“And Seek (Not) to Alter Me” Story Teasers: Era J. M. Couts and Aria L. Deair
Author Spotlight: Era J. M. Couts
Biography: I’ve been a writer for over 20 years. Well, if I actually think about it carefully, it has probably been longer than that. I do remember writing a story on MS Paint when my age was still single digits. I could have used Word, but Paint was funnier, it let me draw my scenes there too.
So maybe I should rephrase it: I have been a fanfic writer for over 20 years. There, that looks a bit better. I wrote a few originals, too, but those never saw the light of day. They will, eventually.
I like to write about characters and their development. I like to write about feelings and struggles and how complicated life can be even when it looks so simple. I like to write epic love stories that don’t always have a happy ending. But most often they do.
I will, one day, write a dystopian series that I’ve been plotting for over a decade. One day, certainly one day.
Aside from being a writer, I’m a reader, an opinionated mind, an Aries, an immigrant, a coffee lover, and a night owl that has been forced to conform to the social norm of waking up early only to become a “Morgenmuffel.”
I am passionate, energetic, lazy, and sarcastic. I’m a CrazyCatLady in the making, a food lover that cannot cook, the Man™ my grandma wanted me to marry, and a happy soul in my own shoes.
And, above all, I am weird. I am queer. And so damn proud of it.
Story Title: Ruckus, Drama, and 2 Metre Tall Penguins
Tags: genderqueer character, modern setting, setting: berlin
Teaser:
“I bet you a lokum cube they will stay at this for a good ten minutes.” Brigit nudged Jinji gently, moving around on the old bench to make herself more comfortable. Her teasing smile made Jinji sigh.
Sitting next to Brigit, Hatice giggled, “Ten minutes? I say we will not have any more rehearsing to do tonight!” she said, stretching her legs in front of her. “I bet you two lokum cubes they will not even notice if we leave now.”
“Am I the only one worried we won’t be ready in time for the premiere?” Jinji eyed the ladies, with their light moods and high spirits, and tried not to frown. He was certainly the youngest in their theatre group; he was also, alongside the always warm/stunning/Jinji’s-”problem number one” Pascoal, the latest to join. He didn’t have much experience with theatre—or any stage art for that matter—but his nature demanded he succeed. Shouldn’t they be able to run the play from start to end when they were mere 14 days away from the big night?
“You worry too much, pumpkin,” Hatice said, and Jinji sighed again. She’d been saying that since the day he’d joined the group, three months before. “Your generation seems to be built to worry! Our grandkids are the same. Always worrying about one thing or another.”
“You will have worry wrinkles by the age of twenty-five if you keep frowning like that,” Brigit warned, nudging him again. Carlo’s cursing onstage grew so loud it nearly drowned her out. “And then, when you get to our age, you will look like our rescued sphynx cat!”
*
Author Spotlight: Aria L. Deair
Biography: Aria L. Deair is an author who has been writing and (while cursing her excessive comma usage) publishing fanfiction online for more than sixteen years. Freelance writer by day and author every other hour that she isn’t sleeping, she spends her days courting carpal tunnel and “forgetting” to wear her wrist brace.
As a proud member of more fandoms than she can count, Aria can be found blogging about some of the writing that she is avoiding doing at @arialerendeair.
Like a dragon with her hoard, she can be found in her New Hampshire apartment, surrounded by notebooks (most of which are empty), half-filled mugs of tea, and some of the comfiest blankets that have ever existed. Disturb her at your own risk, especially during NaNo Season.
Tags: fluff, friends to lovers, getting together, modern setting, mutual pining
Teaser:
“Don’t be like that.” Hero bumped his shoulder with her own. When he still said nothing, she turned to look at him then took his arm to stop them on the landing between floors. “We’re friends, aren’t we, Beau?”
Beau blinked in surprise, turning his full attention to her. “What makes you ask a question like that, Hero?”
She shifted on the balls of her feet, brushing a fleck of imaginary dust off her slacks. “I wondered if you talk with me the same way I do with you.”
“I do,” Beau tilted his head. It was clear she had more to say. “In fact, you often bemoan how much I talk about—”
“I’m not talking about work or office things, Beauregard,” Hero said, her lips pressing together to make a thin line. “I’m talking about you.’
Beau frowned, his shoulders hunching. “What about me?”
Hero waved a hand at him. “Things like whether you’re a cat or a dog person, why you only own six collared shirts—”
Beau stiffened indignantly. “It’s efficient—”
“—and how long you’ve been in love with Benedict Dickson.”
Duck Prints Press LLC is delighted to announce that the Kickstarter for our second anthology, And Seek (Not) to Alter Me, has commenced!
InAndSeek(Not) toAlter Me, 16 authors and 16 artists have come together to create an exquisite, full-color collection of artwork and stories inspired by William Shakespeare’s play MuchAdo About Nothing. We encouraged contributors to stretch their imaginations, think outside the box, and put their own unique—and queer—twist on Benedick, Beatrice, Hero, Claudio, Don Pedro, and the whole gang! In true Shakespearean fashion, our creators utilize gender, sexuality, romanticism, and a host of costume changes to tell unique stories—some featuring original characters, some characters from the play—that show Shakespeare’s work in a whole new light.
So—grab a cup of tea and reread or rewatch your favorite version of MuchAdoAboutNothing to refresh your memory. Our stories and artworks feature wlw, mlm, poly relationships, trans characters, gender swaps, canon divergent tales, AUs…there’s even a two-page comic! Settle in with this delightful collection and enjoy visiting Messina (and elsewhere!) and falling in love with Leonato’s family and the troops of Don Pedro’s army (and many others!) again and again and again!
And Seek (Not) to Alter Me is a stunning zine, printed in full color, A4 size (8 ¼ inches x 11 ¾ inches/21 cm x 30 cm), approximately 150 pages long. It includes 16 stories, each up to 5,000 words long, and 20 full-page interior artworks. Creators share their visions with us, discuss their inspiration, and take us along on a journey to experience what this play and these characters mean to them.
It’s my first published original fiction, and I couldn’t be more excited! We’re on the doorstep of getting funded (about $300 away) with 3 days left! This anthology is in a style similar to a fanzine and it has queer stories for everyone, no matter your preferences!
If you haven’t checked it out yet, please make sure to do so, and if you can support it, great! If not, please reblog this to help spread the word so we can sprint across the finish line!
Every single person involved in this project is a fanauthor or fanartist! And that’s true from our ownership (hi, I’m Claire, better known in fandom as @unforth) all the way through those who do our graphic design, our typesetting, our planning…everyone! (Well, except our lawyer and our merch vendors). Some, like Aria, are public about their participation in both fandom and this book; others have opted to separate their fandom selves from the publishing selves. Some of the folks who are open about their inclusion?
I’m writing all this ‘cause it’s occurred to me people don’t know, but Duck Prints Press explicitlyexists to help fancreators make the transition into paid publishing work, and we onlywork with people are active in fandom!
ANYWAY. All that said! We’re thrilled to share that we’ve reached our base funding goal!! “And Seek (Not) to Alter Me” will see print!! It’s such great news, and a huge relief.
But! We’re still hoping to reach some of our stretch goals.
We’re at $12,150 right now.
If we can hit $12,500, we’ll be able to print the books (and include in the e-book!) art for the back cover by front cover artist Gio Guimarães! Backers at Levels 3, 4, 5, and 6 will also receive a second art print (at no additional cost to the backers!). To be honest, we’re pretty certain we’ll hit this goal – so confident, in fact, that we already have commission Gio, contract signed and everything.
More ambitious – if we can hit $16,500, we can give all our authors and artists a raise from 1 cent per word/$50 per page to 2 cents per word/$100 per page – doubling how much we pay them! We’d loveto be able to do this, and we think it can be done, but we need your help!
Do you love this project? Do you want to support our authors and artists? If you haven’t backed yet, consider doing so – just $15 will get you the e-book in PDF, ePub, and Mobi format, or you can take advantage of this one-and-only time to get the book in print format, for $40!
If you can’t afford it (we get it! times are tough!) or if you already have backed – help us spread the word! Reblog, retweet, share, and boost our posts on one or more of our social media accounts!
As always, you can find our Kickstarter campaign here – get yours before it’s too late! 3 days left…our campaign ends on Thursday, April 14th at 11:30 a.m. Eastern!
(and don’t forget, you can buy our current titles and merch on our website, support us monthly on Patreon,or give us a one time donation on ko-fi - though, if you’re a ko-fi user, consider giving us a follow because in the next week or two we’ll be setting up our ko-fi to support monthly subscriptions and merch sales, so stay tuned…)
We’d love a strong final push on this KS project, so help us spread the word - signal boosts always appreciated!!
I’m a bit of a slow reader, but I’ve been plugging away at The Fourteenth Year of Chenghua since, like, March, and I’m in the low chapter 80s now, and the slow burn is getting more and more brutal now that Sui Zhou definitely definitelyrecognizes that he is hopelessly in love and Tang Fan is still a clueless dumbass solidly in “I always feel so happy when Sui Zhou is around I wonder what’s up with that” and it’s killing me.
(eta: Okay, I’m going to pretend this was intentionallywritten as a fill for today’s May Trope Mayhem, which is The Grumpy One is Soft for the Sunshine one. I…didn’t actually plan it to be that…but then it go long and fuck it, might as well make it count…) @duckprintspress
So I was just thinking, like…
Tang Fan has been working a case, and he was in danger, and Sui Zhou has justheard that Tang Fan needs rescuing…when Tang Fan walks in the front door of Sui Zhou’s house. The panic instantly switches to relief, then to annoyance when Tang Fan looks at Sui Zhou like he cannot fathomwhy Sui Zhou was freaking out.
“It’s no big deal,” Tang Fan laughs it off. “I’m totally fine! You’re over reacting.”
“I am NOT,” Sui Zhou replies, the mess of emotions making is voice loud as he slams a hand against the door behind Tang Fan, trapping Tang Fan in place. (kabedon!) “Ido not over-react. Youunder-react. I know you, Runqing. I know you wouldn’t tell me even if you’d been in mortal danger. Tell me, truly, how serious was it?”
And Tang Fan opens his mouth to answer with a light-hearted jibe only to find he can do nothing but swallow the words, because Sui Zhou is staring at him so intensely, his eyes so bright and dark and gorgeous, his expression so fixed and serious. His heart starts racing worse than it had when he (definitely hadn’t been!) in peril, and he can’t imagine why.
“I can’t…” Sui Zhou catches his lip between his teeth, manages a slow blink in a clear effort to calm himself down, takes a deep breath, and continues, “Just promise me that next time, you’ll ask for help if you need it.”
“I always ask for help when I thinkI need it,” lies Tang Fan blithely. Why does Sui Zhou care so much, anyway? Why do I like that he cares so much? “But it’s not like I can predict ahead of time when things will go sideways. Not that anything went sideways this time! Really, it’s no big deal. You know the job I do, just like I know the job you do. Danger’s part of the deal. You don’t need to–”
“You don’t need to go looking for it,” interrupts Sui Zhou. He knows he sounds harsher than he wants to. He knows he’s acting inappropriately. He’s still got Tang Fan pinned against the door, still has their faces barely a hand’s width apart, still can feel his heart in his throat, still wants…still needs…he tries another slow blink, but it gets him absolutely fucking no where. There’s such a cacophony of wordsin his head, Don’t you understand, Runqing? I need you. I love you. I don’t know what I’d do without you. I can’t - I can’t - I can’t– but there was no speaking a one of them aloud. Tang Fan doesn’t look at him that way. Sui Zhou knows that. He does. And–
“Why do you care so much?” whispers Tang Fan, and Sui Zhou’s blood goes to ice. One touch, one word, even the faintest quirk of a smile on Tang Fan’s achingly kissable lips, and Sui Zhou is going to shatter.
How can he possibleanswer that question?
Andwhyis Sui Zhou choosing nowto be silent? Tang Fan cycles rapidly through potential reactions - should he laugh it off? Brush Sui Zhou’s arm aside (as if he coulddo that, unless Sui Zhou lets him, and oh, thinking about how strong that arm just over his shoulder truly is shouldn’t be so tempting)? Duck and run away? Open the door so they both tumble into the street beyond and return to his own home next door? Call for Dong-er?
Yet, to his amazement, before Tang Fan can finish planning and implementing an escape plan. Sui Zhou actually speaks.
“How…” Hoarse with emotion, Sui Zhou pauses, licks his lips - which is far, farmore distracting than Tang Fan would ever have imagined - then continues. “…how do you not know, Runqing?”
Every instinct demands Tang Fan act like this is somehow a joke. He knows it’s not - he knows Sui Zhou better than he knows anyone, better than he knows himself sometimes he thinks, and there is absolutely no way Sui Zhou would joke about something like this. Tang Fan wantsto know, but what if it’s not the answer he hopes for? (What answer does he hope for?) Tang Fan wants to guess, but what if he guesses wrong? (What would he guess, if he had to?) Tang Fan yearns,craves Sui Zhou’s presence, but most days even he’snot sure what that means, how is he supposed to know what that means? (No matter what Guangchuan says next, will Tang Fan even know how to answer it?)
He desperately prays that Sui Zhou will continue before Tang Fan has to formulate an answer…
How to Read Manhua on Bilibili: Legal, Free, and in English
In my posts on this blog, I keep sharing screen caps from manhua I’ve read on Bilibili, along with the link to read it yourself, but I know:
This blog doesn’t have all that many followers.
It’s one thing for me to post the link and quite another for people to realize just how easythis is to do.
Considering how often I see English-speaking MXTX/c-novel/c-drama/donghua fandom peeps screaming and begging for more content, I’m now begging you in return:
STOP SLEEPING ON THE BILIBILI APP!
If you want more danmei content, fully legal, entirely free, already translated, you literally c.a.n.n.o.t. do better than using the Bilibili app to read manhua. That’s not to say this is a perfect method - their translations are…um…wanting sometimes? (Shout out to the four pages in a row I recently read where someone broke in to a residence and every time the breaker-inner was mentioned they were called “the intrud”) But it’s still ALL THERE, FOR US, ANYTIME, and the more eyes the manhua in the apps gets, the more content we’ll get, so please, PLEASE, if you’re out there thirsting for danmei content, DO THIS.
Wondering how?
Well, I’ve got you covered.
WAY 1: The Bilibili Manhua Website
I know I said “get the app” but honestly you don’t even need an app to do this! You can read on Bilibili using any web browser.
There are 38 titles in GL and 121 titles, yes ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY ONE titles, in BL.
AND there’s het stuff, and non-romance stuff too!
New episodes general come out weekly or biweekly, though a few things are daily. The website is often a few chapters ahead of the app (which I actually didn’t realize until just now - Chapter 55 of Legend of Exorcism, for example, came out todayon the app, but it lists 60 episodes as available on the website. Which, considering the cliffhanger I just read… *eyes emoji*…though apparently in other cases there are more chapters on the app than on the website, so ymmv.)
The best-known title available (again: FOR FREE. OFFICIALLY. LEGALLY. IN ENGLISH) is Tian Guan Ci Fu. When you go to a specific title’s page, you get this…
…and reading it is as simple as selecting the chapter you want, clicking it, and et voila! Just scroll down and read to your heart’s content!!
NOTE: SOME CHAPTERS WILL HAVE WAIT TIMES. More on this shortly.
WAY 2: The Bilibili App for Android
I personally have been reading primarily from the Android app, since I have a Samsung Galaxy phone and a lot of time sprawled on my couch while my kids watch cartoons.
You can download the app from the Play store - here’s a link, for what that’s worth.
It looks, essentially, like this (I’m logged in so mine looks a little different than non-logged-in, I made an account even tho you don’t actually need one):
If you don’t want to make an account, you don’t have to. If you choose to, as you see it’ll try to guess what other titles you might like. tbh I have no idea how good these recommendations may be; I’m still reading/catching up on the specific titles I wanted to read so I haven’t had to try their recommendations yet. But, there’s definitely some stuff that looks interesting (that top middle one definitely looks up my alley…)
You can also “favorite” things (again: EVEN WITHOUT AN ACCOUNT) and it’ll store them in your library and make a red dot (like you can see on the above screen cap) when something has an update you haven’t read yet. For example, here’s my Favorite list, which helps me keep track of what I’m reading and enjoying (or, well, in one case I’m more “wtfing” than “enjoying” but hey that still counts).
There’s even a weird, like, “dress up” side game??? So like, every chapter you read there’s a chance the app will drop a “card” and you can use the cards to dress your avatar up, and there’s a whole crafting system built in? It’s. A little odd. But, considering I recently quit my Love Nikki addiction after 3+ years, it’s nice to get a small hit of pointless dress up.
Yes, my avatar is currently wearing San Lang’s shirt.
The point is, again: this app is free to download, and incredibly easy to use, and even has a fun pointless side game.
BUT. There is one “but” here. See the Coins: 0 Top Up right below my randomly assigned username?
Thereisanoptionalpay system. What does it do? It reduces wait times.
Some titles, but not ALL, have a “built in delay” that kicks in at some point. On some, it seems to start when you’re “within 5 chapters of the most recent” (that’s what’s happened with Global Examination and TGCF, for example). For others, it seems to be arbitrary - for A Single Strike of Shimmering Frost, it kicked in at chapter 40 even tho there are, like, 80 something chapters up. Regardless, it always works the same.
The system functions using wait times, and it has 5 tiers that are always the same.
Tier 1: You must wait one minute before you can read the next chapter. This tier is rarely an issue; the count down sometimes (but not always??? it’s weird) starts when you starta new chapter, and it almost always takes more than one minute to read a full chapter, so this tier is often “satisfied” before you even get to the next chapter.
Tier 2: You must wait six minutes before you can read the next chapter.
Tier 3: You must wait one hour before you can read the next chapter.
Tier 4: You must wait six hours before you can read the next chapter.
Tier 5: You must wait twenty-four hours before you can read the next chapter.
I initially thought this system functioned as “once you reach Tier 5, you’re just stuck there and can only read a chapter a day” but it’s turned out that’s notthe case - A Single Strike of Shimmering Frost having 40+ semi-locked chapters has given me the chance to actually test this a bit. In fact, what happens is:
The first time you hit a “wait delay” chapter, it puts you at Tier 1 and you have to wait a minute. The next chapter, you up to Tier 2, the next to Tier 3, then Tier 4, then Tier 5…and then it cycles back to Tier 1. So, with a little care and planning (which I almost always fail at) I can time reading something with many wait-delayed chapters such that I can read 5 chapters in one day, then I have to wait a full day, then I can read 5 more chapters.
Here’s how it looks when you’ve done your waiting in purgatory and can now read on…
…and here’s how it looks when the sad trombones play…
Now, I mentioned I’d circle back to the coins? THE TIME HAS COME! Because, look - for 17 coins, you can read on instantly!! Alternatively, if you’re willing to share on social media, you can also skip (I have no if that’s something you can do over and over, or just once, cause I haven’t tried - you can skip the wait time once for free). This begs the question, then…is 17 coins a lot?
And the answer is…
…eh not really, no. Ten bucks will get you the ability to pay 17 coins many, many times (58, to be precise), but honestly? I haven’t spent a penny yet and I’ve caught up on 7 different titles and am steadily reading through two more (one of which hasn’t had wait times kick in yet, I just can only read so fast).
All of which is to say: yes, there’s a pay system, and tbh, I’m probably going to throw them a few bucks not because I care about the wait times but because I’m getting so much enjoyment out of reading these titles and I want to support them a little (I also bought the print version of the TGCF vol. 1 and will likely buy the other volumes, and I once-upon-a-time paid to watch TGCF s. 1 streaming as they came out). With a little patience there is absolutely zero call for spending even one penny to read as much of this cornucopia as you want.
WAY 3: Download the Bilibili App on Apple
I don’t have access to an iPhone and don’t feel like grabbing my tablet rn and I’ve hit the Tumblr image limit anyway, but the Apple app looks about the same as the Android app, and you can download it HERE.
Basically: use the website, or download the app for whichever platform you’re using, and READ, READ, READ!
So, what isthere to read?
I’M SO GLAD YOU ASKED!
I’ve been reading on the app pretty regularly for like two months (prior to that I was only reading TGCF, and only when I remembered, which was rarely), but I’m juggling a lot AND reading other stuff too so I am far from having explored the wide range of options. I can, however, highlight a few I think are likely to be of interest to a danmei-reading audience. Note that of these, I’ve only read the novels for TGCF, TYQHM, and Daomu Biji, which means that I only know as far as the manhuas have covered for the rest - I haven’t read farther than that yet.
A.Tian Guan Ci Fu by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. The one, the only - this is the official manhua with art by Starember. It tells the story of newly ascended god Xie Lian trying to navigate the intricacies of the heavenly bureaucracy, figure out his place in the world, and understand why a sexy guy in red keeps showing up in his life. (Worst synopsis ever award goes to: ME!). The English translation is currently on episode 77, which has Xie Lian and Hua Cheng in the gambler’s den. A volume just ended, which means it’s on hiatus temporarily - there’s usually a month or two break between volumes - so it’ll be back soon!
B.Global Examination by Mu Su Li. Based on the book Global University Entrance Examination, featuring art by E Zi. Global Examination is a story set in a dystopian near-future about a world where groups of people are randomly selected (read: kidnapped and forced) to participate in an “exam” where they have to answer extremely complex puzzles. If they succeed, they get to live and become one of the people who administer the exam. If they fail, they die. Despite the premise sounding dark, it’s really not been so bad and I’ve been reassured it won’t become so. The story itself focuses on You Huo, a recently selected examinee with amnesia, the other people in his examinee group, and Examiner 001, who clearly has some kind of history with You Huo. If only he didn’t alsohave amnesia, we might even know what that history is…
C.Dinghai Fusheng RecordsandLegend of Exorcism, both based on the books of the same names written by Fei Tian Ye Xiang. The art for Dinghai Fusheng Records is by Qianerbai (who has also done a lot of work for the Mo Dao Zu Shi audio drama) and for Legend of Exorcism, it’s by Warp. These stories are set in the same ‘verse, at least several hundred years apart; it’s a xianxia high-fantasy setting, and the main enemies are resentment monsters and demons (…or are they? dun dun duuuun). Dinghai Fusheng Records takes place, chronologically, first, and occurs a couple hundred years after a calamity caused all qi to fade from the world - there are only mortals, and no one can cultivate. It follows Chen Xing, a young man born with a gift, as he seeks his protector - Xiang Shu - and others, and they encounter (surprise!) unspeakable evil. Legend of Exorcism takes place in the “future” of Dinghai Fusheng Records, and focuses on Kong Hongjun, a half-demon boy who has received a summons to join the Exorcism Department, as he explores the mortal world for the first time and gets to know the others who have summoned to join the Department, especially the mortal leader Li Jinglong.
D. Daomu Biji titles, originally by Nanpai Sanshu. There are two DMBJ titles on Bilibili right now, though both only have a few chapters, and the website lists them as “on hiatus.” I’ve read them both, and am not entirely sure what’s up with one especially, but… Grave Robbers’ Chronicles starts where Book 1 starts, with changes of course but it’s quite recognizable as the initial “Wu Xie is brought a silk scroll and gets curious and then Wu Sanxing gets involved” plot line. The Grave Robbers’ Chronicles Seven Dreams is…odder…and as far as I can tell is an alternate canon/AU which starts with a “what if” of “what if the Zhang’s were incredibly abusive, raised child!Zhang Qiling themselves, and Wu Xie and he met as kids.” It’s. Um. Extremely weird. And not for those sensitive to kids getting beaten bloody. But I’m still hoping they’ll release more than 9 chapters, if only because I’m curious.
E.A Single Strike of Shimmering Frost, based on the novel A Sword of Frost by Yu Xiao Lanshan. This one opens with the Prince Ji Yanran approaching Sect Master Yun Yifeng, who runs a sect of spies and information collectors, to ask for help finding an item that has been stolen from the palace. In exchange, he promises to give Yun Yifeng the cure to an ailment that plagues him. Problem 1: he doesn’t actually have this cure. Problem 2: everywhere they go people start dying. Problem 3: catching feels for the pretty Sect Master. Despite having the trappings of xianxia, this story has actually thus far been a sequence of murder mysteries with politics-related causes.
F.Saved the Public Enemy By Mistake by Liu Muqiao. If this is based on a novel, I haven’t been able to track it down. It’s xianxia; demon immortal cultivator Liu Jianghe shows up, nearly dead, on the doorstep of famed doctor Lu Jiu who is just trying to live a quiet life in seclusion. Not knowing who Liu Jianghe is, Lu Jiu saves him, and thus stumbles into a mess of politics and history he doesn’t understand…but nothing is actually how it seems, there’s amnesia and hidden back stories galore, there’s a heavy side plot of sword lesbians, and honestly I’ve read like 50 chapters and I’m still a little lost but the art is pretty and I really need to read the reveal on the two MCs history together so I’m sticking with it. Warning that it’s got a fair amount of blood and gore.
G.Those Years in Quest of Honor Mine by Man Man He Qi Duo. A historical (non-cultivation) setting focused on politics, machinations, and the long history and deep love between Zhong Wan - former top-scorer on the national exam who lost his position when his adopted father was accused of treason - and Yu She, of dubious parentage and believed by most people to be the bastard son of the Emperor. I loved the book for this, and finding out that the manhua was on Bilibili is a lot of what drove me to download the app.
So - that’s everything I’m currently reading: 6 titles inspired by explicitly BL danmei titles, 2 based on other books I like that aren’t BL, and 1 BL that just looked interesting and my taste.
There’s SO MUCH MORE, seriously. I’m going to be reading on this app for months and still finding more, I’m positive of it.
But unforth, I hear you say, there’s some othermanhua I want to read! What about Mo Dao Zu Shi? What about Erha? Are those on Bilibili? Can I read them? And the answer, sadly, is no.Those two are published by Kuaikan, which does notoffer free legal English translations at this time. But! I am holding out hope that if the audience for Bilibili grows, other manhua publishers will see the profitability in emulating them. I cannot guarantee that anything we do will result in this happening, but I do feel pretty confident that if we don’tread with the options currently available, we sure ain’t likely to get moreoptions.
SO. GO FORTH. READ THE THINGS I’VE MENTIONED. READ OTHER THINGS. COME BACK AND TELL ME WHAT YOU LOVED SO I HAVE SOME IDEA WHAT TO READ NEXT.
(and signal boost this post to get other people to do the same!! help the small fandoms grooooow! I really just wrote all of this so I’d have someone to scream with about the current awful that is the recent chapters of Legend of Exorcism PLEASE WE ALL NEED SQUEEMATES COME READ!!! THE THINGS! THEY’RE GOOD! WITH PRETTY ART!)
This tutorial I wrote for a sideblog I run from my personal account is this week’s blog post!
(Usually, we don’t endorse/rec specific products or titles, since we feel it’s a little odd for us, as book publishers, to be seen as “backing” a specific “thing,” but since this is relatively fandom-general, I decided it was okay.)
This is an anthology of original stories written by fanfic writers. One of them is my own. For so long, fanfic writers have been discouraged from sharing their links to fandom in the original stories world and from disclosing they write fic to the publishing industry. Fic writers have been told many things. We’re told we are inferior writers. We’re told fic isn’t real writing, but practice for originals and, simultaneously, that our originals will never fly because we cling to our beloved tropes and the conventions of our genre.
I took these things to heart, for a long time, even as I knew there was an audience out there for the kinds of stories I wrote. Folks who would love the slower, more character driven adventures I wrote with fluff scenes interspersed throughout the action. Who consumed character studies and emotional prose as if they were as necessary to life as food and water. Who were desperate for the sort of inclusiveness in origfic that fanfic has always had. The same inclusivity the publishing industry has barely begun to tap into.
So many of my fandom friends can point to a 200k word story they swear is better than any published novel and that it would suffer greatly from being forced into the 100k word or less box Big 6 publishers insist on to reduce risk.
It can seem impossible to get your name and your words in print when you want to tell yourstories, not those of the publishing industry, and you don’t want to stop writing fic, much less renounce it. Self publishing, too, can seem like an insurmountable mountain of work and self-promo.
I could sit here and talk about indie presses and niche zines and how they are, for the most part, a friendlier place for fanfic writers, but I mostly want to get the word out that there are two (that I know of) who specifically only take on fanfic writers and have built platforms around supporting those of us who want to be published: Duck Prints Press (@duckprintspress) and OFIC Mag (@oficmag).
In the interest of full disclosure, I am both published with Duck Prints Press and became a part of the editorial staff after my story and contract were finalized for printing. I don’t speak now as a staff member, but the author I am. I don’t ever want to hoard opportunities, because we all benefit when there are more stories out there for us to read. I’ve got no affiliation with OFIC Magazine and haven’t submitted a story to them (yet), but they appeared on my wall and inspired this post.
I truly, deeply, down into my very core, believe in the missions of these companies and want to see them succeed (it’s why I accepted a staff position in the first place). Publishing needs diversity; not just in authors and characters, but also in style and structure. It needs new stories. Fresh stories. The kinds millions of fandom folk already love to read. We don’t need to grow out of our tropes or write something to Market with a capitol ’M’. It’s not the only market, and it excludes so many people and so many beautiful, impactful stories.
And I am glad there are people willing to put in the time and effort to publish books, anthologies, and publications to showcase all of these amazing tales of adventure, sorrow, intimacy, fluff, and love.
If you’re looking for paid opportunities to write the kind of stories you love, please check out https://www.oficmag.com/and https://duckprintspress.com/for upcoming opportunities. As I learn of more fic-writer-friendly publishers and zines, I will try to share them here as well as my fic-friendly general writing advice and answers to Asks on writing, making the transition from fic writer to origfic writer, and how my birds/guinea pigs/child/wife are doing.
And, if you aren’t interested, pass these opportunities along and keep on writing and reading. You’re all amazing.
…I skipped yesterday cause I was still thinking about the same 4 seconds of Hualian A/B/O on infinite loop but I had some insomnia last night and had a new nugget.
Rating: Mature
Modern AU. Liushen. Mentions of Bingliushen. Warnings for misgendering, mildly dubious consent due to alcohol, internalized homophobia, and “Liu Qingge is too tsundere for his own good.”
WAIT I JUST REALIZED: Call this one May Trope Mayhem day 8: In Vino Veritas!
May Trope Mayhem is a multi-fandom/original creation event open to writers, artists, and content creators of all kinds! We’ve put together a list of 31 of our favorite tropes, one per day through the month of May, and we encourage creators to join us for this month of fun tropey mayhem.
Our goal is to promote motivation and help with habit building, so we’re encouraging people to keep their ficlets under 1,000 words, or if you make art or a gif or some such, to stick to a sketch or a single image.
This event is primarily held on Tumblr, but you’re welcome to participate on anywhere Duck Prints Press has an account (you can see all our current platforms here) and we’ll keep our eyes on our tag everywhere!
How can you participate? It’s easy! There’s just a few simple rules:
to participate, write a ficlet, a poem, create art, make a gif, or create any other content that you want, aligned with the prompt for the day!
post your correctly tagged fills to Tumblr, and we’ll reblog them!
you must tag warnings such as gore, MCD, sexual content, etc., so that people can avoid triggering material!
please also tag fandom and ship, so people can find what interests them!
we ask that you put the tags at the top of your post, so they’re easy to find.
if you write more than 1k words, please use a read more,
if you write something with NSFW content or potentially triggering material, please put the entire story under a read more.
Ping us (@duckprintspress) or tag your creations “#may trope mayhem” and so we can find them! We’ll reblog all fills that follow the above rules and are posted between May 1st and June 8th, 2022.
You don’t have to sign up, just post your fills. You don’t have to be a member of the Press, or following us. You don’t have to be part of a specific fandom. We’re open to all ships, genres, formats, etc.! You don’t have to post fills on the corresponding day, though we ask that if you’re creating for a day that hasn’t happened yet, please wait for that day to post.
This is a low-pressure event, held all in good fun, and we look forward to seeing what you create!
May Trope Mayhem, Day 16: The Grumpy One is Soft for the Sunshine One (Technically, this also counts at 15: Hurt/Comfort, I guess?) for @duckprintspress
Summary: Courtney is the world’s worst barista and Bianca is smitten from afar…then thrown for a loop when she finds her crying in a club bathroom.
A/N: Decided to throw my hat into the ring. And look. I know that the point of these challenges is to get us out of our comfort zone and to try something new. Instead, I am doing the opposite and literally using a trope that’s pretty much the entire basis for the ship I’ve been writing since 2015. And…that’s just what it is. Not sorry about it. Thank you to the always lovely @artificialcandycane for beta reading.
Tags: may trope mayhem, rpdr fanfiction, bianca del rio, courtney act, bitney, bob the drag queen, monet x change, miz cracker, fluff, lesbian au, veronica
N/A: I was having fun with Mayhem and then life grabbed me by the name and threw me into a puddle, as it does. This was fun though, so maybe I’ll write more prompts. The best antidote for winter cold is writing fluff.
For@duckprintspress: Day 9/The Only Solution to a Love Triangle is…
Tags: may trope mayhem, rpdr fanfiction, juice x lemon x priyanka, juice boxx, lemon, priyanka, fluff, lesbian au, poly, mar
Summary:
“So it’s been weeks of back and forth and I feel like we’re finally at a good point where we all know what we want. We all like each other, we all want to date each other. Right? Right?” Juice pointed the marker at Lemon and Priyanka. They both nodded. “Now we could let things develop organically, but I think it will be more fun if we all follow a very strict schedule!” With this, she faced the whiteboard towards her… maybe girlfriends? Titles were yet to be discussed. It was item three at the meeting.
Juice, Lemon and Priyanka avoid a messy love triangle by deciding to be a triad, but that is only the beginning. There is still a lot to be discussed, and Juice knows the only solution to a love triangle is—
…well, it started as me thinking about Yanshen first kisses, but then I got distracted by, ahem, more explicit Yanshen.
Like…
(actually, wait - I can already tell I’m about to Really Write This, and so we’re calling this another May Trope Mayhem fill - Day 11, There’s Only One Bed!!)
Fandom: Thousand Autumns
Ship: Yan Wushi/Shen Qiao
Rating: EXPLICIT!
Tags: Canon divergent, mildly dubious consent, Yan Wushi is always an unreliable narrator
May Trope Mayhem is a multi-fandom/original creation event open to writers, artists, and content creators of all kinds! We’ve put together a list of 31 of our favorite tropes, one per day through the month of May, and we encourage creators to join us for this month of fun tropey mayhem.
Our goal is to promote motivation and help with habit building, so we’re encouraging people to keep their ficlets under 1,000 words, or if you make art or a gif or some such, to stick to a sketch or a single image.
This event is primarily held on Tumblr, but you’re welcome to participate on anywhere Duck Prints Press has an account (you can see all our current platforms here) and we’ll keep our eyes on our tag everywhere!
How can you participate? It’s easy! There’s just a few simple rules:
to participate, write a ficlet, a poem, create art, make a gif, or create any other content that you want, aligned with the prompt for the day!
post your correctly tagged fills to Tumblr, and we’ll reblog them!
you must tag warnings such as gore, MCD, sexual content, etc., so that people can avoid triggering material!
please also tag fandom and ship, so people can find what interests them!
we ask that you put the tags at the top of your post, so they’re easy to find.
if you write more than 1k words, please use a read more,
if you write something with NSFW content or potentially triggering material, please put the entire story under a read more.
Ping us (@duckprintspress) or tag your creations “#may trope mayhem” and so we can find them! We’ll reblog all fills that follow the above rules and are posted between May 1st and June 8th, 2022.
You don’t have to sign up, just post your fills. You don’t have to be a member of the Press, or following us. You don’t have to be part of a specific fandom. We’re open to all ships, genres, formats, etc.! You don’t have to post fills on the corresponding day, though we ask that if you’re creating for a day that hasn’t happened yet, please wait for that day to post.
This is a low-pressure event, held all in good fun, and we look forward to seeing what you create!
Announcing: The Contributors to “He Bears the Cape of Stars” and “She Wears the Midnight Crown”!
36 remarkable authors—18 for He Bears the Cape of Stars, 18 for She Wears the Midnight Crown—have come together for this project. These authors have been toiling away on their stories since February 1st, 2022, and we’re currently work with them on edits to get them publication-ready. We’re delighted to share their work with you!
May Trope Mayhem is a multi-fandom/original creation event open to writers, artists, and content creators of all kinds! We’ve put together a list of 31 of our favorite tropes, one per day through the month of May, and we encourage creators to join us for this month of fun tropey mayhem.
Our goal is to promote motivation and help with habit building, so we’re encouraging people to keep their ficlets under 1,000 words, or if you make art or a gif or some such, to stick to a sketch or a single image.
This event is primarily held on Tumblr, but you’re welcome to participate on anywhere Duck Prints Press has an account (you can see all our current platforms here) and we’ll keep our eyes on our tag everywhere!
How can you participate? It’s easy! There’s just a few simple rules:
to participate, write a ficlet, a poem, create art, make a gif, or create any other content that you want, aligned with the prompt for the day!
post your correctly tagged fills to Tumblr, and we’ll reblog them!
you must tag warnings such as gore, MCD, sexual content, etc., so that people can avoid triggering material!
please also tag fandom and ship, so people can find what interests them!
we ask that you put the tags at the top of your post, so they’re easy to find.
if you write more than 1k words, please use a read more,
if you write something with NSFW content or potentially triggering material, please put the entire story under a read more.
Ping us (@duckprintspress) or tag your creations “#may trope mayhem” and so we can find them! We’ll reblog all fills that follow the above rules and are posted between May 1st and June 8th, 2022.
You don’t have to sign up, just post your fills. You don’t have to be a member of the Press, or following us. You don’t have to be part of a specific fandom. We’re open to all ships, genres, formats, etc.! You don’t have to post fills on the corresponding day, though we ask that if you’re creating for a day that hasn’t happened yet, please wait for that day to post.
This is a low-pressure event, held all in good fun, and we look forward to seeing what you create!
We wanted to remind everyone: our second Kickstarter is running for 6 more days. If you want to secure your own copy of And Seek (Not) to Alter Me: Queer Fanworks Inspired By William Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing” this is your moment – the print book will only be available during the Kickstarter! We’re at 90% of our funding goal as of about an hour ago, and looking forward to the moment when we cross the threshold! (Not “if,” definitely “when” – we’re sure it’ll fund, we’re just eager to start the official “WE DID IT!” celebration!)
Second, we are in the planning stages for our fifth, as-yet-untitled anthology – and you can get a say! Here’s what we know:
Stories will all feature at least one main character who identifies as a gender identity outside/beyond the binary (genderqueer, genderfluid, non-binary, agender, bigender, omnigender, polygender, etc.)
Stories will be optimistic/fluffy, and will have guaranteed happy endings!
Stories will focus on positive family relationships – taking a loose definition of “family.” Found family? Yes. Platonic relationships? Yes. Extended family? Yes. Fostering? Adoption? Biological family? Family-of-choice? Marriage? Yes, yes, yessity yes. We want all the happy family feels.
What we don’t yet know is setting. That’s where you come in!
You likely know that we have aPatreon that supports our overhead; essentially, Kickstarters/crowdfunding campaigns fund specific projects, while the Patreon keeps the lights on. The funds we get through Patreon enable us to keep our project costs down by covering the cost of software, hardware, supplies, staffing, and other core business functions.
Our Patrons get a lot of exclusive benefits – several of which apply to our crowdfunding campaigns!!
* all Patrons at our $25 level get a free copy of all “flat” merchandise from our crowdfunding campaigns, even if they don’t back the campaign!
* Patrons at the $10 and $25 levels can choose one free e-book from our catalog per month, which includes our crowdfunded works (once they’re officially published) – so, a $25 Patron could get all the flat merchandise AND the e-book from a campaign without even backing!
* Patrons at the $10 and $25 levels who DO choose to back the campaign also get bonus merch! For Add Magic to Taste, they got an exclusive magnet. For And Seek (Not) to Alter Me, they’re getting a sticker just for them! Which sticker? This one! Isn’t it cute? You know you want one…
* and lastly – finally coming back around to our fifth upcoming anthology! Right now, all our backers have the opportunity to have a voice in picking the setting! We’ve given them a choice between aetherpunk settings, solarpunk settings, or tidalpunk settings for our fluffy genderqueer found family stories. Did you love Add Magic to Taste? Well, we think this new project will be right up your alley – and now through tomorrow morning is your last chance to have a major impact on the anthology theme!
So, take a look at everything we have to offer onPatreon and consider helping Duck Prints Press grow!
Right now through next Friday, our Patrons have the opportunity to vote on which of three possible themes we’ll use for our next anthology (or, specifically, our fifth anthology – And Seek (Not) to Alter Me is our second anthology, and our third and fourth are already in the works). Here’s what we’ve already established about the anthology:
1. This anthology will feature genderqueer characters who AREN’T trans – genderfluid, agender, non-binary, bingender, omnigender, polygender, pangender, etc. This means that at least one of the main characters in every story must have a non-cis non-trans genderqueer identity.
2. Stories should be relatively fluffy/optimistic, and must have a Happily Ever After or Happily for Now ending.
3. All stories must incorporate a family element – in a positive light. So, NOT stories about “someone comes out and the family isn’t happy;” instead, we’re looking for stories about genderqueer folk having wonderful family experiences. This can be biological family, found family, married life, platonic, romantic, parenthood, adoption, fostering, etc. – we’re taking a loose definition of family, and we’ll be encouraging people to pitch stories that are not romantic. (there’ll be some romance also, promise, but we want a variety!)
That covers a lot, so what’s left? Setting! Our Patrons are voting on whether these stories will take place in an aetherpunk setting (a modern or historical setting featuring technology that runs on magic); a solarpunk setting (a modern or near-future setting featuring solutions to ecological issues and an emphasis on solar power); or a tidalpunk setting (a modern or near-future setting (also) featuring solutions to ecological issues, with an emphasis on the ocean, water, and living asea).
Are you itching to help steer the future of this project? Now is your chance! Become a Patron of ours, and cast your vote!
Now Live: Duck Prints Press’s Third Crowd-funding Campaign!
Duck Prints Press LLC is over the moon to share our next to anthologies with you: She Wears the Midnight Crown andHe Bears the Cape of Stars!
These two anthologies share a common theme – masquerades – and each features different kinds of relationships. She Wears the Midnight Crown contains 18 wlw stories; He Bears the Cape of Stars contains 18 mlm stories. Both collections tell myriad stories exploring how these characters’ relationships develop, grow, and change while they attend or participate in masquerades!
Our 36 contributors have stretched their imaginations to present innovative stories exploring what a masquerade can be…and, of course, tell rich, engaging tales of wonderful queer folk finding love, companionship, acceptance, the queer platonic relationship of their dreams, or the found family they deserve. The collected works feature characters in all the colors of the Pride rainbow, queer and genderqueer, and these diverse individuals inhabit worlds ranging from science fiction settings where everyone must be masked to breathe, to fantasies where no one wears a literal mask but everyone shows the world a false guise, to iterations of the real world where some people lean into deception.
Long time, no Sunday blog post, but we’re back with a seasonal collection of the sappiest, sweetest, emoji-inspired prompts that we could think of! Just imagine your OTP…
: the flowers in my yard had all wilted and I didn‘t know what to do; luckily, you see me looking sad in my garden and come over to help out with your awesome green thumb.
: you saw me buy a bunch of flowers and were sad because you thought they were for someone else—surprise, they‘re for you!
: I had a bad day, but then you invite me to see the cherry blossoms together and I realize just how much I love you…so I spontaneously propose.
: it‘s our wedding day and it‘s raining, this is the worst! But then you hold the umbrella over me and point out the rainbow arcing across the sky, and now I think this may be the best day of my life.
: my sunflowers grew so tall that they leaned into your yard; I was worried you’d be upset but instead you say, “I like them there because they remind me of you.”
: I know you‘re a summer person, so I‘ve been waiting for the first really warm day of the year to take you out on a picnic and watch the emerging leaves with you—and today is the day!
☔️: we meet for the first time at the bus stop when I arrive drenched and you extend your nice umbrella over my head without even looking at me.
: honestly, I didn’t think you knew I existed, but when I got sick, you sent me a plant and a note asking me on a date when I got better. I still don’t feel 100% but the plant on my bed stand cheers me up every day.
: you know I love flowers, but we’re broke and there’s no way you can get them for me…except you came home today with a bouquet of wildflowers you picked from a field and I’m so happy I could cry.
: you invited me out to look at the stars through your telescope on the first clear night of spring, and I want to support you and share your enthusiasm but it’s so cold I’m shivering…and so you pull me close, spread you coat wide so we can share it. Huddled wonderfully together, we can stargaze together.
: the winter cold is lingering, but I’m thrilled because you’ve surprised me with plane tickets for a beach vacation!
: the first big storm of spring catches me unprepared and everything on my porch flies away! I don‘t know what to do, but the next day it‘s all back on my porch with a note inviting me to dinner. You didn‘t have to go and hunt it all down just to ask me out for a date, I‘ve been fancying you for ages!
: I’ve worried that you were going to break up with me at the end of the school year, but you just bought me a “watch these caterpillars grow into butterflies” kit and I know you’d never do that unless you planned to stick around to watch their metamorphosis with me.
: there are strange sounds coming from your apartment so one day I go to investigate and it turns out you? are? hatching? CHICKENS? in your one-bedroom apartment, what, why, OMG they‘re so cute??
: I was kind of meh about this date but then it turns out your idea was to take me to an animal shelter to pet the bunnies. You tell me you love them and want to adopt one once you live in a bigger place, and you give me the most earnest, hopeful, vulnerable expression, and…okay, I think I may be falling for you kinda fast? Like, super fast?
TheAdd Magic to Taste Kickstarter ends at 11 AM Eastern on Saturday, August 14th, 2021
If you love queer fiction, and you love fanfic, and you love fluffy tropes, you are not going to want to miss Add Magic to Taste, an all new collection of 20 heartwarming queer stories set in modern, magical coffee shops, bakeries, cafes, and tea shops!
We won’t say this anthology has it all - there are too many identities in the world for us to fit all of them into one anthology of 20 stories - but if you want some queer fluff and happy feelings, you’ve come to the right place. Add Magic to Taste features characters of different races, ethnicities, sexualities, romanticisms, gender identities, religions, and home nations, united by the common theme of finding someone (or more than one someone) to enjoy a muffin and a cuppa with - for today or for a lifetime, romantically or otherwise!
Each story is never-before published and approximately 5,000 words. Our authors were selected through a rigorous process where we reviewed over 100 fanfiction authors to select those we thought best suited to working with our Press on this specific anthology - and the results are out of this world!
Our Kickstarter has also done exceptionally - we’re only $300 US shy of our second-to-last stretch goal, with under 24 hours to go! So, check out our Kickstarter, read about the book and our merch, read teasers and biographies of our authors, and more!
Backing this Kickstarter is the only guaranteed way to get Add Magic to Taste in print! We will be printing to demand, and more copies will never be made!
Duck Prints Press LLC is thrilledto announce that the Kickstarter for our first anthology, Add Magic to Taste, is now live!
ForAdd Magic to Taste, 20 authors have come together to produce new, original short stories uniting four of our absolute favorite themes: queer relationships, fluff, magic, and coffee shops! Our diverse writers have created an even more diverse collection of stories guaranteed to sweeten your coffee and warm your tart.
Love wlw? So do we!
Love mlm? We’ve got you covered!
Love genderqueer characters? Raise those trans, enby, agender, and other flags high!
Love aces? Same, and we don’t (only) mean playing cards!
Love poly relationships? Hey, we’re sharing a brain!
We won’t say this anthology has it all - there are too many identities in the world for us to fit allof them into one anthology of 20 stories - but if you want some queer fluff and happy feelings, you’ve come to the right place. Add Magic to Taste features characters of different races, ethnicities, sexualities, romanticisms, gender identities, religions, and home nations, united by the common theme of finding someone (or more than one someone) to enjoy a muffin and a cuppa with - for today or for a lifetime, romantically or otherwise!
Each story is never-before-published, approximately 5,000 words long, and features each author’s unique take on our theme. Our beautiful digest-size trade paperback book features cover art by Liz Lee Illustrations(@lizleeillustration on Tumblr - with the potential for more art - see our stretch goals!) and formatting by Hermit Prints(@hermitwrites on Tumblr).
Sign up for our mailing list to make sure you always know the latest!
The Kickstarter for Add Magic to Taste will run through Saturday, August 14th at 11 AM EDT - so follow us here, check it out, and if you want to support an awesome group of writers creating an amazing collection of fluffy queer stories - back our project!
Duck Prints Press will be launching our first Kickstarter on July 15th, 2021, and we cannot possibly be more excited for it! We’ve got a LOT more info to come related to - previews of the merchandise, teasers for the stories, and more - but we wanted to get things started by sharing our amazingcover, which features art by LizLee Illustration (@lizleeillustration,Instagram,Twitter,Personal Site)and graphic design work by @pallasperilous(Twitter,Personal Website),@hermitwrites(WordPress), and @alessariel.
ForAdd Magic to Taste, 20 authors have come together to produce all-new, original short stories uniting four of our absolute favorite themes: queer relationships, fluff, magic, and coffee shops! Our diverse writers have created an even more diverse collection of stories guaranteed to sweeten your coffee and warm your tart.
Love wlw? So do we!
Love mlm? We’ve got you covered!
Love genderqueer characters? Raise those trans, enby, agender and other flags high!
Love aces? Same, and we don’t (only) mean playing cards!
Love poly relationships? Oh hey, we’re sharing a brain!
We won’t say this anthology has it all - there are too many identities in the world for us to fit allof them into one anthology of 20 stories - but if you want some queer fluff and happy feelings, you’ve come to the right place. Add Magic to Taste features characters of different races, ethnicities, sexualities, romanticisms, gender identities, religions, and home nations, united by the common theme of finding someone (or more than one someone) to enjoy a muffin and a cuppa with - for today, or for a lifetime, romantically or otherwise!
So, mark your calendars! Follow our Tumblr! Read more about the project! Ask us any questions you have! And save your pennies so you, too, can buy this amazing collection of stories!
The Kickstarter for Add Magic to Taste launches on July 15th, 2021!
Have you seen Duck Prints Press’s adorable mascot? We affectionately call them Dux, but they don’t ’t have an actual name yet - and we want them to have one! All good ducks deserve excellent names! And we want you to help!
Who we are:
Duck Prints Press LLC is an independent publisher based in New York State. Our founding vision is to help fanfiction authors navigate the complex process of bringing their original works from first draft to print, culminating in publishing their work under our imprint. We are particularly dedicated to working with queer authors and publishing stories featuring characters from across the L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ spectrum.
How you can help name this excellent duck:
We’ve been longing to name this duck since they were created, and we’ve had a lot of ideas - but ultimately, we decided we want our Patrons to be the ones to name them!
When we reach 25 patrons (we’re at 19 right now!) we’ll open the floor and take suggestions on what to name this stunning, marvelous example of duck-dom.
(And while you’re pondering names - note that there is a single rule. We want gender neutral names only, please! We don’t define the duck’s gender. That’s for the duck to know, and us all to respect.)
We look forward to meeting our patron goal - and to naming this duck, with your help!
Filler words add bulkto your writing without adding meaning. For example, if you’re writing in a rigid first or third person PoV, there’s rarely any need to write, “He saw that the light was on.” You can just write, “The light was on.” You lose zero meaning by cutting out the “he saw that.” The reader already know who is looking at the light because we know whose head we are observing events from. Another common form of weasel word is an interjection in the midst of a sentence - the friend who first introduced me to the concept explained it as, “our brains don’t know exactly what comes next so it just puts a word in as the mental equivalent of a pause or ‘um.’” And that explanation contained (at least) two such words - “exactly” and “just,” both of which could be cut from that sentence without impacting the meaning. Time words are also often filler words - there are few times where you actually need to say “in a moment;” context usually communicates the sequence of events clearly.
Also be on the lookout for long phrases that can be replaced by a single word - for example, “cut down on” and “reduced” are synonyms. Using a single specific word, provided it’s not too obscure a word, is often a better choice.
Cutting out weasel/filler words gives your writing more punch and immediacy; bulky, unnecessary extra words form a filter between your reader’s experience of your writing and the visceral experiences that you, as a writer, are trying to communicate. Reducing their usage really strengthens a story.
Different authors have different filler words they are prone to. What counts as a filler word will also depend on context, writing style, personal preference, etc. This is especially true when writing dialog - one character’s weasel word is another’s regular way of talking. Still, there are many words that if I see them in my writing, I pause and think, “okay, do I really need that word there?”
I’ve seen a lot of posts that list specific types of weasel words (ie, filler nouns versus nonsense adverbs) but I’ve never just seen a comprehensive list of words to look out for - words that, while they won’t always be filler words, are often unnecessary and should be scrutinized when writing.
General things to remember:
Be declarative. Avoid constructions like, “it seemed like” in favor of constructions like “it was.” This is your story. Be firm. Be bold. Be confident.
Be wary of adverbs. Generally speaking, an adverb is worth using if you’re subvertingthe meaning of the word being modified, and unnecessary if you’re reinforcingthe meaning of the word being modified. “She smiled maliciously” is a good adverb use, because saying someone smiled in no way implies they’re being malicious; “she smiled kindly” is not a great adverb use, because smiling is generally kind - this kind of usage could still be appropriate but only depending on context and character. For example, if you’ve established that your character is rarely kind, it might be important to specify that this particularsmile is atypical for this character. But in most contexts, “she smiled kindly” is redundant and kindly is a weasel word that should be cut.
Interjections such as “wow” and “like” and “sure” in dialog are often weasel words, especially if they are repetitious with what comes after. For example, if one characters says, “Would you like to go to the mall?” and another replies, “yeah, that’d be awesome” you can cut the word “yeah” without impacting the meaning at all. Also, if you have a character nod or shake their head, there’s literally zero reason to also have them say “yes” or “no.” Pick either the word or the gesture. Yes, casual repetition like that is how people actually speak but it doesn’t make for strong writing. Ages ago I read a great article about this that has, sadly, been lost to time. The gist of it was, think of every phone call in every movie or TV show you’ve ever seen. In a “real” phone call, we start with hello and small talk, but on screen, they never waste time with that, they launch right into significant dialog because seconds are precious on screen. When writing fictional dialog, try to do the same - you don’t need to put every nuance of real-life conversation in, just enough to establish tone, and then focus on what the characters are trying to communicate. Even if your character hems and haws a lot, putting in “uh” every sentence or two is incrediblytiresome to read. Remember how quickly a reader will consume your work and give readers credit for their memory. Put in enough to convey the idea of a normal conversation without slavishly reproducing how people really talk. (this honestly could be its own entire post, but this is at least a start on the topic with a focus on how it relates to cutting out unnecessary words…). Basically: if you’re writing a conversation and having the characters say “hello” will a. be assumed and b. add nothing, don’t write it.
Passive voice introduces more unnecessary words than active voice. Compare: “I fed the cat” vs “the cat was fed by me.” Words are added, the sentence is clunky, and would anyone actually…say the second? Like ever? This is not to say “don’t use passive voice.” Passive voice has functions, and occasionally using the clunkier construction will also help with varying up your sentences and keeping your writing interesting. But use it thoughtfully and wisely.
Often, weasel words will be different in narrative versus dialog. When deciding what counts as a weasel word, always keep in mind the tone, education, world view, and attitudes of your Point of View character or that of the person speaking. One character’s weasel word is another character’s voice. (Sorry, I know this contradicts some of the above - I never said this was easy. :) )
Redundant usage can turn a word that wouldn’t usually be a weasel word into a weasel word. This is especially true of adverbs ( “she slammed the door loudly” is redundant, and many other adverbs in place of “loudly” would be equally redundant, given everything implied by the word “slammed.”) For another example, “The powerful man lifted the heavy stone with an impressive show of strength” has multiple levels of redundancy - which you choose to keep is up to you but you don’t need to specify that he was powerful andit was heavy andthat lifting it was impressive andthat it was a show of strength. All four suggest the same thing, so only one is needed. “The man lifted the stone with a show of strength” conveys the same meaning, or you can find other ways to add the nuance without being repetitious, such as, “Muscles bulging with effort, the man lifted the heavy stone.” Same idea, less redundant - gives an idea how the man reacts, and thus more subtly communicates that the stone is heavy instead of beating the reader over the head with “HAVE I MENTIONED THE ROCK IS HEAVY?”
Specificity is your best friend. Don’t be vague if you can be specific. Don’t generalize when you can be specific. Don’t hedge your bets (“it was kind of like…”) when you can be specific. If you want the reader to understand and believe the thing…just say it.
Here’s a list of some common weasel words and phrases. If an entry is in bold it means I have provided a further explanation below the list. (having explanations integrated in the list made it clunky and hard to read)
A:about; absolutely; accordingly; actually; additionally; again; all; already; also; always; and; “as a matter of fact;” “as far as I’m concerned;” at least; at most; “at the present time/at the end of the day;” audible
B:back; basically; to be ~ing;to begin;“being ~”;to believe; both; briefly; but
C: certainly; clearly; closely; completely; “cut down on”
F: fact; fairly; to feel; finally; “for all intents and purposes;” “for the most part”
G:“going to do ~”
H:to hear; hence; herself/himself/themselves/myself; his/her/their/my own
I:ignored; “in a moment/second;” in addition; increasingly
J: just
K: kind of; to know
L: like; literally; to look
M: maybe; momentarily; mostly; much
N: nearly; no; “not long after;” now
O:obvious;of; often; once more; only
P:pretty; probably
Q: quite
R: rather; to realize; really; right
S: to see; seriously; silently; slightly; so; some; somehow; somewhat; “soon after;” sort of; to start; still; suddenly; surely
T:that; then; to think; though; thus; together; totally
U: to understand; up
V:very; virtually
W:to wonder
Y:yes
Explanations:
audible: eg, “the door closed with an audible click” versus “the door closed with a click.” if your character heard the noise, it’s already audible. Using both is redundant.
to be ~ing: eg, “I’ll be going to prom” versus “I’m going to prom.”
to begin: eg, “They began to sing” versus “They sang.”
“being ~”: eg, “they were being active” versus “they were active.”
to believe: eg, “I believed I’d found the perfect dress” versus “I’d found the perfect dress.”
to feel: eg, “She felt the pain as the needle pricked her” versus “The prick of the needle was painful.”
“going to do ~”: eg, “we’re going to try to go to the park” versus “we planned to go to the park” versus “we went to the park”
to hear: eg, “He heard her say his name” versus “She said his name.”
herself/himself/themselves/myself: can often be cut if it’s clear that the action being done applies to the PoV character.
ignored: eg, “he was annoying, so I ignored him.” “To ignore” means “refuse to notice or acknowledge.” Having a character say they ignore something is to have them explicitly notice or acknowledge the thing in question. While it can work contextually, it often reads weirdly.
to know: eg, “I know we talked about this” versus “We talked about this.”
to look: eg, “They looked and saw the sunrise” versus “They watched the sunrise.”
no: see “yes,” below.
of: eg, “I jumped off of the ledge” versus “I jumped off the ledge.”
once more: that an action or behavior is repeated is usually obvious from context, and language explicitly indicating a repeat is best used tolampshade that the repeat was intentional by the author instead of accidental
pretty: eg, in the sense of “the sky was pretty clear,” not in the sense of “she was pretty.”
to realize: eg, “I realized there was no solution” versus “There was no solution.”
saidnothing: there are a lot of similar constructions to this (eg, “didn’t reply,” “couldn’t answer”) and they’re almost all unnecessary. Unless you’re aiming to lampshade the silence, it’s better to indicate that someone said nothing…by simply not having them say something.
to see: eg, “I saw the man jump over the fence” versus “The man jumped over the fence.”
silently: eg, “she padded silently across the room” versus “the padded across the room.” If something is silent, it’s best communicated by simply not having the thing make a sound.
to start: see “to begin,” above.
that: in many contexts “that” adds no meaning. For example, “She wanted to know that he cared” versus “She wanted to know he cared.”
to think: eg, “She thought he looked cool” versus “He looked cool.”
to understand: eg, “He understood the water was wet” versus “The water was wet.”
very: there are some excellent lists of synonyms for “very + ~word,” single words you can use, eg, “very big” versus “enormous.” Here’s one such list.
to wonder: see “to think,” above.
yes: this is a strange one, but frequently in dialog it’s not necessary to have a character explicitly say yes or no - it’s often clear from context - and including the yes/no reply and then giving an explanation that reiterates that is often clunky and unnecessary
Remember, this is not meant as a hard and fast list of “words to not use.” Writing is about context; in some contexts these will be the correct words to use, and in others, they will be inappropriate. The key to dealing with weasel words is to make sure you use them at times they add meaning to what you’re writing and to cut them when they do not add meaning. Learning to recognize the difference is difficult and takes time, but gets easier with practice and is well worth getting good at. One of the quickest ways to really improve your writing is to read it with a critical eye, learn to recognize which of the above you over use most (everyone has different ones they tend towards…mine are “though” and “just.”) So go to it - read those sentences, figure out which words add meaning and which don’t, and pull out the red pen!
Duck Prints Press is thrilled to be recruiting authors to contribute short stories to our forthcoming anthology, Add Magic to Taste.
With a heap of queerness and diversity, a bundle of fluff, a warm and cheery coffeeshop, tea shop or bakery, and just a splash of magic, this anthology will be the hot cocoa for the soul we all deserve!
There are only five days left to apply, so if you’re a fanfiction author, and you’d like this chance to participate in an anthology of original fiction and be paid for your work - and if you think you’ve got just the flavor of happy queer love story we’re looking for - why not check it out?
Note that authors are not being asked to submit stories that fit our theme! We are asking authors to apply with a writing sample of their choice, and we will select 20 authors for the anthology based on those submissions.
CALLING: FANFICTION AUTHORS WHO DREAM OF PUBLISHING ORIGINAL FICTION!
Duck Prints Press LLC is thrilled to announce that the author application for our first anthology, Add Magic to Taste, are now open!
Times are tough, and we thought that what the world really needed were some light-hearted stories to make everyone smile. So, we picked themes that never fail to make us smile! The stories for this anthology will incorporate these themes:
Setting: Modern worlds with magic
Relationships: Queer love stories
Locale: Coffee shops, bakeries, tea shops, or the like
Trope: FLUFF!
This post is not a call for story submissions. Like a fandom zine, we’re asking prospective authors to submit writing samples. We’ll select authors based on these samples, and the chosen authors will have creative license to create a story of their choice provided it includes the four required story elements. You must write and post fanfiction to apply to this anthology, butall stories in Add Magic to Taste must be original!
If you want to be one of our authors, this is your moment - read more about the anthology and, if you’re interested, send in an application!
Have you, as a writer, ever wished you could make the transition from posting fanfiction to publishing original works?
Have you, as a reader, ever told your favorite fanfiction author that you wish they’d publish original stories?
Have you, as a member of the fanfiction community, ever wanted to help fanfiction authors make their publishing dreams come true?
Welcome to Duck Prints Press, LLC, an independent small press dedicated to publishing original stories by fanfiction authors, with an emphasis on L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ authors writing about L.G.B.T.Q.I.A.+ characters!
We are a brand new venture, five years in the planning and officially founded in January, 2021. In order to maximize how much authors can earn with us (we’re aiming for a royalty rate of 90%), we’ve created a Patreon to help pay for our general operating expenses, such as supplies, workspace, utilities, web hosting, professional legal and accounting advice, and more.
In exchange for this support, Patrons can get access to a number of fabulous, exclusive benefits - availability depending on backer level - including:
Behind-the-scenes information on our progress building DPP from the ground up
A newsletter with patron-only stories, Q&A sessions, and more
Voting rights on surveys that influence our public blog posts, anthology topics, and more (including helping us name our mascot!)
Free ebooks
One free, Patron-exclusive erotica story a month
Patron-only merch
Discounts on our publications and crowdsourcing campaigns
…and more!
Want to help defray our expenses so we can make our goal of paying authors a premium rate a reality?
Want access to awesome exclusive and behind-the-scenes access?
Want to help us without committing to a monthly fee? You can give us a one-time lump sum by buying us a ko-fi or get some awesome Duck Prints Press merch on our RedBubble!
Looking for a story idea? Here are 15 prompts for stories set in a forest!
This week’s theme is: stories set in a forest!
1. Person A tumbles into a ravine and gets badly hurt. Person B is the very annoyed dryad whose tree they damaged on their way down and who has zero comprehension that what, for a dryad, would not be a serious wound, actually endangers Person A.
2. Person A, B, C, and however many more you want involved, are druids…except for Person Z, who thinks they are participating in a LARP.
3. Person A chains themselves to a tree to protest climate change, only to discover that Person B has chained themselves to the tree next to theirs to protest logging. Both think the other has their priorities entirely wrong, but as they’re forced to co-exist, they start to talk…
4. Person A and Person B are rival entomologists in search of a living sample of an extremely rare beetle. They develop a deep enmity, and single-mindedly pursue the only beetle either of them has found into a cave…and then an earthquake traps them together.
5. Person A is an experienced hiker who has tackled a difficult trail, equipped for the challenge. They don’t expect, miles into the wild, to meet Person B, who is definitely not an experienced hiker. Person B’s clothes are in tatters and they’re half-crazed with thirst and hunger. Person A decides to get them back to safety, not knowing that Person B is hiding a chilling secret.
6. Person A is the child of someone prominent and has been kidnapped. They manage to escape and flee into the woods, and while they’re running they encounter a large circle of mushrooms. No sooner do they step foot within it that they collide with Person B…who wasn’t there a moment before. Person B claims to have been abducted by fairies over 100 years ago, and Person A has mixed feelings about their credibility, but can’t deny some weird things are starting to happen.
7. Person A carves their initials into an ancient oak tree, unaware that Person B is a tree spirit that resides in the oak…nor do they know, until it’s too late, that carving initials into a tree inhabited by a spirit bonds a person to the spirit.
8. Person A has been looking forward to their AirBnB cabin getaway for months, only to arrive and find that the cabin is not merely double booked, but triple booked…and neither Person B nor Person C have the least interest in leaving.
9. Person A is convinced that supernatural entities exist, despite Person B’s insistence that they’re being ridiculous. Unconvinced, Person A swears they hear wolf howls in the forest only during the full moon, and so Person B is pushed into taking them to the woods as the next full moon rises to try to convince them they’ve heard no such thing…except Person B is the werewolf.
10. Person A and Person B encounter each other every day when they go down the same road into the woods. The forest is vast, and each is convinced the other is going in there for the same reason…it’s not until they’ve struck up a close friendship that they discover that Person A is an ecoterrorist and Person B is an exasperated logger just trying to do their job.
11. Person A is lost deep in the woods. Terrified, they pray for guidance, but things keep going wrong and their situations gets worse and worse. Person B is the extremely frustrated God who can’t figure out why nothing they do is successfully communicating to Person A what they should be doing to get un-lost.
12. Person A is the first human to take up residence on a large tract of virgin forestland. They try to live in harmony with nature - taking up residence in a cave, bathing in a pristine stream, gathering sustenance from local flora, that kind of thing. Person B is the spirit of the cave. Person C is the naiad who lives in the stream. Person D is the (sentient) deer who is frustrated that their favorite berry bush keeps getting denuded of berries. Neither B, C, nor D has ever seen a human before, and each assumes that one of the others is behind the changes in their environment.
13. Person A is a park ranger who tells all the visitors to the state park that the forest is definitely not haunted, despite the battle that took place there hundreds of years ago. Person B is the ghost that Person A has fallen in love with.
14. Person A, B, C, and however many more you want involved, are LARPers…except for Person Z, who is a druid.
15. Person A and Person B are in an established relationship and on a hike together. Person A insists they don’t need a map, and refuses to even photograph the guide with their cell phone, because they never get lost. Person B is full of increasingly exasperated “I told you so’s” until they start marking their progress on trees, and they carefully walk in a straight line forward…and still somehow end up circling back to where they started.
