A Writer Is A World Trapped In A Person.

MEDIA INFLUENCES FOR ‘ON SUNDAYS, SHE PICKED FLOWERS / LITERATURE

The long put of sequel to the film version of this post… But anyways, it’s finally here so we can talk about the books that inspired On Sundays, She Picked Flowers. I’m just gonna give you the names of the books and the inspirations I took from each of them in relation to the plot, the relationships, the setting and the characters!

THE COLOR PURPLE by Alice Walker

Celie and Shug Avery was the first time I’d ever read or seen anything about Black women who love women. It’s no surprise that their relationship inspired the relationship between Jude and Nemoira.

THEIR EYES WERE WATCHING GOD by Zora Neale Hurston

Janey’s independence inspired much of Jude’s character, as well as her relationship with her hair and her lovers.

The body as nature, a pear tree in bloom as a symbol of sexual awakening; Jude’s connection to plant life (trees, in particular) is quite obvious in On Sundays

BELOVED by Toni Morrison

I could do an entire essay on the connection / inspirations between Beloved and On Sundays, She Picked Flowers but that’ll have to wait until the book is published, and more of the references will make sense. For now, Jude is heavily inspired by Sethe and Nemoira by Beloved herself. Many other themes borrowed are the pursuit of freedom through violence, mother-daughter relationships, isolation and self-ownership, and healing through past trauma, how trauma affects the whole body, mind and all.

JANE EYRE by Charlotte Bronte

Jude herself admits to being formed/inspired by Miss Jane Eyre!

Not to mention, the themes of nature, isolation, strange loves and “haunted” houses

HOUSE OF LEAVES by Mark Z. Danielewski

Speaking of haunted houses … Both houses viewed in On Sundays, She Picked Flowers are characters of their own, and they’re both radically inspired by House of Leaves. The corridor, the staircase… Yes.

ANNIHILATION by Jeff VanderMeer

Nature behaving strangely, isolation (again!), and a little something special with a bear ;)

ALIAS GRACE by Margaret Atwood

A slightly unreliable narrator, a woman that can’t be pinned down with just one word…Yes. All over, yes. Also quilting, but less in a white woman way and in more of a ‘Black American women have always had a very complex and long history with quilting, so much so that our contributions to quilting is its own history.’

SHARP OBJECTS by Gillian Flynn

Two words; Mommy Issues, Self Harm as a way of gaining control over a body that seems uncontrollable. Though I guess, actually, that’s way more than two words. You get what I’m saying though, right?

THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE by Shirley Jackson

The setting, the sick house and sick land, the haunted house as a character, the unreliable narrator, the gay vibes all throughout, the bone deep terror that weaves its way through the story until you’re curled up on your bed terrified… I only hope that On Sundays makes you all feel the same.

Keep reading

what is the most brutally honest reason you write?

do you think adult fantasy/fiction has to have sex scenes in it? Like if a work is adult in tone/style/other content but sex scenes are more like...fade to black, do you think that's more YA?

hi anon! so no, Adult books don’t need to have sex scenes. they can, of course, have explicit sex scenes (though, depending on how explicit, this runs the risk of the book shifting from Adult to erotica, since there’s a line that differentiates them; in fanfic terminology, and to really simplify it, “mature” is Adult while “explicit” is erotica), or sex scenes that are mature but not with anatomical terms (Red, White, & Royal Blue is a good example of this), but they can also have fade to black scenes, or no sex scenes at all. it’s all up to the author and what they want to write, and the rules and expectations of the genre they’re writing. my books fall under either category fantasy romance or (in the case of my current WIP) category romantic comedy, and the sex scenes i write have importance to the characters’ arcs (both as characters and as a romantic pair), so i include them, but that’s my personal choice as an author (plus, i’m tired of authors being afraid of using the word “cock” in their romance novels, y’know? @bittenwrath has talked about this before, too). if you want to include fade to black scenes in your manuscript, go for it! your book can still be Adult with the tone/style/other content if it has fade to black scenes :) 

to all my writer friends out there.

You ruin your life by desensitizing yourself. We are all afraid to say too much, to feel too deeply, to let people know what they mean to us. Caring is not synonymous with crazy. Expressing to someone how special they are to you will make you vulnerable. There is no denying that. However, that is nothing to be ashamed of. There is something breathtakingly beautiful in the moments of smaller magic that occur when you strip down and are honest with those who are important to you. Let that girl know that she inspires you. Tell your mother you love her in front of your friends. Express, express, express. Open yourself up, do not harden yourself to the world, and be bold in who, and how you love. There is courage in that.

— Bianca Sparacino

Hispanic= Spanish speaking

Latino= From latinamerica

A peruvian is latino and hispanic, a Colombian is latino and hispanic.

Someone from Brazil is latino but not hispanic

Someone from spain is hispanic but not latino

one of the best pieces of writing advice i’ve ever gotten:

if a scene isn’t working, change the weather.

it sounds stupid, but seriously, it works. thank u to my screenwriting professor for this wisdom

Read this if you like sea shanties!

Since we’re all vibing to sea shanties right now, can I share a few of my favorite ren faire bands? I’ve been blessed to see all these folks perform live at my home faire, and they could all use the extra support right now.

The ren faire circuit got hit hard by covid, and most rennies have been out of work since the pandemic started, so if you want to get your Ye Olde Jam On, consider these artists:

Jig to a Milestone (Celtic Folk & Americana) Facebook | YouTube | SoundCloud | Spotify

Just Desserts Singing Wenches (Bawdy A Capella) Facebook | Website | Bandcamp | YouTube | Spotify

Empty Hats (Celtic Folk & Sea Shanties) Website | Facebook | Spotify

The New Minstrel Revue (Folk) Facebook | Spotify | Bandcamp

Lady Victoria (Instrumental Hammered Dulcimer) Facebook | YouTube | Website | Bandcamp

The Harper and the Minstrel (Celtic & Folk) Facebook | Website

"Oh, Geralt, I think it's broken!" Jaskier wailed from where he was sat in the mud.

Scowling, Geralt bent to inspect the ankle in question, the one Jaskier had turned when he slipped on the wet ground. He poked at it and Jaskier moaned.

He rolled his eyes. "It's not broken," he said gruffly. "Just twisted. You'll have to keep your weight off it."

Jaskier's face scrunched up in distress. "Then whatever am I to do?" He waved his arms in the air with great dramatic intent. "For I am all alone in the wilderness, miles from civilization, and now incapable of walking." He wound himself up into a full performance. "The wolves will come for me and I shall surely die here!"

Geralt suppressed a smile. "I'm sure we can figure something out."

He pondered Jaskier with mock contemplation while Jaskier gave him soft, pleading eyes. He threw in a little lip tremble for full effect.

"Fine," he grunted eventually. "If we must." He scooped Jaskier up into his arms in a bridal carry and lifted him into the air.

Jaskier squealed with delight and threw his arms around Geralt's neck. "My hero," he declared, dropping a kiss onto his cheek.

The bard really was an idiot. He tucked him into his chest and fought back a blush.