Arg, I keep forgetting to update over here. I'm now two chapters behind. ::sigh::

Title: Not About Superheroes (A Private Little War), Chapter 3
(link to Chapter 2)
Universe: Marvel Movies
Characters: Steve/Tony, Clint, Natasha, Bruce
Words: in this chapter,
Rating: R
Warning(s): Dark stuff? And abuse of Academy-award winning movies
Summary: In less than a year, Steve has been brought back from the dead, adapted to a whole new world, plunged right back into battle again, and moved in with a bunch of superheroes. He's handling everything remarkably well. Except when he's not.
Notes: Thanks so much to scrtkpr and schemingreader for beta!!

( 3: The ApartmentCollapse )

Chapter 4: Tom Jones

so i know some fics are still up on hex files. but most stuff (at least the things that seem to be on rec lists) are all f-locked on lj. which is fine and dandy, except they are no longer accepting friends. does anyone have copies they could email me, it's coffeeaddictgirl@aol.com. i'm mostly looking for gush, and the talk dirty to me series. thank you.

Title: Harry, Draco, and Clive in the Manor B-i-c-k-e-r-i-n-g
Artist: daemoncas5
Rating: pg-13
Materials Used: pencil
Notes: The Appreciation for My Favorite Fanfic

here

Title: Dear Scorpius
Author ???
Prompt: PROMPT #62
Word Count: 2,063 words
Rating: PG
Contains (Highlight to view): *mentions of possible miscarriage *
Disclaimer: Harry Potter characters are the property of J.K. Rowling and Bloomsbury/Scholastic. No profit is being made, and no copyright infringement is intended.
Epilogue compliant?: Not even close.
Who is pregnant?: *Draco Malfoy*
Notes: First off, thanks to the mods for all their help and for putting up with my forgetfulness and late entry. To my beta, M, for all your help. Prompter, I hope you enjoy this.
Summary: On the day his son is born, Harry writes a letter explaining the unusual way he arrived in this world.

( Dear ScorpiusCollapse )

In response to my last post about phases of being quieter online, two people (one on Blogger, one on LiveJournal) commented about feeling guilty when they withdraw from social media. The second time someone mentioned guilt, I decided I want to say more on this subject.

Why should anyone feel guilty for stepping back? I wondered. After all, blogs and Twitter feeds and Facebook pages are all optional; most of us are not paid to do them and make no promises about when we'll post. Nobody's going to die over whether we post or not. (OK, if you see a tornado coming and tweet about it, you might save someone's life. But that's an exception!)

But entering the online world is entering a community. Most of us interact with a core group regularly, as well as with whomever else clicks on by. We have a horror of being thought of as the writer who became "too good" for her old blog buddies once she signed a book contract. We hate the idea of losing touch with friends once we tie the knot or have a baby. We don't want to disappear when we change jobs.

We like our friends and don't want to lose touch with them.

There's also the fact that sometimes when people disappear, it's because they've had a crisis, and we know people may worry. I can think of one writer I used to see on LiveJournal. Our relationship was at the "acquaintance" level, and many people migrated from LJ to other platforms, so it wasn't until I heard of her untimely death (from another social-media site) that I remembered her and realized I hadn't heard anything about her in a long while. It made me wonder about all the other people I used to see online but don't anymore. I assumed most of them just got tired of blogging or moved over to Facebook, and I know some of them went back to school or got new jobs or simply got so swamped by book promotion that they stepped back from the blogosphere--but now I wonder. Are they okay? I may never know.

So in one sense, I understand the desire to explain our absences from social media. And I think it's a nice idea to say, "I'm going offline for a while" if that's what we're doing. But I don't think we owe anyone an explanation. I don't think we have to justify our absences. Although I've been disappointed when my favorite bloggers stopped posting, I don't believe they owed me anything. They put up a bunch of free content that I enjoyed; we had some fun interactions; how can I complain about that?

Most of all, I don't think social media should have to be a chore. I do think it's important for writers to have at least one place online where readers can find them if they want, one place that provides a bio and author photo and a list of their books. But that can be a single page and doesn't have to be updated too often. Beyond that, it's all icing on the cake. It's about having fun and connecting with people, and if we're not getting that fun and connection here, or if we simply need to focus attention elsewhere, it's natural to step away. The Social Media Police will not come after us. :-)

http://jamarattigan.com/2013/05/17/friday-feast-hawaiis-food-trucks-on-the-go-by-beth-greenway-and-jamie-meckel-tablason/

http://jamarattigan.com/?p=9621

When I was little, every so often my father would take us for a drive around the island. This was an all-day affair, where we’d see what we could see and eat what we could eat all over O’ahu.

I loved spotting the lunch wagons parked along the Honolulu waterfront, hoping to feast on an onolicious plate lunch with beef stew, teriyaki, or breaded mahimahi. No matter what you ordered, you always got two scoops of rice and macaroni salad. But usually we’d drive right on by because it wasn’t lunch time yet. This only intensified my fascination with lunch wagons: I thought it would be so cool to cook on a little stove in a truck and wait on people through the window on the side.

I don’t know exactly when people in Hawai’i started calling lunch wagons, “food trucks.” But they’re still a big part of the local scene, enticing the always hungry on side streets and main streets with longstanding island favorites as well as gourmet treats.

In jaunty rhyming verse, Beth Greenway’s Hawai’i's Food Trucks on the Go! takes kids on a fun and tasty ride around the island from sunrise to sunset.

The trucks all rev their engines up
and head out on their way:
it’s time to feed the working cars
this bright Hawaiian day.

The Harbor’s where the cranes all work
unloading boats and ships,
a bowl of saimin’s great for lunch
just right for slurps and sips.

Each cheerfully decorated truck serves up a different specialty on its designated turf: Kim’s Korean BBQ downtown, saimin at the harbor, Spam® Musubi at the North Shore, poi in Waikiki, poke at Ewa Beach and laulau in Kapolei.

The North Shore surfers like to munch
on musubi with Spam®,
another food truck, Yuko, cooks
fried rice with bits of ham.

Kahuku’s shrimp is number one
the locals all agree,
the trucks roll up and park between
the mountains and the sea.

This mouthwatering traveling menu celebrates Hawai’i's rich cultural diversity, as Ms. Greenway incorporates Hawaiian place names and food terms from several languages in her rhyming couplets. What could be more fun to read aloud than chewy mouthfuls of rolling-like-the-waves syllables — malasadas, manapua, Waimanalo?

There’s Manuel’s malasadas, yum,
served any time of day,
and Kimo’s manapua truck
past Waimanalo Bay.

Tablason’s trucks, cars, and boats are colorful, charming, and brimming with personality. Each truck is proud of its offerings and so happy to share. At the end of the day, all the food trucks meet downtown to “party down,” reminding us that after a hard day’s work, it feels good to meet friends, relax and play.

Certainly all my childhood favorites are mentioned in this book, so I know local kids will drool in recognition. Munchkins who’ve never been to Hawai’i will enjoy this first taste and tour of the city streets, mountains and beaches. Young ears will love the musicality of the Hawaiian language and of course will be very curious to try some of the food. Who wouldn’t like a deep-fried Portuguese doughnut, a steamy bowl of noodles, a soft bun full of sweet roast pork, a hot dog baked inside a waffle, a refreshing cone of finely shaved ice drenched in strawberry, pineapple, and coconut syrup?

Hawai’i's Food Trucks on the Go! introduces young readers to a much beloved island tradition rooted in the old days at Honolulu Harbor when pushcart peddlers sold soft drinks, snacks, and plate lunches to stevedores, sailors, cruise ship passengers, and laborers passing through the immigration station. Busy people from all over the world united by their love of food!

Whether from pushcart, lunch wagon, or food truck, there’s nothing like the personalized experience of eating something yummy in the warm Hawaiian sunshine, purchased from a small vendor while you’re on the go.

Now, step up to my window, reach through your computer screen, and help yourself to some local favorites:

* * *

HAWAI’I'S FOOD TRUCKS ON THE GO!
written by Beth Greenway
illustrated by Jamie Meckel Tablason
published by BeachHouse Publishing, 2012.
Picture Book for ages 4-8, 32 pp.
Cool themes: Hawai’i, food, diversity, travel, vehicles.
A perfect share for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month!

* * *

Ed DeCaria is hosting today’s Poetry Friday Roundup at Think, Kid, Think! Truck on over and sample all the poetic goodness being served up in the blogosphere this week!

* * *

This post is also being linked to Beth Fish Read’s Weekend Cooking, where all are invited to share their food related posts. Put on your bibs and aprons, and come join the fun!

————————————————

*Spreads from Hawai’i's Food Trucks on the Go! posted by permission of the publisher, text copyright © 2012 Beth Greenway, illustrations © 2012 Jamie Meckel Tablason, published by BeachHouse Publishing. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2013 Jama Rattigan of Jama’s Alphabet Soup. All rights reserved.

http://www.deadlinedames.com/why-some-people-will-hate-replica/

http://www.deadlinedames.com/?p=11702

In a little less than two months (July 16, to be exact), the first book of my new YA series will finally be hitting the stands. In many ways, the wait for this one has seemed endless–when Replica comes out, it will be my first YA release in two years.

Replica will be my first published science fiction novel. It’s set in the relatively near future, and while there is a major science fiction element to it–the ability to create exact Replicas of human beings, down to memory and personality–at its heart it’s more like a political thriller/murder mystery. In the world of Replica, science may have advanced, but human society has taken some steps backward. Corporations have become hereditary monarchies, and society has once again become highly stratified. Arranged marriages are the norm for the aristocracy (known as Executives), and it is very rare for someone to be elevated past the class to which they were born.

The two concepts make for a rather unusual science fiction novel, but there is something else about it that–as far as I know–is unusual in today’s YA science fiction and fantasy market: one of my two protagonists, Nate Hayes, is gay. (My impression is that it is more common to have a gay protagonist in contemporary YA than in sf/f.)

I know some YA authors who have featured gay secondary characters, and I know they have met with some criticism for it. Sometimes, very nasty criticism. To tell you the honest truth, I took this step with a lot of trepidation, because if other authors get flack about gay secondary characters, I can only imagine how some people might react to a gay protagonist. And yet, I loved what the concept did to my storyline. (In the Executive class, homosexuality is unacceptable, so Nate is firmly in the closet. He has also been informally engaged to his best friend, Nadia, since they were both children. It makes for a wonderfully awkward marriage-of-convenience story.)

I am still nervous about how some people will react to the story. I think our society has come a long way toward acceptance, but it still has a long way to go, and those who oppose gay rights often do so with a great deal of anger. But there’s a general rule of thumb I follow when I’m writing: if I’m scared to write something for any reason, then I must write it. I am a prolific writer, and if I keep writing things that feel safe and easy, I know I will get bored and stop growing as a writer. I want to challenge myself–that’s part of the joy of writing for me–and the fact that something scares me is a sure sign that writing it will be a challenge.

I can confirm that writing the Replica trilogy (I’m at work on book 3 right now) has been quite the challenge–but it’s been a wonderful one. I love these characters, and I love this story. Enough to put it out there even though I know some people will be offended by it. I will probably get some angry emails and some ugly reviews. But you know, if someone is unable to accept Nate for what he is, then that person probably isn’t really in my audience anyway. And I refuse to let fear stop me from doing what is right for my story.

Sixteen-year-old Nadia Lake’s marriage has been arranged with the most powerful family in the Corporate States. She lives a life of privilege even if she has to put up with paparazzi tracking her every move, every detail of her private life tabloid fodder. But her future is assured, as long as she can maintain her flawless public image—no easy feat when your betrothed is a notorious playboy.

Nathaniel Hayes is the heir to the company that pioneered human replication: a technology that every state and every country in the world would kill to have. Except he’s more interested in sneaking around the seedy underbelly of the state formerly known as New York than he is in learning to run his future company or courting his bride-to-be. She’s not exactly his type…not that he can tell anyone that.

But then Nate turns up dead, and Nadia was the last person to see him alive.

When the new Nate wakes up in the replication tanks, he knows he must have died, but with a memory that only reaches to his last memory back-up, he doesn’t know what—or rather, who—killed him.

Together, Nadia and Nate must discover what really happened without revealing the secrets that those who run their world would kill to protect.

If you’d like to read the first chapter of Replica, click here.

If you’d like to bid for an ARC of Replica, you can do so here, in the Brenda Novak Auction for Diabetes Research. (I also have a complete set of autographed Nikki Glass books available.)

If you know of any YA science fiction or fantasy that has a gay protagonist (not just a major character, but an actual protagonist), I’d love to hear about it. I know they’re out there, but the lists I’ve seen either haven’t broken it down by genre, or lump in protagonists with secondary characters.)

Dear Ms. Creech,

This is a thank you note mixed with a confession. Read on, and you’ll understand.

First, I have to say that I loved your talk at the New England SCBWI Conference and was thrilled to finally meet you in person.

So thank you for that. But that’s only part of the thank you.  Before I get to the rest, I have to do the confession part.

So…you know that poem you have on your website? The one that explains to teachers why you can’t accept any more invitations for school visits this year?  It starts like this:

My phone is ringing

and the fax is going
and sometimes I am sick

(I hope you are not sick!)
and my car needs fixing

and I have to go
to the grocery store
and do the laundry

and clean up messes
and I am supposed to be
writing a new book
which takes a lot of time
to think about and
to write all those little words…

 

(The rest of Sharon’s why-I-can’t-visit poem  is here,  for those of you who are not Sharon and don’t know how it goes.)

You might not remember this, but a whole bunch of years ago – maybe nine or ten – you got an email from a teacher begging you to requesting that you consider making an exception to your no-more-school-visits-this-year policy.  It was written as a poem, too, because she thought you might like that, and she figured it was worth a try.  She doesn’t have that exact poem any more, but it went something like this.

We know that you are busy

Answering your phone

And buying food

and doing laundry

and sneezing

(Bless you)

And writing books we adore..

But we love-love-love those books so much

And wondered if you might sneak away

To visit us anyway.

It would just be for a day,

And then you could go back

To your grocery-shopping

Laundry-doing, phone answering, sneezing life

(Bless you)

To write more magical stories

For us all to love.

 

That teacher figured it was a long shot. (She used to be a reporter and understood all about deadlines.) But your poem inspired her poem, just like that, and before she knew it, she’d gone and hit the send button.

Your schedule was too busy to visit.  (She figured it would be.) But you made time to write back. You told her you loved her poem, that it made you smile.

And that made her whole teacher-day.

That teacher was me.

And that explains why I had to sit down when you tweeted this picture last week, saying you found your book in good company at the bookstore.  There’s your book on the left, and beside it, Grace Lin’s book, and then mine. Roald Dahl and Karen Cushman are there, too, just for good measure.

 

Thanks for making my day.   Again.

.

Yesterday was the perfect day to smell lilacs and pass under the white blooms of dogwoods on my way to the Smith College Greenhouse. The museum area is currently devoted to a show called From Petals to Paper: Poetic Inspiration from Flowers. Poems printed on placards and arranged according to flower types were selected by Liliana Farrel and Janna Scott, class of ’13, who were inspired by Annie Boutelle’s poetry workshop. Walls featured irises, tulips, and other spring flowers. The section on daffodils offered Wordsworth wandering lonely as a cloud, along with Robert Herrick, Amy Lowell, and Alicia Ostriker giving the flowers a political context. Poets including Li-Young, Mary Oliver, and Louise Gluck show flowers as solace, taunting, sensuous, exuberant, or demure.


A small room was devoted to Smith alum, Sylvia Plath. We see a draft of Among the Narcissi filled with cross-outs and new words, with still more lines and notes from an editor at The New Yorker, then we see it published in the magazine.


David Trinidad had given us a brief introduction to both Sylvia Plath and tulips in his amusing and profound poem The Red Parade. Here we find Sylvia Plath’s Tulips on the wall and can also listen to a recording on a television. The poem tells of a red gift in a stark hospital room at a time when the narrator felt as if of nurses were claiming her clothes, the anesthetist her history, and the surgeons her body, so that I believed the line near the end: “Tulips should be behind bars like dangerous animals.” I like the poem, but am glad I’m a person who can receive tulips and simply say “Thank you, what a gorgeous color!” The recording was made in 1961, two years before Plath would die by her own hand at age thirty, leaving two children.


This heart-tugging show is open until the first weekend of September.

We watched the first semifinal last night and are catching up with the second one tonight. So far: some really nice backup dancing. Also, cool drums of unspecified folk-ish origin. By far our favorite from the first semifinal was Denmark. It had a cool flute/whistle, it had nice drums, it had an actual melody, and well, I guess we were swayed slightly by the lead singer's strong resemblance to Hermione Granger:



We thought she had a much nicer song than the one from Estonia in 2010--we can never remember the name of the group because they remind us too much of another Harry Potter character. Instead, we call them Draco and the Malfoys. (The downer lyrics sort of fit...)

My 12YO thought Moldova's lead singer was Gandalf's wife. (Starting around 2 minutes or so...)

Then we have Lithuania, winner of the slightly peculiar English lyrics award. We kind of liked this one, even though the words are full of deep feeling and he's smiling away. But really, when you are giving a declaration of love and singing about how it's because of your shoes...well, that's one of the things that makes Eurovision entertaining.

Croatia had great singers (sort of a 7 Tenors approach) and nice outfits, but there just wasn't a tune to the song. Too bad. They could have really shone with a more interesting song.

Tonight: the second semifinal. Switzerland's entry is the only one I've heard all the way through. I rather like it. Their song won the national choice, but they had to change their name and costumes because they weren't allowed to compete under the Salvation Army name. (Heilsarmee) The oldest performer is 95! See, this is what's fun about Eurovision: you can have opera and techno and metal and folk and bizarre combinations that may or may not work, all back to back. It's like an unlabeled bag of Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans or something. It might be toffee, or you might take a bite and realize it's alas, earwax. It's adventure! And everyone needs some of that now and then...