{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices","title":{"0":" "},"subtitle":"inkvoices","author":{"name":"inkvoices"},"link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"service.feed","type":"application\/x.atom+xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom","title":" "}}],"updated":"2018-05-16T21:24:41Z","entry":[{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:162540","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/162540.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=162540"}}],"title":"Fic: State Your Emergency","published":"2018-05-16T21:24:41Z","updated":"2018-05-16T21:24:41Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: all"}}],"content":"So I wrote a Clint Barton thing for Infinity War<\/i>, trying to get a bit of it out of my head. I think there's probably going to be a pile of fics in a similiar vein, but I haven't read any IW fics yet. I've been reading and re-reading older fic later instead. Although if someone has written anything about the two years relationship of Wanda and Vision between Civil War and IW<\/a> yet or any other filling in the gaps or anything hopeful, I'd love recs.


Title:<\/b> State Your Emergency<\/u>
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> Teen and Up (f-word level swearing, non-graphic injury, emotions - full warnings with spoilers in the end note on AO3)
Word Count:<\/b> 2800
Summary:<\/b> A post-post credit Clint Barton scene for Infinity War<\/i>. SPOILERS.
Author Note:<\/b> with thanks to \"[personal<\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span> for beta reading and telling me to include more angst!

LINK TO FIC: Clint\u2019s weaving in and out of New York traffic on a motorbike with his gear hidden in a food delivery cooler-backpack thing when it happens...<\/a>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:162105","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/162105.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=162105"}}],"title":"Spoiler Free Infinity War Reaction","published":"2018-05-01T13:02:50Z","updated":"2018-05-01T13:02:50Z","category":{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},"content":"On my first Thursday watch of Infinity War I went in unable to cope and left...still unable to cope! I had a rewatch Friday and the weekend to recover and form some thoughts, so here's a SPOILER FREE reaction:

The previous 10 years of movies were the build up to this one, in that it launches straight into things and does not let up. There's no time for the audience to catch up - you have to have seen what came before. And when you have, as a fan I enjoyed it! They balance a large cast very well, so that even though some characters get more screen time than others they still all get their moments. Wonderful moments! Hilarious ones, kickass ones, heartbreaking ones, great crossover ones, great quotable ones\u2026 It\u2019s an emotional rollercoaster that was so good because I was already invested in these characters and their relationships. I\u2019ll be watching again at the cinema - even with those heartbreaking moments - because it\u2019s a damn good ride and there\u2019s a hell of a lot to take in.

It's also very clearly a part one of two with Avengers 4 still to come, and thanks to some bold choices in Infinity War that I was NOT prepared for, I still feel like anything could happen next and anything could change. I NEED PART TWO NOW PLEASE.


I reached the point where I can't really do proper, full reaction posts to Marvel films anymore because they hit me with all the feelings, and then my brain starts latching onto all the little details and connections and I blue screen. It\u2019s easier to chat about it with other people, focusing on one thing at the time, so if you want to talk with SPOILERS there\u2019s a thread over here on be_compromised<\/a>. I\u2019m also in a Twitter chat group with a bunch of lovely Loki fangirls I kind of got adopted into after Thor Ragnarok lol, I\u2019m lucky to have @TricksyLiesmith as my cinema buddy - we hugged a lot - and I\u2019ve talked NON-IW fanfic with \"[profile]<\/a>franztastich<\/b><\/a><\/span> which helped, so I\u2019m in recovery!"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:161925","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/161925.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=161925"}}],"title":"Fic: In Deed","published":"2018-02-21T21:42:06Z","updated":"2018-02-21T21:42:06Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: all"}}],"content":"I'm mulling over some possible short fics for the be_compromised Valentine's mini promptathon, but here's a threesome fic I've been working on since Christmas for \"[profile]<\/a>meatball42<\/b><\/a><\/span>:

Title:<\/b> In Deed
Pairing\/Characters:<\/b> Bucky\/Clint\/Natasha with Liho and Lucky
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> Teen and Up (contains a bad mental health day that gets better)
Word Count:<\/b> 4860
Author Note:<\/b> Something happier for \"[profile]<\/a>meatball42<\/b><\/a><\/span> since my Secret Santa gift was a bit angsty. With thanks to \"[personal<\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span> for beta reading <3
Summary:<\/b> Bucky is having a bad day. Lucky and Liho help. So do Clint and Natasha.

LINK TO FIC<\/a><\/b>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:161590","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/161590.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=161590"}}],"title":"Fic: A Funny Thing Happened On The Way Back From The Hospital","published":"2018-01-08T21:22:07Z","updated":"2018-01-08T21:22:07Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: all"}}],"content":"First fic I have finished in 2018! Let's just ignore the fact that I've been working on it since the summer of 2016 shall we...

Title:<\/b> A Funny Thing Happened On The Way Back From The Hospital
Pairing\/Characters:<\/b> Clint Barton & Wade Wilson, background Clint\/Laura and Clint & Nat
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> 15\/Mature (for Deadpool levels of violence and swearing, also potential trigger warnings for *Deadpool explains consent suggesting possible off-screen non-con or dub-con may have happened, Deadpool takes unknown drugs, a scene is set in a morgue where there are dead bodies - no graphic description, guns, swords, bad guys die, I'm making this sound really fun aren't I?<\/span>*
ALSO there is BANTER and SASS, and Clint and Deadpool being bros.)
Word Count:<\/b> 7900
Author Note:<\/b> Huge thanks to \"[personal<\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span> and \"[personal<\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span> for beta reading! Fic happens near the start of ten times as long (to put yourselves back together)<\/i>, but can be read as a standalone post-Infinity War fic.
Summary:<\/b> Aliens happen (again) and Clint ends up in hospital (again). What happens between that and Clint joining the others who\u2019re re-grouping at the New Avengers Facility? The short answer is Deadpool.

\u201cYou\u2019re not rescuing me,\u201d Clint tells him. \u201cI don\u2019t need to be rescued. Nat is coming to pick me up at one. I\u2019m good, thanks.\u201d

Later he\u2019ll wonder if it was the \u2018thanks\u2019 that was his undoing.<\/i>

LINK TO FIC AO3<\/a><\/b>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:161070","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/161070.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=161070"}}],"title":"2017 Year In Review","published":"2018-01-07T22:23:42Z","updated":"2018-01-07T22:26:35Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"big book lists"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"comics"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"books are love"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"adventures in living"}}],"content":"A few lists of 2017 things, included book recs and fics:

Author Events:<\/b> Robin Hobb, M R Carey, Patrick Ness, and Natalie Haynes (all at events put on by Waterstones bookshops in the two cities nearest to me)

Plays seen:<\/b> Gabriel, Lost Soul, Jayne Eyre, That Play That Goes Wrong (hilarious), Twelfth Night (at the Globe in London!), and A Comedy About A Bank Robbery

Concerts\/gigs:<\/b> Postmodern Jukebox, Hayley Reinhart, and Amanda Palmer (the first time I\u2019ve been to a gig in London, a gig on my own, and to a drag show; I made friends with some strangers and had a wonderful time *grins*)

Trips:<\/b> Edinburgh, Thought Bubble con in Leeds, and London & Salisbury

Favourite Films seen at the cinema:<\/b> Hidden Figures, Logan, Gifted, and Thor Ragnarok

Favourite comics of 2017:<\/b> Saga, The Wicked + The Divine, Runaways, Hawkeye, and Giant Days

Favourite Graphic Novels read in 2017:<\/b> Porcelain: Ivory Tower, The Secret Loves of Geek Girls, and The Vision (vol2): Little Better Than A Beast

Favourite Books read in 2017:<\/b>
Instead of listing all the books I\u2019ve read this year, which is what I usually do, I\u2019m going to link you to my goodreads account<\/a> and then share my favourite books of 2017. Picking favourites is HARD, but I tried -

All The Crooked Saints<\/i> by Maggie Stiefvater
Here is a thing everyone wants: a miracle. Here is a thing everyone fears: what it takes to get one.<\/i> A beautifully written story set in Colorado in 1962, about the Soria family, who can perform miracles, and the pilgrims who come calling. About family, friends, strangers, and connections. Love. Renegade radio. Supporting each other.

Artemis<\/i> by Andy Weir
Andy Weir's second book had a lot to live up to, following the flyaway success of The Martian<\/i>. It did not disappoint. It follows a smuggler living in the first moon colony as it looks at the practicalities and politics of lunar life, with Weir\u2019s trademark wit and view that people working together is what makes space magic happen.

In Other Lands<\/i> by Sarah Rees Brennan
This joyful, banter-full YA book takes a good, long look at the genre of portal fiction and uses that conversation to address issues in our own reality, including in sexuality - particularly bisexuality - sexism, representation, pacifism, and colonisation. It has a fanfiction feel in some ways as the plot is character driven, there are plot elements usually found in fanfic rather than in print, and the author has clearly enjoyed the hell out of herself writing about her favourite things. This is my cup of tea. I re-read it before the year was up.

Every Heart A Doorway<\/i> by Seanan McGuire
This novella looks at what happens to children that come back through portals after their adventures are over. It's clever and quick witted, explores aspects of the portal genre that I hadn't previously considered, pursues what happens when changes wrought in fantasy worlds bump up against the realities of ours, and includes issues around gender, sexuality, and family as a matter of course. Oh, and murder.

Moxie<\/i> by Jennifer Mathieu
Our protagonist, inspired by a shoebox of her mum's old punk things, decides to try doing something about the sexism rampant in her small town high school. What starts small snowballs into something much larger with its own momentum. Girls being friends and feminists, with a look at different and intersectional ways to be a feminist, and just an all-round excellent read that delivered many YES, THAT and THOSE FEELINGS, RIGHT THERE moments to me as a female reader.

After The Fire<\/i> by Will Hill
A seventeen-year-old girl \u2013 an exceedingly well-written protagonist - relates her upbringing and life in a religious cult to a therapist and an FBI Agent who are trying to work out what happened in the titular fire. Gripping, strong character voices, keeps you guessing until the end, and could be lifted from reality.

Norse Mythology<\/i> by Neil Gaiman
A retelling of the Norse myths with Gaiman flair and fantastic characterisation of the gods.

The Boy on the Bridge<\/i> by M R Carey
This prequel to the fantastic The Girl With All The Gifts<\/i> is set two years earlier, mid-outbreak, and follows the crew of the Rosalin Franklin on a scientific research mission around the country. M R Carey excels at stories focussed on characters forced together in a small (physical) space and the plot is excellent, with bonus small connections and contextualisation for the first book.

The Hate U Give<\/i> by Angie Thomas
Thomas' debut novel is the story of Starr, a black teenage girl who is in the car with a friend from her old school when they're pulled over by a white police officer, who shoots her unarmed friend. Thomas puts the reader square in the lives and emotions of the characters as they live through a story that could be lifted directly from the news. The strength of the characterisation and empathy absorbed me from the first page.

Girl In Pieces<\/i> by Kathleen Glasgow
A Girl, Interrupted<\/i> for the next generation that focuses on recovery. No holds barred, peels everything right back to the heart and soul of the characters and their efforts to put their pieces back together. Very well done.

A Darkness Absolute<\/i> by Kelley Armstrong
Armstrong showcases her skills in pacing and building tension in this cracking thriller of a sequel that follows on from the excellent City of the Lost<\/i>. Not quite<\/i> as good as the first book, but only by a little, this is edge of your seat storytelling, with mystery, interesting characters and relationships, and a driven plot.

Honourable Fiction mentions:<\/b> I also really, really enjoyed -
The Names They Gave Us<\/i> by Emery Lord \u2013 found family!
A Quiet Kind of Thunder<\/i> by Sarah Barnard \u2013 character with selective mutism and anxiety befriends deaf character; accurate representation and sweet story about gaining agency!
The Raven Cycle<\/i> series by Maggie Stiefvater \u2013 the characters, the twists, the sass and banter!<\/a>

Non-fiction:<\/b> Hidden Figures<\/i> by Margot Lee Shetterly, A Room of One\u2019s Own<\/i> by Virginia Wolf, and Hope In The Dark<\/i> by Rebecca Solnit, which I read at the start of the year and gave me a much needed boost of optimism in the face of politics

Poetry:<\/b> Plum<\/i> by Hollie McNish and Undying<\/i> by Michael Faber, which is beautiful written and gives voice to so many emotions, and yes it made me cry

Fics posted in 2017:<\/b> I posted five fics last year, all of which were gifts for other people. Good job I had that as an incentive I think. All Marvel fandom; two Clint\/Nat and three Clint\/Nat\/Bucky.

The Bowling Green Massacre<\/b><\/a> joint written with \"[personal<\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span> for the Valentine\u2019s Mini Promptathon is a Clint and Natasha mission fic with dollops of politics. It was the first time I\u2019d co-written anything and it was huge fun to do.

both threat and promise<\/b><\/a>, also for the Valentine\u2019s Mini Promptathon, is Clint and Natasha sexy times.

We Can Get Better<\/b><\/a> was written for the franzi and gecko friends exchange. My first Clint\/Nat\/Bucky fic! Also featuring sexy times. And Kate.

Scary Movie Night<\/b><\/a> is a little Clint\/Nat\/Bucky Halloween ficlet.

Make Like A Ninja<\/b><\/a> was written for the be_compromised Secret Santa exchange. A Clint\/Nat\/Bucky fix-it bridge between Secret Empire and Tales of Suspense (AU of 616 comics).

Technically I also finished a spin-off story about musician!Clint\u2019s first meeting with Jess, but I need to finish the main musician!Clint and bodyguard!Natasha story first before I can post that, and the fifth story in the demon!Natasha series, but I need to finish and post the still WIP third and fourth stories first. (I may have made franztastisch despair a little with my out of order writing.) <\/a>

Life Things in 2017:<\/b>

> I went to my first march\/rally in January, which was a Sister March

> I started a new job in February \u2013 same company, different department, up a promotion level and much more interesting

> I turned 30. I used to think there were a certain amount of boxes that needed ticking by this point, but thankfully I was disabused of that notion in advance.

> The group of friends I still have from high school also all turned 30, funnily enough, my Dad turned 60, Gran 80, two cousins 40, and my grandparents had their 60th Wedding Anniversary! I went to a hen doo, two weddings, and I went to the funeral of a friend\u2019s partner.

> And The Thing, - in summer my Mum was diagnosed with breast cancer. Luckily it was treatable \u2013 surgery, radiotherapy, and now six-monthly bone infusions and drugs. She\u2019s a lot better these days and it\u2019s looking positive. I was able to work from home a lot to support her and to take on the role of full-time carer for my younger sister, who has Down\u2019s Syndrome. Dad went to all of Mum\u2019s appointments and treatment with her, and between the two of us we split all the house jobs and supporting the set of elderly grandparents who live nextdoor.

We\u2019re a close family, we managed to maintain a sense of humour, and we try to look on the bright side. I now know that I can handle shit like this and juggle the hell out of things, Dad knew basic cooking, but stepped up his game and learnt such valuable lessons as \u2018look for the best use-by dates at the supermarket\u2019, and my little sister continues to give the best hugs. It\u2019s not something I wanted to chat about a lot, because the few moments I took a break and wasn\u2019t juggling everything I needed it to be a break<\/i>, for which my friends were wonderful, letting me have a few rants and then enabling me with fun geek times. <\/a>

That counts for online friends too \u2013 thank you for the fandom chats with me, talking with me about your ideas, prompts, and WIPs, posting new things for me to enjoy, commenting on any of my creative works, and in general being your lovely selves. Sometimes those little things help a big deal *hugs*.

And now it\u2019s 2018!<\/b> Lots of things to look forward to \u2013 starting with a trip to Budapest next week with \"[personal<\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span> and \"[personal<\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span>! What were your 2017 highlights and favourites? Things that you\u2019re looking forward to in 2018?<\/a>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:160683","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/160683.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=160683"}}],"title":"Thor: Ragnarok - Initial Reaction Post - NO Spoilers","published":"2017-10-25T20:28:47Z","updated":"2017-10-25T20:28:47Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"wow"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fandom dicussion\/chatter"}}],"content":"I watched Thor Ragnarok<\/i> last night. IT IS WONDERFUL AND MADE OF WONDERFUL THINGS AND I NEED TO SEE IT AGAIN. ANOTHER. HOLY SHIT. No, but really, I called <\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span> at a train station with @TricksyLiesmith so we could 'OH MY GOD' at each other before I ran for a train. I am in a DM (private message) threat of British people on Twitter FLIPPING OUR COLLECTIVE LIDS.

The non-spoiler overview: if you like Director Taika Waititi's sense of humour (try Hunt for the Wilderpeople<\/i>) then you're going to love this. I laughed until I cried, constantly, for the whole film. Right from the start this film is given space to be funny, room for the jokes to breathe, and, when you get home and calm down a little, room for them to have layers. Thor: Ragnarok<\/i> has a relatively straightforward plot. The cleverness comes in all of the little details, emotions, shout outs to previous Thor films and MCU films, to the comics and the myths, to character development and world building, and the jokes aren't seperate to that. They're funny because you know the history, or because the situation is hilarious, or because of the aciting and the facial expressions, and then you look again and there's more going on underneath. So much more. I'm still digging through them and I need to watch it again - hopefully this weekend. And then there's the themes. Which I can't spoil you for. But, oh my Thor, YES. Visually it's really colourful with some interesting choices, the music just works<\/i>, everything is quote worthy, and everyone in the cast looks like they enjoyed the hell out of themselves making this film.

PS. I seem to know a lot of people who like Loki? Even though I live in the Assassins corner of the Internet? I blame @TricksyLiesmith. But apparently if you are a Loki and Thor fan this film is for you ;)

So where does this sit with the rest of the MCU? For me Winter Solider<\/i> is the best in terms of plot. For humour Thor: Dark World<\/i> and Gaurdians of the Galaxy<\/i>. Then I just love all the ensemble films, especially for dialogue and banter, and I love Civil War<\/i>. Thor: Ragnorak<\/i> is easily the funniest film for me. The plot...Winter Solider<\/i> still comes out top for me, for how timely and on point it was\/is, how well it juggled everything, and the complete shake up of the MCU. Thor: Ragnarok<\/i> shows how simple can be wonderful though, and shines in it's layers and themes. Beautiful layers and themes. After one viewing? Thor: Ragnarok<\/i> is definitely the best Thor film and easily one of my favourites in the whole MCU.

Extras: look, we all know by now to stay until the end of a Marvel film, so pin your butt to that seat. There's a mid credits scene and an after credits scene. Oh, and there's some amazing cameos and who knows how many Easter eggs - I'm waiting for YOU so you can tell me what I've missed :D"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:160484","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/160484.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=160484"}}],"title":"Secret Santa, MBB, and a rec","published":"2017-10-17T21:45:39Z","updated":"2017-10-17T21:45:39Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"recs: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fandom dicussion\/chatter"}}],"content":"Secreta Santa 2017 sign ups are open at be_compromised<\/b><\/a> until 9AM GMT SATURDAY 21ST OCTOBER. The community has moved to Dreamwidth but you can sign up using your LJ with OpenID or comment anonymously to sign up including your LJ handle in your comment. There's only 4 people signed up so far, so if you know of anyone who'd be interested in an exchange with Clint and Natasha, as a couple or friends or partners, then please do spread the word.

Also marvel big bang<\/a> starts posting soon and they have an AO3 collection<\/a>. Nice, some long Marvel fics comings soon.

Any fic recs from things you've read recently? <\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span> pointed me at Summer Don't Own Me No More<\/b><\/a> by Nonymos with gorgeous art by alby_mangroves, and it is solar!punk and amazing!"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:160118","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/160118.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=160118"}}],"title":"Fic: We Can Get Better","published":"2017-09-19T19:40:35Z","updated":"2017-09-19T19:42:07Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"#22"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: all"}}],"content":"I wrote a thing! For franzi's and gecko's friends write for each other - the reckoning<\/a> exchange - damn good fics, take a look.

Mine is a Clint Barton at the end of Fraction & Aja & Team's comics run fic and my first time writing a threesome - Clint\/Natasha\/Bucky.

Title:<\/b> We Can Get Better
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> Explicit (sex, threesome, full body hug as a form of bondage, hypervigilance after a home invasion)
Length:<\/b> 6540 words
Author Note:<\/b> Written for musicspeakstoo. Title is from Get Better<\/i> by Frank Turner, now permanently associated with Fraction & Aja & Team's Hawkeye for me thanks to this vid<\/a>. Fic takes place between Clint being in a hospital gown and Clint shooting with Kate at the end of #22. Clint and Kate are the comics versions of themselves, Natasha and Bucky are possibly more MCU or AU. Beta read by <\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span>, who knows how last minute I am at finishing, and still offers to beta read for me, and makes everything better.
Summary:<\/b> Hypervigilance is kicking in. Clint wishes he could sleep for a week, but he won\u2019t even manage a full night. He\u2019s gonna be up each time something moves in his peripheral vision. He\u2019s already turned the stupid hearing aids up to the max. He\u2019ll be checking the locks and the boarded up window every hour probably.<\/i>

Clint thought that everyone left after the Battle of Bed-Stuy, but Natasha's still here and that means the chances of him sleeping tonight have just improved dramatically.

LINK TO FIC ON AO3<\/a><\/b>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:159891","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/159891.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=159891"}}],"title":"I read, I write","published":"2017-09-10T16:48:16Z","updated":"2017-09-10T16:48:16Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"writing updates\/chatter"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"books are love"}}],"content":"> It has been a week<\/i>. Which I'm not going to rehash because I want at least a few hours last thing on Sunday where this week is done before I have to face another one *face palm*.

> I have finished and submitted a fic for <\/a>geckoholic<\/b><\/a><\/span> and <\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span>'s friends fest! I struggled with this one, but I really wanted to give it a go. Also, summaries remain the hardest thing to write.

> In not unrelated news, I found this tumblr thing<\/a> that explains the difference between Mature and Explicit ratings using licking an envelope. Which I found amusing and really helpful. This is going to be my go-to definition I think.

> The Masterlist for Promptathon 2017<\/a> is up on be_compromised and I'm working my way through the ones I missed.

> If you would like to read a book about girls being friends and feminists featuring punk rock music and all different kinds of girls coming together to fight back against sexism at a small town high school, Moxie<\/i> by Jennifer Mathieu is the feel good book for you. I read it recently and said HELL YEAH a lot. It's 99p on Kindle in the UK and $1.28 in the US :)"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:159650","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/159650.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=159650"}}],"title":"fannish updates","published":"2017-08-18T22:44:52Z","updated":"2017-08-18T22:45:10Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"recs: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"recs: all"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"recs that aren't fic"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"writing updates\/chatter"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"recs: the martian"}}],"content":"> Caught up with the be_compromised summer promptathon<\/b><\/a> today. There's a great bunch of fics once again this year!

> <\/a>bluemeridian<\/b><\/a><\/span> has posted a rec list of happy-making things HERE<\/b><\/a> that I'm working my way through tonight. I LOVE the Hawkeyes (Fraction) and Martian vids! Now onwards to the wordy things.

> Which has reminded me to check out this year's Vividcon. I found a handy database here<\/a>. I'm in a vid mood it seems, so if you have recs you'd like to share then be my guest :)

> I have managed to finish a fic and am close to finishing a handful more. This would be great, except I have an awkward habit at the moment of working on a bunch at once, adding words to one until I stall and then moving onto the next and cycling back 'round again. So the fic I've finished? Is part five of the demon AU series but parts three and four aren't quite complete lol. Another that's close to being done is a how Clint and Jess met that's set prior to a much longer Clint\/Nat fic in which Clint and Jess have been broken up for a while. Um. Oops?

> I'm hoping to finally see Spiderman: Homecoming<\/i> tomorrow, yay!

> Finished watching The Bridge<\/i> this week, which had me on the edge of my seat. My hat is off to the actor who plays Saga; fascinating to watch a non-neuro typical female lead character, who has a job as a competent police officer and navigates relationships, and it's just so well done. I also caved and bought American Gods<\/i> even though I take forever<\/i> to watch things and it will probably decrease in price by the time I get chance, because American Gods<\/i>!

> I make up for my slow watching of tv and films with speedy reading though. Which reminds me that I need to update goodreads again...

> Any fic\/vid\/graphic\/other recs that are happy or amusing? I think it's a good time for them."},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:159481","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/159481.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=159481"}}],"title":"Dear Writer Letter - Franzi & Gecko Fic Exchange","published":"2017-08-03T23:07:37Z","updated":"2018-01-06T00:27:45Z","content":"Dear Writer, Thank you for creating something for me! Seriously, whatever you feel like writing I'm just going to be happy that I enabled you into creating something and I hope you have fun with it. But since that's unhelpful, here's a few of my likes and dislikes:

I\u2019ve listed some of my favourite characters in my requests, but other characters are also great, especially ladies and interesting character dynamics. I LOVE team-families and found family! I also like sass, banter, and fun dialogue, competency especially competent ladies, twists, AUs, misunderstandings and people not getting on straight away, friends to lovers, and the ridiculousness that is life. Diversity is great: gender, sexuality, disability, all the things. I love both canon compliant fics with lots of details and tie-in moments AND playing fast and loose with canon, different interpretations, and all manner of AUs.

Gen fics, ship fics, and threesomes are all fair game; just make me believe in it. Infinite variety in infinite combinations :) When it comes to sexytimes feel free to include them or not; sub\/dom and bondage, sensual and worshipping, or sex being ridiculous and messy all welcome. And emotions\/feels are always welcome.

I enjoy all kinds of genres \u2013 comedy, serious fic, hurt\/comfort \u2013 but I\u2019m in the kind of mood at the moment where I\u2019d like everyone to be okay by the end, so if not a happy ending I'd like at least a hopeful ending.

I\u2019d rather not read or write: major character death, baby!fic (accidental acquisition of a baby or kid for humour and\/or emotional developement of characters = yes, pregancy and domestic fic = not this time thanks), incest, character bashing, and second person narrative.

If you\u2019re after something more specific or prompt orientated feel free to use or ignore any of these:
> anything set in a circus\/carnival, especially the kind of loud crazy outfits, glitter and make-up, performers, asexual\/bi-sexual.who care because everyone is whatever they like in this place, piercings or tattoos or colourful hair, wearing things to the supermarket at 3am that make people stare, colourful accepting alternative circus lifestyle in the best sense of the world. But really I will love ANYTHING circus\/carnival *grins*.
> supernatural\/fairytale, especially where one character is supernatural or fey and another character isn't initially aware of this
> asexual character, perhaps in a romantic relationship or found family relationship and learning that that's not only 'okay' or 'fine' but fantastic and wonderful
> ladies team up
> Nebula and Gamora, galatic sisters
> Clint Barton collects strays
> I would like there to be more Clint\/Natasha\/Bucky in the world
> James Barnes is the Russian assassin Clint Barton brings out from the cold and into SHIELD. Natasha Romanoff is the Winter Soldier.
> Laura was a SHIELD Agent before Clint Barton joined up.
> summer camp, theatre company, urban fantasty, any excuse for a colourful cast of found family<\/a>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:158153","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/158153.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=158153"}}],"title":"Valentine Promptathon Fics and Graphic","published":"2017-03-05T01:12:38Z","updated":"2017-03-05T01:12:38Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"graphics: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"graphics"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: all"}}],"content":"The Valentine's Mini Promptathon<\/a> over at <\/a>be_compromised<\/b><\/a><\/span> recently came to an end and I managed to complete a few things before the deadline this year, whoop whoop, so here you go - a new graphic and some new fics:

Title:<\/b> The Path
Rating\/Warning:<\/b> PG (distressed Clint)
Length:<\/b> collage graphic
Summary:<\/b> Clint Barton, in all his messed up glory, joined a monastry in Tibet when he was twenty. Taught love for all beings, he would make a different call.<\/i>
Author Note:<\/b> The monastry featured is not actually in Tibet, it's in Bhutan. It's called the Taktshang Tiger's Nest monastry, which 'clings to a cliff 2,300ft about the Paro Valley floor', which seemed appropriate :) The Internet tells me the quotes are Budhist quotes; forgive me if they're not.

Link to image at the promptathon<\/a><\/b>


Title:<\/b> The Bowling Green Massacre
co-written<\/b> with <\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span> which was a lot of fun!
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> Teen and up (typical MCU violence and swearing)
Length:<\/b> 6569 words
Summary:<\/b> Fallaces sunt rerum species.<\/i> The truth isn\u2019t all things to all people all of the time.
Authors Note:<\/b> No cows were harmed in the making of this fic, although we can't say the same of the Brooklyn mafia. The views on protesters, capitalism and politics enunciated herein are strictly those of the characters.

Link to The Bowling Green Massacre<\/u> on AO3<\/a><\/b>


Title:<\/b> both threat and promise
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> Mature (for sex)
Length:<\/b> 1414 words
Summary:<\/b> For the prompt: There should be a word for a threat that is also a promise. Because that is what I want you to hold me down and do.

Link to both threat and promise<\/u> on AO3<\/a><\/b>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:157889","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/157889.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=157889"}}],"title":"February Books","published":"2017-03-05T00:55:29Z","updated":"2017-03-05T00:57:21Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"comics"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"awesome ladies"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"books are love"}}],"content":"
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GoodReads<\/a> updated for February. This was a good month; I'd recommend any of these books! Cut for book chatter, no spoilers:

Hope In The Dark<\/i> by Rebecca Solnit was one of those 'right book, right time' reads. A short book packed with ideas. Solnit looks at the history of progressive political action, how hope lies in action, how victories should be celebrated - and what victories there have been - without being dismissive because the utopian end goal has not yet been achieved, how political action should be a daily experience rather than reactionary, and how it's always too soon to leave or to measure sucesses and failures. The original focus\/context, with the book being written in 2003-2004 during the Bush administration, was the protest against the Iraq War. My edition was updated with a 2015 essay and Afterword, plus additional essays from 2009 and 2014, spotlights new challenges, particularly climate change. That said, in the context of now I still found it all very relevant. There was a lot to digest, but it did leave me feeling hopeful, with a view to what I can do, and it was a moment where I read the right book just when I needed to.

Hidden Figures: The Untold Story of the African American Women Who Helped Win the Space Race<\/i> by Margot Lee Shetterly is a history of NACA's (later NASA) road to space travel that puts the Civil Rights movement and women's rights back into the narrative. It challenges the assumed\/prevalent history in the best of ways and paints a picture of the many women, and men, who supported each other, worked with each other, raised each other up, and built on what came before. Eye-opening, inspiring, and important.

If you come to this after watching the film, the book focusses a little less on the individual lives of particular women but rather uses their stories as a focus to explore untold history. Possibily a little dry for some, but interesting and it does go past the story of the film to tell you what happened next in their lives. Then if you go back and watch the film again, you have a whole new appreciation.

In A Darkness Absolute<\/i> Kelley Armstrong showcases her skills in pacing and building tension in this cracking thriller of a sequel that follows on from the excellent City of the Lost. Not quite<\/i> as good as the first book, but only by a little, this is edge of your seat storytelling, with mystery, interesting characters and relationships, and a driven plot. Absorbing.

Tales From A Midwife<\/i> by Jennifer Worth is a collected edition of three books about midwifery and district nursing in the 1950s: Call The Midwife, In the Shadow of the Workhouse, and Farewell to the East End. Educational and a slice of history, but Worth's ability to convey emotion elevates her stories to another level. The reader really feels for the people she talks about, she's excellent at capturing the moment and empathy, and in the stranger than fiction tales she delivers the human and the real. As someone who came to this after seeing episodes from the TV show, it was also interesting to find out what happened the main ladies in the end. Interesting, heart-warming, arm yourself with a box of tissues.

The first book\/section was well structured, but the latter two sometimes seemed to be stories and essays strung together, a little haphazard. This may be because this is an abridged version, according to GoodReads, which I was unaware of.

And I managed to squeeze a graphic novel in there with Descender, Volume Three: Singularities<\/i>. I continue to love the gorgeous, water-colour style art and the clever storytelling in this series. For volume three we get backstories for our main cast, including the robots.

I've started this month off with some short World Book Day books and I'm hoping to dig into some fantasy..."},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:157452","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/157452.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=157452"}}],"title":"The Space Between Us","published":"2017-02-12T22:04:04Z","updated":"2017-02-12T22:04:04Z","category":{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},"content":"
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I was looking after my sister this weekend, so the first cinema trip I've gone on this year ended up being The Space Between Us<\/b>, as it looked suitable for the sister and interesting enough for me. The overall verdict is that we both enjoyed it.

The Space Between Us starts with the first trip up to establish a colony on Mars, in a joint effort by Genesis Space Technologies and NASA, when it turns out a female astronaut is accidentally pregnant and dies giving birth on arrival. The problem is that the baby won't be able to survive the journey back to Earth, or Earth's gravity (true - they researched their shit), and they're worried that if they let people know about this and it's a PR disater it could cause problems for the programme, meaning no funding, meaning everyone comes home and the baby doesn't survive. So they keep it a secret.

Sixteen years later Gardener Elliot wants to come to Earth, to try and find his dad and to meet a girl called Tulsa from Colorado who he's been secretly in contact with online. She thinks he can't leave his house because he has a brittle bone condition. She's a street wise kid, lovess music, has been in foster care since she was four and is looking forward to getting the hell out of dodge when she turns eighteen soon.

A few adults support Gardener, saying he should<\/i> get to go to Earth and he's old enough that they can do something about his health, so that happens. What follows could be corny and cringe-worthy, but the acting keeps it sweet. There's a lot of things that could have been explored and in greater detail, and the female characters orbit the main character Gardener without us ever getting to know more about the tantalising details dropped in about their lives, but overall I enjoyed it. It's had some far from great reviews online, but it's a nice little PG story about how wonderful Earth can be, and how interesting space travel can be, and people, with some nice comedy moments and first romance moments. It made me and my sister smile.

Then again, you all know I have a thing for space and found family, right? *grins* Um, and now I have notes on a fic that would be coda for this film set over a decade later... Oops.

<\/center>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:157309","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/157309.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=157309"}}],"title":"48 icons: because boomerangs","published":"2017-02-06T22:05:34Z","updated":"2017-02-06T22:15:41Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"icons: mcu\/avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"icons: comics"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"icons: avengers cast"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"icons: all"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"icons: misc"}}],"content":"I haven't played around with the pretty pictures for a while, so have a bunch of mixed icons. Kate Bishop, America Chavez, Clint Barton, Lucky, Thor, Peggy Carter, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, and a dash of American Gods. You wanted those in an icon batch together, right? No? Well I did :p

01-03:<\/b> Civil War II: Choosing Sides 3
04-05:<\/b> America Chavez upcoming comic
06-10:<\/b> Young Avengers
11:<\/b> Hawkeye\/Hawkeye vs. Deadpool
12-31:<\/b> Fraction & Aja's Hawkeye
32:<\/b> SNL Clint\/Renner
33-35:<\/b> send a raven
36-37:<\/b> Agent Carter
38-40:<\/b> American Gods upcoming tv show
41-43:<\/b> Scarlett Johansson
44-48:<\/b> Jeremy Renner

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Please don't hotlink. Please do credit. Comments are loved.<\/center><\/a>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:156954","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/156954.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=156954"}}],"title":"January Books","published":"2017-02-03T19:09:46Z","updated":"2017-02-03T23:29:10Z","category":{"@attributes":{"term":"books are love"}},"content":"

Also non-photographed: Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor<\/center>

My goodreads<\/a> has been updated with short reviews for January's books, but I thought I'd start talking more about books on my LJ when I can. Because books!

My favourite book in January is a YA read, A Quiet Cry of Thunder<\/i> by Sara Barnard: Steffi, who has anxiety and selective mutism, is starting sixth form without her best friend Tem and on the first day she's introduced to new student Rhys, who's deaf, by her teacher because she knows some British Sign Language. So begins a story of friendship, romance, first times, parent problems, and establishing agency. Barnard deftly incorporates issues (such as around gender, sexism, racism, ableism, grief, mental health) by embedding them in the daily lives of her wonderful characters, who I would not be surprised to see stepping out of the pages and walking down the street. Everyone makes mistakes, no one is perfect, and the story is full of heart.

Unconventional<\/i> by Maggie Harcourt is another YA read and one I'd been looking forward to since reading a sampler at YALC last summer. I was hoping it would be the convention story for convention goers in the way Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl<\/i> is for fanfic writers, and it isn't quite. But! It is really good fun. Contains: convention friends, parental relationships, romance, pineapples.

Traitor to the Thone<\/i>, which is the sequel to Rebel in the Sands<\/i>, was a solid YA read, nicely non-Western, and is full of female friendships and relationships. Lagoon<\/i> by Nnedi Okorafor is the story of aliens landing off the coast of Lagos and has interesting ideas, folklore, and gods, but is merely an okay read. (Both borrowed from <\/a>franztastisch<\/b><\/a><\/span> who is brilliant at finding non-Western books and lending them to me.) Sunstone: volume 5<\/i> delivers a reasonably satisfying conclusion to Stjepan \u0160eji\u0107's BDSM romance series, but as ever his writing isn't up to standards of his art. His art is gorgeous though.

In non-fiction The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving A F*ck<\/i>, which advocates not giving a f*ck to some things in order to save time, money, and energy to spend on things you do want to give a f*ck about, isn't exactly magical, but is reasonably amusing and I picked up a few tips. And The Unknown Unknowns<\/i> is a lovely little short essay about the value of a good bookshop.

Currently reading: many non-fiction books, because I take forever with non-fiction, and Jennifor Worth's Tales From a Midwife<\/i>, borrowed from a work friend (because I really need to get that read and returned!)"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:156461","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/156461.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=156461"}}],"title":"Arrival & Fantastic Beasts & Rogue One","published":"2017-01-12T23:46:06Z","updated":"2017-01-12T23:50:39Z","category":{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},"content":"Wrapping up my 2016 film reviews\/comments, because I was on top of these until we hit December, heh.

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First up: Arrvial<\/b>. This film has Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner, it's about languages and science, it's about the importance of and the difficulties inherent in communication, it's about first contact with aliens, I was predisposed to like this film<\/i>, okay? Except then it was smart, educational, funny, and had a rare (at least in Western media, to my experience) type of ending where instead of it being BOOM BIG ENDING there were events and information that put into context everything in the film that you'd already watched, that brought everything into focus. And what reveals! If you're looking for an explosive alien movie with blowing things up and landmarks going up in smoke, this is not the film you're looking for. It's more like Contact<\/i>, it's thoughtful scifi, and it's bloody brilliant.

The alien language was beautiful<\/i>. I loved the constant idea throughout that we progress by helping each other, by working together, culminating in the reason for the aliens' visit being that we're to be able to help them in the future. The idea of langauge and understanding as a gift! Time travel, the fourth dimension, as a lived experience! \"I just found out why my husband left me,\" oh my heart, right in the feels<\/i>. You think in the language you learn. Just. THIS FILM. I REALLY, REALLY LIKED IT.

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Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them<\/b>. Possibly unpopular opinion time: I thought the Harry Potter films were pretty, and creative, and some of those actors and actresses will forever be the face of their characters for me, but. They cut so much of the books in the earlier films that it damaged the plot and they could just never touch the books. My hope for Fantastic Beasts<\/i> that as a film not based on a pre-existing story it would be forced to have a stronger plot in order to stand on its own merit. It did have stronger plot, and the creatures and magic were as magical as expected. It's not one I'm going to rave about, but it was enjoyable, I'd watch it again, some good funny moments and nice little details, I'd love to adopt a niffler and a bowtruckle, and the inside of Newt's suitcase was very well done.

I did fall into the trap of thinking that the little girl was the Obscurus host and I liked that it was Credence instead. And it had some lovely details and jumping off points - if I still wrote Harry Potter fanfic I would be enjoying the hell out of playing with those *grins*.

On the downside, I'm not sure how I feel about the Grindlewald reveal, mostly because to me Fantastic Beasts<\/i> wasn't the introduction to a war story, but a war recovery<\/i> story, with Newt and Jacob, but also other characters, finding their feet and discovering - literally in Jacob's case - magic, in discovering wonder and joy again. If this is just a nod to the wider world, well okay then. But if this is going to be a war franchise... we'll see. Also, um, what happened to diversity? There's a shot at the end of the female, character of colour head of MACUSA surrounded by a pack of all white, male auorors that slammed it in my face that despite two women as well as two men heading the cast (although the focus is on the guys; i'd be interested to see the screentime) there's a distinct lack of racial diversity that, especially considering there's no story source material and they could have done anything they wanted, is damn sad.

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Well then. Rogue One<\/b>. I'm not a fan of Star Wars<\/i> as such; I consider myself to be more an enjoyer of Star Wars<\/i> as someone who likes Things Set In Space. But even I appreicated how this prequel to A New Hope<\/i> adds wonderful details to the existing 'verse and casts A New Hope<\/i> in a new light. It's a good space-heist movie, there's some fun and humour very reminiscent of the original films which I enjoyed, and I appreicate the many shades of grey the film explored. And then that ending. I WAS NOT PREPARED FOR THAT ENDING. As such, I think this is a good film but I'm going to need some time before I do any rewatching. To recover.

The ending? Everyone dies. We're talking major major character death. But it works so well<\/i>. When they first started going I jumped to the thought that characters dying would be a good explaination for why none of them then show up in the three films that follow it, but I was still holding onto a silm hope that maybe some of them would be allowed to survive. Because this film had managed to make me care about them. And then there was the moment where the Death Star plans are being passed from hand to hand by rebel soldiers as they're persued by Darth Vader, these nameless background characters dying to pass these plans on, a human chain, and that, THAT MOMENT, was for me the context of the whole film.

Rogue One<\/i> is the story of nameless background characters, who have their own story and thing going on, who contribute to the big plot lines but we never see it. And I am a sucker for stories about background characters being brought into the foreground. I didn't expect to see that in a big franchise film. Bravo! And, as is the way with Redshirts (sorry, I know, wrong Stars :P ), they did. Tragically. Sadly. But this time we know their names, we know their stories, and it gave me all the feelings, but the moment that my eyes leaked? Those nameless characters persued by Darth Vader, their exit door closing, passing the plans through the slim remaining gap onto their fellow rebels, dying for it. Because I didn't know their names, or their stories, or anything about them, but the characters of Rogue One<\/i> had given me direct empathy and for the first time I can remember I had leaky eyes at the death of background characters. Damn you Star Wars, you and your feelings.

On a side note, dear parents who take small children to see 12A films - meaning kids under 12 can watch with an accompanying adult: 12A is a guidance that means the film certificate board suggests your child be 12 to watch this film. Please check the film certificate board website to see why a film is rated the way it is. And then consider that maybe you shouldn't take toddlers and 5 year olds and small children into films that are seriously unsuitable for them<\/i> before the unsuitable thing happens and both you and your children have to deal with the fallout. Not questioning your parenting skills; you know your child best. My sister with Down's Syndrome? Perfectly okay with a rom-com rated 15 for swearing, sex, and stupidity. Would not be okay watching A Monster Calls<\/i> even though it's only rated a PG, because of the sad and the reason for the sad. You know your child. Please also know your rating reasons. Thank you.

With the trend to making things like superhero films 'darker' to draw in the older audience whilst trying to keep the younger audience, there seem to be more 12A films with little kids in the audience. Maybe I notice it more because I go to early film showings with my sister. But the kids in some of these 12A films, especially Star Wars<\/i> are nowhere near 12, and I want to say to their parents: look, I know you think superheros and space are childish, but they're not. Or I know you want to watch these films because they're geeky and you want to share with your kid, but you've got time yet when they're older. I know the original Star Wars<\/i> trilogy was rated PG, but Rogue One<\/i> really, really isn't. *sigh*. I'll shut up now, but I had feelings about that as much as the film's ending.<\/a>

So, that was 2016. Up in 2017: I really, really want to watch Hidden Figures<\/i>! And I am, of course, looking forward to Spiderman Homecoming, Guardians of the Galaxy 2<\/i> and Thor Ragnorok<\/i>. Not sure what else is coming out yet. What films are you looking forward to in 2017?"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:156372","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/156372.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=156372"}}],"title":"2016 Big Book List","published":"2017-01-08T18:46:12Z","updated":"2017-01-08T18:46:12Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"big book lists"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"comics"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"books are love"}}],"content":"It's that time of year again - here's the books (and grahic novels) I read in 2016, organised by how much I enjoyed them and how highly I'd recommend them (rather than just dumping them on you).

Fantastic<\/u> = the best of the best. The ones I really, really enjoyed and had to share my love with other people.
Great<\/u> = the best of the rest. Books that I would reread, or that lodged themselves in my head so thoroughly that rereading might be redundant.
Good<\/u> = I enjoyed these, but since book-lovers can\u2019t afford everything you could save your money and get these from the library.
Okay<\/u> = books are books and therefore wonderful, but these could have been better.
The Bottom of the Pile<\/u> = well if you have nothing else to read


Fantastic<\/u><\/b>

a closed and common orbit<\/i> by Becky Chambers (book 2 in series)
The Big Lie<\/i> by Julie Mayhew
The Panopticon<\/i> by Jenni Fagan
City of the Lost<\/i> by Kelley Armstrong (1 in series)
The Lie Tree<\/i> by Frances Hardinge
Homecoming<\/i> by Cynthia Voigt (1 in series)
Black Dog<\/i> by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Daniel Egn\u00e9us (novella, set after American Gods<\/i>)
Odd and The Frost Giants<\/i> by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Chris Riddell
Cut<\/i> by Hibo Wardere (non-fiction)
The Trouble With Women<\/i> by Jacky Fleming (graphic novel)
We Should All Be Feminists<\/i> by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (non-fiction)
The Complete Maus<\/i> by Art Spiegelman (graphic novel, non-fiction)
The Encyclopedia of Early Earth<\/i> by Isabel Greenberg (graphic novel)
I Kill Giants<\/i> by Joe Kelly and J. M. Ken Niimura (graphic novel)
Vision: volume one<\/i> by Tom King, Gabriel Hernandez Walta, Jordie Bellaire and Clayton Cowles (graphic novel)
Descender: volume one<\/i> by Jeff Lemire, Dustin Nguyen and Steve Wands (graphic novel)
Descender: volume two<\/i> by Jeff Lemire, Dustin Nguyen and Steve Wands (graphic novel)


Great<\/u><\/b>

Red Ink<\/i> by Julie Mayhew
The Sunlight Pilgrims<\/i> by Jenni Fagan
The Monstrous Child<\/i> by Francesca Simon
Needlework<\/i> by Deirdre Sullivan
Way Down Dark<\/i> by J. P. Smythe
Slade House<\/i> by David Mitchell
Fellside<\/i> by M R Carey
Afterworlds<\/i> by Scott Westerfield
Rebel of the Sands<\/i> by Alwyn Hamilton
The Book of Strange New Things<\/i> by Michel Faber
All the Birds in the Sky<\/i> by Charlie Jane Anders
Poison<\/i> by Sarah Pinborough (1 in series)
Beauty<\/i> by Sarah Pinborough (2 in series)
Charm<\/i> by Sarah Pinborough (3 in series)
The Miseducation of Cameron Post<\/i> by Emily M. Danforth
The Golem and the Djinni<\/i> by Helene Wecker
Flawed<\/i> by Cecelia Ahern
A Solitary Blue<\/i> by Cynthia Voigt (3 in series)
Verdigris Deep<\/i> by Frances Hardinge
Shadow Kiss<\/i> by Rachael Mead (3 in series)
One<\/i> by Sarah Crossan
Leaf by Niggle<\/i> by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Yellow Wallpaper<\/i> by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
Kindred Spirits<\/i> by Rainbow Rowell (short story)
The Orange Cat And Other Cainsville Tales<\/i> by Kelley Armstrong
Collected Poems<\/i> by Roger McGough (poetry, funnily enough)
All The Rebel Women<\/i> by Kira Cochrane (non-fiction)
Big Magic: creative living beyond fear<\/i> by Elizabeth Gilbert (non-fiction)
Fic: Why Fanfiction Is Taking Over The World<\/i> by Anne Jamison et al (non-fiction)
Violent Cases<\/i> by Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean (graphic novel)
Weird Things Customers Say In Bookshops<\/i> by Jen Campbell (non-fiction)
Lumberjanes: volume three<\/i> by Noelle Stevenson, Shannon Watters, Carolun Nowak et al (graphic novel)
Sunstone: volume four<\/i> by Stjepan \u0160eji\u0107 (graphic novel)


Good<\/u><\/b>

This Savage Song<\/i> by V. E. Schwab
a darker shade of magic<\/i> by V. E. Schwab (book 1 in series)
The City of Devi<\/i> by Manil Suri
Songs About A Girl<\/i> by Chris Russell
Before The Fire<\/i> by Sarah Butler
The Nest<\/i> by Kenneth Oppel
Betrayals<\/i> by Kelley Armstrong (book 4 in series)
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child<\/i> by John Tiffany, Jack Thorne, and J K Rowling (playscript)
Blame<\/i> by Simon Mayo
Signal To Noise<\/i> by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Runner<\/i> by Cynthia Voigt (4 in series)
Come A Stranger<\/i> by Cynthia Voigt (5 in series)
The Falcons of Fire and Ice<\/i> by Karen Maitland
Sheepshagger<\/i> by Niall Griffiths
A Lovely Way To Burn<\/i> by Louise Welsh
The Lola Quartet<\/i> by Emily St John Mandel
Tell the Wind and Fire<\/i> by Sarah Rees Brennan
Vampire Academy<\/i> by Rachael Mead (1 in series)
Frostbite<\/i> by Rachael Mead (2 in series)
Spirit Bound<\/i> by Rachael Mead (5 in series)
Last Sacrifice<\/i> by Rachael Mead (6 in series)
The Breadwinner<\/i> by Deborah Ellis
Spot the Difference<\/i> by Juno Dawson (short story)
Grief Is The Thing With Feathers<\/i> by Max Porter (poetry)
The Dead Queen of Bohemia<\/i> by Jenni Fagan (poetry)
The Shepherd\u2019s Life<\/i> by James Rebanks (non-fiction)
Cold War Secret Nuclear Bunkers: the passive defence of the western world during the cold war<\/i> by Nick McCamley (non-fiction)
House of M<\/i> by Brian Micheal Bendis, Olivier Coipel, Tim Townsend, Rick Magyear, John Dell, Scott Hanna, Frank D\u2019Armata et al (graphic novel)
Soppy<\/i> by Philippa Rice (graphic novel)
Adulthood Is A Myth<\/i> by Sarah Andersen (graphic novel)
Wolf: volume one<\/i> by Ales Kot, Lee Loughridge and Matt Taylor (graphic novel)
Wolf: volume two<\/i> by Ales Kot, Ricardo Lopez-Ortiz and Lee Loughridge (graphic novel)
I.D.<\/i> by Emma Rios (graphic novel)
Sunstone: volume two<\/i> by Stjepan \u0160eji\u0107 (graphic novel)
Sunstone: volume three<\/i> by Stjepan \u0160eji\u0107 (graphic novel)
Generation One: Children of Mars<\/i> by Steven R Stewart, Timothy D Stewart et al (graphic novel)


Okay<\/u><\/b>

Roses and Rot<\/i> by Kat Howard
The Heartbreakers<\/i> by Ali Novak
Dirty Little Secret<\/i> by Jennifer Echols
How To Save The World<\/i> by Lexie Dunne (book 3 in series)
Clariel<\/i> by Garth Nix (book 4 in series)
Goldenhand<\/i> by Garth Nix (book 5 in series)
Nod<\/i> by Adrian Barnes
Red Queen<\/i> by Victoria Aveyard
Demon Road<\/i> by Derek Landy (1 in series)
Our Endless Numbered Days<\/i> by Claire Fuller
Impossible!<\/i> by Michelle Magorian
Miss Pergreine\u2019s Home for Peculiar Children<\/i> by Ransom Riggs (1 in series)
The Masked Truth<\/i> by Kelley Armstrong
Blood Promise<\/i> by Rachael Mead (4 in series)
The Gifts of Reading<\/i> by Robert Macfarlane (non-fiction)
Blood Stain<\/i> by Linda Sejic
Symmetry: volume one<\/i> by Raffaele Ienco (graphic novel)
Bounty Hunt<\/i> by Kelley Armstrong and Xavi\u00e8re Daumarie (graphic novel, Otherworld<\/i> series)


The Bottom of the Pile<\/u><\/b>

The Ables<\/i> by Jeremy Scott<\/a>

My most anticipated book release in 2016 was a closed and common orbit<\/i> by Becky Chambers, which follows on from a long way to a small angry planet<\/i>. They\u2019re stories about found family and diversity set in space, perfect for anyone who loves things like Firefly<\/i>. They are hugs in books and I highly recommend them! Frances Hardinge also landed on my list of favourite authors last year with A Face Like Glass<\/i> and cemented her place there with this year\u2019s read The Lie Tree<\/i> - I love that woman\u2019s creative use of language.

Other favourites were: The City of the Lost<\/i>, one of Kelley Armstrong\u2019s best books in my eyes; the clever The Big Lie<\/i> by Julie Mayhew, set in Nazi England in 2014; The Panoptican<\/i> by Jenni Fagan, full of harsh realities and beautiful language; and Homecoming<\/i> by Cynthia Voigt \u2013 I read Dicey\u2019s Song<\/i> years ago and finally got around to starting the series from the beginning. I also finally got around to reading The Complete Maus<\/i>, which is as excellent and heartbreaking as everyone says it is. There are a fair few graphic novels in my favourites for 2016, for incredible stories and beautiful art.

M biggest disappointment was The Ables<\/i>, which started out full of promise and descended into a sexist, ablest mess. Most confusingly popular book was Miss Peregrine\u2019s Home for Peculiar Children<\/i> which has a good gimmick, sure, but as stories go certainly isn\u2019t worth the hype. And \u2018the worst book someone recommended to me\u2019 goes to Nod<\/i>, which was seriously not my cup of tea.

Of the single issue comics I\u2019ve been reading this year \u2013 too many! - I especially love Bitch Planet<\/i>, Saga<\/i>, Giant Days<\/i>, The Wicked & The Divine<\/i>, Pretty Deadly<\/i>, The Beauty<\/i>, and The Hunt<\/i> - lots of Image comics basically. I continue to read all the Serenity<\/i> comics that come out, because reasons. And on the Marvel front I cut down a lot, but Doctor Strange<\/i> has been amusing, fun, and features a great librarian, Civil War<\/i> grabbed my interest with its Phil Noto variant covers and turned out to be an interesting story, and I\u2019m enjoying the new Hawkeye<\/i>.

At the moment for 2017 I\u2019m looking forward to Sunstone volume 5, because 4 ended on a cliffhanger damn it; Unconventional<\/i> by Maggie Harcourt, because I read a sampler and HELLO; Kelley Armstrong\u2019s final Cainsville novel and A Darkness Absolute<\/i>, the next City of the Lost book; Neil Gaiman\u2019s Norse Mythology<\/i>; and there\u2019s a lot of hype around Caraval<\/i> by Stephanie Garber and I\u2019m always up for a carnival\/circus plot.

What's everyone else keeping their eyes out for this year? And what were your best books of 2016?"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:155472","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/155472.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=155472"}}],"title":"Art: Seventh Crow; Marvel Big Bang 2016","published":"2016-11-13T23:21:02Z","updated":"2016-11-13T23:54:46Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"this might be art"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanvid"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"graphics: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"graphics"}}],"content":"Guys, guys<\/i>, I'm so excited that I finally get to share this with you! For Marvel Big Bang 2016 <\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span> has written Seventh Crow<\/a>, the third in her Avengers\/007, SHIELD\/MI6 series following 2013's Second Mouse<\/a> and 2014's Locust Wind<\/a>. Once again I teamed up with her to do the graphics and I wanted to try something I'd wanted to do from the very beginning, but was completely out of my depth: make a fanvid film style trailer. I ended up getting two years to learn how to do it and have a go - thank you to everyone on my f-list who gave me hints and tips! - as we were meant to post in 2015 but offline life got on top of us.

Now I get to present to share with you a brand new 34,000 word mission crossover epic fic from <\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span>, accompanying graphics, and my first ever fanvid. We did the thing!<\/i> I am so proud of us :D

Fic: Seventh Crow<\/a><\/u>
Author:<\/b> <\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span>
Beta readers:<\/b> <\/a>inkvoices<\/b><\/a><\/span>, <\/a>jrbarton<\/b><\/a><\/span>
Fandom\/Universe:<\/b> MCU\/Avengers, James Bond\/007 (Craig movies)
Rating:<\/b> PG13
Word count:<\/b> 34,000
Warnings:<\/b> Canon-typical violence; swearing; two or three allusions to recent traumatic election processes
Summary:<\/b> \"One for sorrow, Two for joy ...\" A long life in intelligence has taught M one thing above all: criminal organizations are like a tick embedded in the skin of humanity. You can never be sure you have pulled out the entire thing. What remains causes disease to take hold and fester.
Accompanying Art: Art for Seventh Crow<\/a><\/u>
Artist:<\/b> <\/a>inkvoices<\/b><\/a><\/span>

And I'm just gonna leave this here *grins*:

<\/center><\/b>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:153953","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/153953.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=153953"}}],"title":"Morgan","published":"2016-09-11T20:37:15Z","updated":"2016-09-11T20:37:15Z","category":{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},"content":"I watched Morgan<\/i> on Thursday night. The premise is that a corporate Risk Management Consultant is sent to an old building in the middle of picturesque nowhere because there has been an incident with an arficial, or synthetic, humanoid experiment and her job is to decide whether or not it should be terminated.

I do love a good robot or artificial intelligence story, but the set up for Morgan<\/i> is more like a sci-fi thriller or horror, with the house in the middle of nowhere populated by a scientific team that may or may not be too attached to their creation, or may or may not have gone stir crazy, or may or may not be what they seem. And that's before we meet the titular Morgan. There's lots of creepy atmosphere and jumpy moments, and then plenty of flinch-worthy violence - or at least for my tastes. I've read reviews where it's said to be too predicatable or generic, but then I don't generally watch things that verge into horror territory.

But I liked the nods to things happening behind the scenes, the whys of Morgan's creation and the idea of whether or not artifical intelligence should be created with emotions and what the implications of that would be. Contrasted with how the hell do humans<\/i> deal with emotion anyway?

The ending reveals that in fact our protagonist, Kate Mara's character, is an artifically created being herself and Morgan has been terminated not because of violent tendencies but because of violence stemming from her own emotions and not from taking orders<\/i>. I find that very interesting, the idea that here artificial beings have been created for a violent purpose, but being violent on their own behalf is a problem. At the end I thought back to during Morgan's psych evaluation where she keeps asking if X emotion is 'the correct response'.<\/a> So an Ex Machina<\/i> style think piece it is not, but it gave me thinky thoughts and I enjoyed it for what it was. We also enjoyed figuring out where we recognised the cast members from.

Also, there's a reference to a past incident at Helsinki that made us think of Orphan Black<\/i> - do people just like the name of the place or is it actually a major centre for genetics research? Heh.

And if you like robots and AI, excuse me whilst I throw a rec at you for the comic Descender<\/i>. I recently read volumes one and two of the trade and am impatiently waiting for the third. It's a good story and the art is freaking gorgeous.

<\/center>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:153770","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/153770.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=153770"}}],"title":"Civil War Rec List","published":"2016-09-04T15:30:17Z","updated":"2016-09-04T15:30:17Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"recs: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"recs: all"}}],"content":"To celebrate Civil War<\/i> release day tomorrow here in the UK I bring to you a Civil War rec list! These ones have been sustaining me in my wait \u2013 and I\u2019m going to wait a bit longer because a comic book friend told me today that they\u2019ve over ordered the steelbook edition and a copy is mine if I want it, but I won\u2019t see them again for a bit, but steelbook<\/i>. These are my favourites of what I've read. Feel free to rec (me) more Civil War goodness in the comments!

Peaceable Skills<\/a><\/b> by Dira Sudis (dsudis) (1682 words, general audiences)
Summary: He doesn\u2019t steal, and that means he has to pay. To pay he has to work.
Rec: A quiet little fic about Bucky getting on with getting on pre-Civil War.<\/i>

Repair Work<\/a><\/b> by Igrockspock (610 words, general audiences)
Summary: Clint says, \u201cI'm retired. One hundred percent. Done with Avenging.\u201d
Laura says, \u201cWill that be for five minutes, or for five days?\u201d
Rec: Perfect and amusing little fic is perfect and amusing.<\/i>

Dibs Not<\/a><\/b> by Aloneintherain (1673 words, general audiences)
Summary: Inspired by anon: 'AU where the airport fight ends in a minor debate over who has to take Peter home b\/c he's literally too young to fly unaccompanied without fuckloads of paperwork.'
Rec: Peter just wants to go home, but everyone is being sassy about it.<\/i>

here at the edge of the moon<\/a><\/b> by andibeth82 (11,612 words, teen and up)
Summary: Natasha Romanoff before and after Civil War: the girl she was and the girl she became.
Rec: Want a long, full of details, Natasha-foccused fic? Got you covered.<\/i>

The Futurist<\/a><\/b> by AlphaFlyer (2946 words, teen and up)
Summary: Tony, rattling around.
Rec: Tony reviews and looks to the future in an introspective fic full of things to think about.<\/i>

Something That Starts With<\/a><\/b> by Fabrega (1825 words, general audiences)
Summary: \"Come on,\" Scott says, \"We've gotta keep ourselves entertained.\"
\"We really don't,\" Sam counters.
Rec: Just a fun prison fic. Because banter.<\/i>

Lessons, Roots, Signals<\/a><\/b> by Copperbadge (1799 words, teen and up)
Summary: The fugitive Avengers have their own ways of coping.
Rec: After the Raft and in Wakanda. I especially like how this one takes into account the characters' relationships with the location as much as each other.<\/i>

Reasons Sam Won't Move His Seat For Bucky<\/a><\/b> by neversaydie (2274 words, teen and up)
Summary: The time he stole his steering wheel (right out of his fucking hands while he was very much driving and trying to avoid being killed Steve it's not funny in hindsight).
The time he ripped off Sam's wing and kicked him off a helicarrier.
The time he picked Sam up by his face and threw him across the room.
Sam has a long list of reasons Bucky isn't getting any favours from him any time soon.
Rec: For fun and sass. And a great Sam Wilson voice.<\/i>

Rocks Fall; Everyone Dies<\/a><\/b> by paperclipbitch (5105 words, general audiences)
Summary: Pepper tries to smile. \u201cYou know me,\u201d she says, \u201calways putting out Tony\u2019s fires.\u201d [Civil War tie-in.]
Rec: A Pepper focused fic that\u2019s achey in all the right places.<\/i>
<\/a>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:153561","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/153561.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=153561"}}],"title":"fic: Driver Choses The Music","published":"2016-08-28T20:31:06Z","updated":"2016-08-28T20:31:06Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: avengers"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"fanfiction: all"}}],"content":"I finished a thing! I love it when I do that :D

Over at the be_compromised 2016 promptathon<\/a> <\/a>sugar_fey<\/b><\/a><\/span> prompted ROAD TRIP!<\/i> and I remembered that I'd started writing a Clint and Natasha post-Avengers road trip way back in the day. But I decided I didn't know America enough to make it into what I wanted, and by that point other people had written theirs and I loved those stories, so this went into the discarded folder. This week I tugged it back out, looked at it sideways, and rewrote it into this.

Title:<\/b> Driver Choses The Music<\/u>
Rating\/Warnings:<\/b> PG13 (mild self harm, f-word)
Length:<\/b> 2000 words
Author Note:<\/b> first posted here<\/a> at the <\/a>be_compromised<\/b><\/a><\/span> promptathon for <\/a>sugar_fey<\/b><\/a><\/span>'s prompt ROAD TRIP!<\/i>
Summary:<\/b> Clint shoves his bag in the trunk of the car \u2013 a standard, bland SHIELD undercover ride \u2013 and doesn\u2019t ask how Nat acquired the keys. Doesn\u2019t ask how, or even if<\/i>, she\u2019s gotten permission to take him off base, doesn\u2019t ask what\u2019s in the bag she shoved in his arms on their way out, doesn\u2019t ask what they\u2019re doing in a SHIELD garage at ass o\u2019clock in the morning. Doesn\u2019t care.

LINK TO FIC ON AO3<\/a><\/b>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:153246","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/153246.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=153246"}}],"title":"Swallows And Amazons & Nerve","published":"2016-08-28T20:21:36Z","updated":"2016-08-28T20:21:36Z","category":{"@attributes":{"term":"films"}},"content":"Two films watched on Friday, because it was a bank holiday with a cheeky Firday off to make it a long weekend and I treated myself :)

First up: Swallows And Amazons.<\/b> A family of kids go on holiday in the Lake District, camp out on an Island, and meet some pirates. I loved the books as a kid, but the stories grow up with the protagonists and the first book is a decidedly young story so for this adaption the writers tried to add a bit of spice. Specifically they decided to make Uncle Jim a spy and the people who rob his houseboat Russians who are after him for the whole film. In the book he's a writer and the theives steal his manuscript.<\/a> This could have worked, but it doesn't really gel with the childhood summer adventure, like they have genres they tried to mash up and it didn't quite work. The performances are average and overall the film is nothing special, but it's visually lovely and a nice, nostalgic slice of childhood - I always wanted an Enid Blyton adventure as a kid, but Arthur Ransome adventures felt more attainable, even if I didn't know the first thing about sailing.

On the other hand I saw a little girl watching it with her mum who gave me the widest grin<\/i> when we were leaving that I couldn't help beaming back at her. So maybe for the intended age range it's much more magical.

<\/center>

Next up: Nerve.<\/b> Based on a YA novel - that I haven't read, unusual for me! - so I can't tell you how it compares to the book. The story revolves around an online game where people complete dares, as voted on by their watches, for money and the ones with the most watchers and who complete the hardest dares end up in a final. Our protagonist is a teen who isn't a risk-taker and ends up partnered with a stranger.

It's a good, well-paced story, the dares escalate in a way I found believable, all of the characters are three-dimensional and shades of grey which kept any of them from being boring, it made me laugh at times, and there were some nerve-wracking moments. The ending felt...somewhat obvious in some ways, but it also had a twist that I didn't see coming. It'd be interesting to see how the book ends - my cinema buddy @TricksyLieSmith is on that. Overall I enjoyed this one, more than I thought I would.

<\/center>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:152743","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/152743.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=152743"}}],"title":"get to know your author meme: answers","published":"2016-08-14T21:20:47Z","updated":"2016-08-14T21:20:47Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"thinky thoughts"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"writing updates\/chatter"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"memes"}}],"content":"Answers to the meme<\/a>:

<\/a>scribble_myname<\/b><\/a><\/span> asked: 18) were there any works you read that affected you so much that it influenced your writing style? What were they?<\/b>
Yes and no! There isn't any one particular thing - or number of things - that I can point to and say, 'That, that's why I write the way that I do.' But I know I've been inlfuenced by a number of things that have culminated in the way that I write. Such as, there must have been a point where I'd read so many fics in the present tense that I started writing that way myself. And I know I read things - fic and books - that made me realise you could do things that<\/i> way, or write humour like that<\/i>, or how to build tension, make things steamy... Stephen King said you have to read to be able to write. I read a lot and I must have taken a lot in because I seem to have gotten better at the writing thing.

There were some specific fics though that made me experient with styles, made me want to try something similiar - Other Than Ordinary<\/a> because I read someone else doing a set of drabbles as one story, Journey To Still Water<\/a> because I read someone else's work that was told in reverse - but I couldn't for the life of me tell you now what fics those were. And none of them were things I adopted permenantly.

<\/a>alphaflyer<\/b><\/a><\/span> asked for 5, 15, and 25:
5) character you were most surprised to end up writing<\/b>
Sherlock Holmes. Although admitedly the fic - The Thing That Happens To Other People<\/a> - is from Waton's point of view. I enjoy Sherlock - the books, various tv versions, films - and I'd read some Sherlock fanfic, and had filed Sherlock Holmes as someone too complicated and too well-written by other people for me to want to try my hand at. I'd previously only written a drabble<\/a> that he'd cropped up in when I spotted a <\/a>comment_fic<\/b><\/a><\/span> AU prompt, and then writing Sherlock just happened<\/i>. And he'll probably never happen again. (Funnily enough that turned out to be one of my more popular fics; go figure.)

Other than that I would have said the small RPF moment at the end of listen to the stories playing in your head<\/a>, because I just don't write RPF, but that cameo made sense and was something I mulled over a lot, so it wasn't all that surprising.

15) why did you start writing?<\/b>
I have absolutely no idea. I've always loved writing and telling stories. When other kids would be colouring during rainy indoors playtimes or playing with the box of old toys in various relatives' houses kept for visits from small people, I would be making little books out of folded up paper or scribbling in notebooks. I just...liked putting them together.

I do<\/i> remember when I started writing fanfiction. I started on an online community that didn't require an email address - because I wasn't old enough for one and I was a stickler for the rules lol. It was a forum for roleplaying with an out of character thread for chatting, and making up stories with other people was just so much fun! Then when I got an email address - and the courage - I entered and managed to get into a round robin style writing competition, where there were ten characters and one was voted off each week, and again, huge fun. Then I joined livejournal, met people through other fandoms, and carried on. So, the stories had always been spilling over, but online communities made me want to share :)

25) copy\/paste a few sentences or a short paragraph that you\u2019re particularly proud of<\/b>
\u201cIt\u2019s your skin. You\u2019re the one that has to live in it.\u201d
\u201cYes,\u201d she says. \u201cThat.\u201d<\/i>
~ history is what you've travelled on and take with you<\/a>

They make everything that she is into a weapon. Everything is a means to an end and nothing is her, nothing is hers.<\/i>
~ The Child Takers<\/a>

\u201cNatalia Romanova,\u201d they call her. Romanova, Czarina, like it\u2019s a joke and she is the butt of it.
They force her to speak with a refined accent, teach her poise and grace, and provide her with an education worthy of a member of the last ruling family of Russia. They force her body to contort, teach her how to kill and murder and slaughter, and provide her with an education worthy of people who execute families.<\/i>
~ On Names<\/a>

The last line of should you need us<\/a>.

(Unsuprisingly it's all from my more recent works, and apparently I think most of my best writing has been when I've written Natasha.)

<\/a>igrockspock<\/b><\/a><\/span> asked: 3) what order do you write in? front of book to back? chronological? favorite scenes first? something else?<\/b>
I usually start with an exchange of dialogue or a particular moment of scene, which usually falls near the beginning or early middle of a story. Then I'll come up with more scenes, normally ones that follow. Then scenes that fill in the gaps. At this point it'll become clear what kind of narrative I'm working on - if it's all from one character's point of view or multiple viewpoints, if there's any patterns like alternating past and present or each section has to start with 'so'<\/a> - and if I don't already know the theme\/s this is where I'll decide on it. I'm big on having a theme, something that I want to try and say<\/i> with that story, or in it. Even if it's just a little thing, even it's just a momentary atmosphere. I decide what it means. Then I work out where I need to alter bits to try and make that come across, what's missing, does the beginning and the ending work, how does it all hold together... Overall I usually start at the beginning and end at the end, but in bits and I double back on myself a lot and edit as I go. A lot - all? - of my fics have that pattern of scenes with a large space or something as a break because that reflects how it's written.

<\/a>kiss_me_cassie<\/b><\/a><\/span> asked: 21) what do you think when you read over your older work?<\/b>
It depends on the work. Sometimes I think, 'Well, there's a good idea in there but you could have written that better'. Sometimes it's, 'I think I remember what you were trying to say there, but you really did not manage to pull that off, ouch'. With things in the past two or three years it's, 'Well you're getting better, keep going'. There's always<\/i> something I'd like to change, or I'd like to rewrite the whole thing to get at the idea, but I like seeing where I've come from, so I wouldn't do it. Once it's posted, that's it.

<\/a>gelbes_gilatier<\/b><\/a><\/span> asked for 2, 4, and 10:
2) what work of yours, if any, are you the most embarrassed about existing?<\/b>
Probably The Tealeaves Say It's Time To Stop Making Do<\/a>, After The Rain<\/a>, Advisory<\/a>, and In The Shed with a Shooting Star<\/a>, all Harry Potter<\/i> works. They have the odd snippet or turn of phrase that works, but they're clunky and, as in my answer to 21, these are examples of old fics where I don't think I managed to pull off what I think<\/i> I was trying to to. Also a guy who was a friend that I fancied at the time beta read Advisory<\/a> for me, which has sex scenes and not well-written ones; that<\/i> is embarrassing. I have no idea what I was thinking when I took that offer *face palm*.

4) favorite character you\u2019ve written<\/b>
Oh now that's just mean :p I can't pick favourites. I like all the characters I've written, or I wouldn't have written them. Even villians or characters with shades of grey, they have to be ones I love to hate or appreciate as characters.

10) write in silence or with background noise? with people or alone?<\/b>
But leaving me with an easy final question at least ;)

In silence, or at least as quiet as possible. Otherwise my attention gets dragged away or I start accidentally writing bits of what I hear. So preferably also alone, unless with people also quietly working and who don't mind being ignored. I love chatting about writing and ideas with people, love it to pieces, but I have to go away for the writing part and keep the chatting part seperate *grins*.<\/a>"},{"id":"urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:inkvoices:152555","link":[{"@attributes":{"rel":"alternate","type":"text\/html","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/152555.html"}},{"@attributes":{"rel":"self","type":"text\/xml","href":"https:\/\/inkvoices.livejournal.com\/data\/atom\/?itemid=152555"}}],"title":"prompts chatter","published":"2016-08-09T22:23:01Z","updated":"2016-08-09T22:23:01Z","category":[{"@attributes":{"term":"thinky thoughts"}},{"@attributes":{"term":"writing updates\/chatter"}}],"content":"I'm still taking questions for the get to know your author meme<\/a> if there's anything you want to ask me. I plan to write up a post with the answers at the weekend. In the meantime I am mulling them over!

And since the summer Prompathon<\/a> at <\/a>be_compromised<\/b><\/a><\/span> is still taking prompts until the end of Sunday (nudge nudge, hint hint) I thought I'd ask you all about prompting, and things like promptathon vs leaving prompts in exchanges.

When I leave prompts in open things like promptathon, where there's no expectation of prompts being filled and there's no exchange, I don't see...fills as a gift. I like getting rid of ideas that I don't have the time to play with myself, generating new ideas, seeing what ideas everyone else comes up with, and if I manage to enable someone into getting creative that makes me all kind of happy. Then there's exchanges, where I like to give an idea of my likes and dislikes, and then sit back and forget that I'm going to get a gift until it arrives and then I'm super excited, look at what someone made for me<\/i>. But as a writer I also know that it can be awkward writing for someone else in an exchange, so more recently I also think it's nice to leave some prompts as well as an but I'll love whatever you come up with<\/i>. Sometimes I'll also use exchanges to hopefully try and get a particular type of story that I might fancy at the time.

How do people feel about prompts, and is that different as a reader to as a writer? Are there particular kinds of prompts that you particularly like leaving? Do you ever feel that your prompts need to fit in with the kind of prompts people are already leaving in an event, or that you can buck the trend and prompt whatever you like? Do you leave different kinds of prompts in open events than in exchanges? And basically any thinky thoughts around prompts and prompting :)

And of course if this inspires anyone to drop a few more prompts over at promptathon, well then excellent *grins*.

(Because it's fun chatting with internet friends, I'm trying to be better about posting on LJ, and there are so many writing\/creating conversations we could be having!)<\/small>"}]}