurious.
@spartanguard will be posting a soulmate AU called Sick of Love on July 22. Will the barriers that CS put up to avoid touching their possible soulmate protect them? Or only hurt them more? Artwork by @sherlockianwhovian.
On July 24 @snidgetsafan will be posting a Hades, Persephone, and Orpheus OS called Whom the Gods Favor, Die Young. Artwork by @tennant-the-tigger.
Oh man! Do we have a lot to look forward to!!! I’m so excited for all these fics and art that’ll be dropping next month!!! Make sure and spread all the excitement and love for these incredibly talented people! I’ll be back at the end of July with another roundup and preview post for the rest of the event! See you then!
It's been a month of highs and lows. Every year my city holds a cabaret festival, and I've seen some truly amazing acts over the years - including Lea Salonga, Kristin Chenoweth, and Indina Menzel. This year's Artistic Director was the great Alan Cumming, and although due to covid he didn't quite get to curate the program he wanted to, the opening night Gala was still a highlight, as was Alan's DJ set at the pop-up Club Cumming afterwards, where there was much singing at the top of my lungs and dancing to pop anthems and theatre tunes. At one point Alan, dressed in a onesie and perched on the shoulders of a man wearing only sparkly short shorts, was carried around the dance floor while Circle of Life blared. Reader, I was delighted.
I was also able to see his solo show Alan Cumming Is Not Acting His Age, which was hilarious and damn, he can sing!
As for the low, I was meant to fly to Sydney for the weekend to see Hamilton, a trip I have been looking forward to for almost a year, but had to be cancelled because of a covid outbreak and border closures. The tickets have been rescheduled, but I'm still kind of bummed about it (while completely appreciating the need for covid safety, especially when our vaccine rollout has been completely botched by our incompetent, corrupt federal government)
Anyway.
Reading
The Hundred and One Dalmations (Dodie Smith) - With all the bewilderment over Disney's Cruella, I decided to revisit the original novel which I first read as a kid. It's funny, I had very vivid memories of this book, or rather thought I did, particularly the scene where Roger and Anita have dinner at Cruella's house that fixed in my young mind as utterly disturbing with all this devil imagery and the implication Cruella was literally some kind of demon, which must have been either a) my overactive imagination or b) an illustration, because it's not as clear as I thought it was. The strangeness is there (food with too much pepper, Cruella's inability to keep warm, the walls painted blood red) but not the explicit demon imagery I had remembered. There is a part later in the book recounting the history of Hell Hall and the rumors of Cruella's ancestor streaking out of the place conjuring blue lightening, but clearly child me was reading far more into the book than was on the page.
But I still wish they'd gone with this version of Cruella's backstory, because to me an aristocratic, ink-drinking, heat-obsessed, possibly-demon spawn, high camp villain is more interesting and rings far more true than plucky punk against the establishment.
Smith clearly had Facts About Dalmations to share, and she does really craft a wonderful animal-based story that the Disney animated film is largely faithful to. Key differences include: Roger's occupation (he doesn't have to pay tax because he wiped out government debt somehow?!?), Pongo's mate and the puppy's mother is called Missis, Perdita is another dalmation who acts as a kind of doggie wet nurse, Roger and Anita both have Nannies who come to live with them (Nanny Butler and Nanny Cook), Cruella is married to a furrier (who changed his last name to de Vil). Also odd, on her first description Cruella is described as having "dark skin" but later in the novel her "white face" is mentioned, so I'm chalking it up to 50's descriptors not having the same meanings they do today.
The Duke and I (Julia Quinn) - After being just whelmed by the tv series, I wasn't really planning on reading the books, but I saw this on the top picks shelf at the library and damn, the top picks shelf is irresistible. This is very much Daphne's book (and I had known each in the series dealt with the different sibling) so many of the characters and much of the plot of the show is absent, as are some of the more baffling elements of the show like the Diamond of the First Water nonsense, which I always thought was a strange character choice in that it stacks the deck for Daphne when her character arc is better served as somewhat of an underdog (in her third season, the kind of girl who is liked but not adored), and the Prince subplot which was always far too OTT even for soapy regency romance.
It's a breezy, fun read (that scene excepted), even if the misunderstandings are contrived and I'm never going to take "I'll never have kids because I hate my dad" as a credible romantic obstacle deserving of so much angst.
Faeries (Brian Froud and Alan Lee) - A lovingly detailed and illustrated compendium of Faerie and its inhabitants, drawing from a range of European (but primarily Celtic) folklore and mythology. Froud was a conceptual designer on The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth, and the link is clear in the art as well as the focus on faeries as mysterious but oftimes sinister beings, where human encounters with them rarely end well. Lee has illustrated several publications of Tolkien's novels, and was a lead concept artists for Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings and Hobbit trilogies, and there is a touch of Middle Earth here as well, or rather the common inspiration of the old world. A useful resource for my novel!
Watching
The Handmaid's Tale (season 4, episodes 4-8) SPOILERS - So when I last wrote about this show in the Roundup, I was complaining it wasn't going anywhere. Well, I'm happy to be wrong because they finally changed things up with June finally escaping to Canada. That part of the plot following the survivors and their trauma has always been far more compelling than Gilead, and so it was a welcome development even if I side-eye some of the choices (none of these characters is seeing an actual licensed therapist why?).
This show has always been difficult to watch given the subject matter, and that has not changed after the shift in power dynamics. I will give the show credit for showing a broad range of trauma responses, from Moira wanting to move on and not let it consume her, to June, a ball of rage and revenge on a downward spiral, to Emily, trying to follow Moira's path but being drawn to June's, to Luke, trying his best but utterly unequipped to deal with what is happening.
But it is very hard to watch June go down this path - raping her husband (I concede the show perhaps didn't intend for it to be rape, but that's what is on screen and framing it as just "taking away Luke's agency" doesn't change that), wishing death on Serena's unborn child, and orchestrating Fred's brutal murder by particulation, then holding her own daughter still covered in his blood and it getting smeared on Nicole's face (an unsubtle metaphor in a series full of unsubtle metaphors).
There are interesting questions being asked of the viewer, and the show (perhaps rightly) not giving any answers. I can certainly appreciate the catharsis of Fred getting what he deserves even if I personally find the manner of it horrifying, but where is the line between justice and revenge, is revenge the only option when justice is denied, when does a trauma release become cyclical violence/abuse - the show is, for now, letting the viewer decide.
Soul (dir. Pete Docter and Kemp Powers) - In a world full of remakes/reboots/sequels, Pixar is perhaps the lone segment under the Disney umbrella committed to original content. However, there does seem to be a Pixar formula at work directed to precision tugging the heart strings, and some of the film feels like well-trod ground. On the other hand, it's hard to criticise the risk of centering a kids film around the existential crisis of a middle aged man, even with the requisite cutesy elements (and of course, the uncomfortable pattern of yet another film where the black lead character spends a great deal of the runtime in non-human form - herein, an amorphous blob or a cat). But the animation is stunning, it successfully did tug my heart strings, and the design of the Great Before and the Jerrys is original and fun.
RuPaul's Drag Race Down Under - Drag Race is somewhat of a guilty pleasure for me, since I generally don't watch reality shows, and this is something I really enjoy even if I'm not invested in the fandom (which like many fandoms can be very yikes). This year it was time for the Australian/New Zealand (Aotearoa) queens to show their stuff, although it's been met with mixed reactions. Covid restrictions didn't allow for guest judges, relegating them to mere cameos via video calls, and its clear that Ru and Michelle really don't quite get all the cultural nuances - Aussie judge Rhys Nicholson was however always delightful. But it wouldn't be Australia without a racism scandal, with the great disappointment of the two queens of colour eliminated first, and one queen having done blackface in the recent past yet making it all the way to the top four.
In the end, the only viable and deserving winner was last Kiwi standing Kita Mean, and it was pure joy to see her get crowned. I do hope they fix the bugs and indeed do another season to better showcase AU/NZ talent.
Writing
A far more productive month - to try and get out of my writing funk I had a goal to try and write every day, even if it was only 100 words. While I didn't quite achieve a consecutive month, I did get a pretty good average, at least got something posted and two others nearly there.
The Lady of the Lake - 2441 words, Chapter 4 posted.
