flamebyrd | Reading

Over the last ~week,

hafnia and I went "sooooo what if we ran a multifandom remix event" and now it is up and ready for signups! We're hoping it'll be a fun time, and we'd love to have you join us. <3

Remix Through the Seasons is a quarterly, trope-based multifandom event hosted on ao3.

Participants will write one new story (between 1-5k) and then be assigned another story written for the event to remix. These stories can be in any fandom (including Original Work). Matching will be based on the stories' tropes (and creator DNWs) rather than pairings/fandoms. Remixing works from one fandom into another is allowed (even expected).

Schedule:
Signups open: Now!
Signups close: January 24
Assignments sent: January 31
Original works revealed: January 31
Remix works due: March 14
Remix works reveals: March 21
All author reveals: March 28
All due dates etc are at 11:59pm GMT on the listed date

DW Comm:

seasonalremix
Ao3 Collection

(getting everything finalised involved spending a couple hours on a discord call editing the gdoc full of rules and only occasionally getting distracted talking about other things, which tbh is pretty good for how many moving parts there can be for stuff like this and how easy it can be to get sidetracked talking to your bestie. we think the rules are clear! ask questions [preferably on the comm] if they aren't! <3)

wavesagainstrocks posting in

fancoded

Hello! I'm hoping someone here could answer my admittedly really silly question.

I've dabbled in coding and have used websites like Neocities to host my site in the past, which was all fine and well! But I had come across an entry here on DW regarding a Shrine Challenge. I looked through a lot of the published shrines and they all looked like they had "multiple" sites under the same domain (not on anything like Neocities). Is this something you pay for? Are there any free hosts out there able to do this too?

I can give some examples if this question doesn't make sense, haha! I'm having a hard time explaining it, but I didn't wanna just post someone's site link without permission or anything like that!

Thanks so much!

snickfic

Clearing out the last of my movies watched last year.

We Bury the Dead (2026). After an American experimental weapons accident kills every human and animal on Madascar, an American woman (Daisy Ridley) comes to help identify bodies and search for her husband who was on a work retreat there. Also sometimes the dead don't stay dead.

As someone who is pretty over zombie movies, I liked this one quite a bit. First of all, it's Australian, and boy can you feel it. This is not your Hollywood zombie blockbuster or even your Danny Boyle zombie blockbuster. For starters, we spend relatively little time running from or fighting zombies. In fact, these are the most ambiguously threatening zombies I can remember seeing in a long long time, and I liked how much that complicated the story. It's also beautifully shot with great atmosphere and a score that really adds to the mood of the whole thing. And I really appreciated how our understanding of the central couple's married relationship gets more complicated as the film goes on.

That said, ( spoilers )

This movie feels like it invites comparison to 28 Years Later, if only by accident, given the timing. I know 28 Years Later has a lot of fans, and I didn't hate it, but overall I liked this a lot better for the indie feel, the focus on a female character, and honestly because I liked the cinematography better.

Anyway, it's out in theaters now. If it sounds fun, I recommend it!

--

Red Rooms (2023). A French-Canadian film about two female true crime fans following the trial of a man accused of raping and murdering underage teen girls. This movie is beautifully made, and with really visible care and precision. The director knew what he wanted to make, and he went for it. The result is moody and fucked up without ever feeling exploitative (to me); this is very much about the groupies, not about the man on trial, and we never seen the horrifying footage at the center of the trial.

It's also shippy as hell. Our main gal Kelly-Anne is a wealthy model and computer hacker who professes herself to be "not bad with numbers," who's obsessed with the trial for reasons that are to some extent left to the viewer, while Clementine is a less well-heeled diehard apologist for the man at the center of the trial and is convinced he's innocent. Somehow out of these two, it's Clementine who feels like the more well-adjusted person; it's questionable whether Kelly-Anne has any friends at all, and yet maybe Clementine becomes one. As a friend of mine described it, "Clementine’s more open neediness draws out a reciprocal vulnerability from Kelly-Anne."

High rec from me. If any of this sounds appealing to you, definitely check it out.

chacusha posting in

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rachelmanija

Once upon a time, the moon Panga was industrial and capitalist and miserable. Then robots suddenly and inexplicably gained self-awareness. They chose to stop working, leave human habitation, and go into the wilderness. The humans not only didn't try to stop them, but this event somehow precipitated a huge political change. Half of Panga was left to the wilderness, and humans developed a kinder, ecologically friendly, sustainable way of life. But the robots were never seen again.

That's all backstory. When the book opens, Sibling Dex, a nonbinary monk, is dissatisfied with their life for reasons unclear to themself. They leave the monastery to become a traveling tea monk, which is a sort of counselor: you tell the monk your troubles, and the monk listens and fixes you a cup of tea. Dex's first day on the job is hilariously disastrous, but they get better and better, until they're very good at it... but still inexplicably dissatisfied. So they venture out into the wilderness, where they meet a robot, Mosscap - the first human-robot meeting in hundreds of years.

I had previously failed to get very far into The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet, so I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this novella. It's cozy in a good way, with plenty of atmosphere, a world that isn't quite perfect but is definitely one I'd like to live in, and some interesting philosophical exploration. My favorite part was actually Dex's life as a tea monk before they meet Mosscap - it's very relatable if you've ever been a counselor or therapist, from the horrible first day to the pleasure of familiar clients later on. I would absolutely go to a tea monk.

I would have liked Mosscap to be a bit more flawed - it's very lovable and has a lot of interesting things to say, but is pretty much always right. Mosscap is surprised and delighted by humanity, but I'm not sure Dex ever shakes up its worldview in a way it finds true but uncomfortable, which Mosscap repeatedly does to Dex. Maybe in the second novella, A Prayer for the Crown-Shy.

And while I'm on things which are implausibly neat/perfect, this is a puzzling backstory:

1) Robots gain self-awareness and leave.

2) ????

3) ~~PROFIT!~~ Society goes from capitalist hellscape to environmentalist paradise.

Maybe we'll learn more about the ???? later.

But overall, I did quite like the novella. The parts where Dex is a tea monk, with the interactions with their clients and their life in their caravan, are very successfully cozy - an instant comfort read. And I liked the robot society and the religious orders, as well as a lot of the Mosscap/Dex relationship. I'll definitely read the sequel.

prisca posting in

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rionaleonhart

This was so much fun to write.

Title: The Fic That Goes Wrong
Fandom: The Goes Wrong Show
Rating: G
Wordcount: 1,400

Good evening, and welcome to another edition of 'Fic of the Week'. I am Chris Bean, the author.

Tonight’s story is a classic tale of huddling for warmth. The cast is a little tighter than most of our works, but I think that will ultimately make for a more focused piece. I have taken every possible measure to ensure that everything will run smoothly.

Please enjoy tonight’s work of fanfiction, 'Two’s Company'.

( The Fic That Goes Wrong )

watersword

I'm not dead; I've taken today & tomorrow off work and would not be surprised if I call in sick Thursday & Friday as well; I'm in less pain than I was, but I'm still pretty uncomfortable; mostly stopped coughing but my head is full of goo, which may honestly be worse. I felt marginally better yesterday, and thank goodness I took advantage of it to change my bedlinens and run the robovac, because today the prospect of taking the dirty linens down to the basement to wash them is making me quail. (ETA: 1/3 accomplished.) Naptime now.

marthawells

I updated my sticky post with: PSA: if you get an email out of the blue that is supposedly from me, offering to help you with marketing or other publisher services, or asking for money, it is not me, it is a scammer. Also, if you see me on Facebook or Threads or XTwitter, that's not me either.

This is a very common scam now, one of the many scams aimed at aspiring and new writers.

***

I'm still sick, ugh

***

Nice article on Queen Demon on the Daily KOS:

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2026/1/5/2361356/-The-Language-of-the-Night-Martha-Wells-takes-on-colonization

One of Wells’ most compelling gifts as a writer is the way she interrogates trauma, and trauma is very much in evidence in her recent works, especially in both Murderbot and The Rising World. Where the Murderbot stories form an enslavement narrative as personal journey and healing, the Rising World series applies a wider cultural lens to trauma and loss.

Kai has seen his world ripped apart twice: the way to the underneath, the world of his birth, is shut off; the world of his above existence, the world of the Saredi, is also gone, both of them murdered by the Hierarchs. (You could argue that the third traumatizing loss-of-world is losing Bashasa, but that lies in the gap between past and present narratives.) In the past narrative, a vanquished Kai himself is imprisoned in the Summer Halls until Bashasa frees him and he joins the ad hoc rebellion.

snowynight

Dear fandom,

It's joyful to meet people who are enthusiastic about the same media /characters/etc! I love when you're creative and show me new ideas and insight. I am also thankful when you're supportive of my writings and ideas. I have a great time and hope you all enjoy yourselves!

With love,
Me.

cywscross posting in

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fred_mouse

Medical details ahead.

( possibly TMI )

delphi

Fandom 50 #31

I wish to save the world by cam
Fandom: Pluribus
Characters/Relationships: Manousos Oviedo, Carol Sturka, Carol/The Hivemind
Medium: Vid
Length: 3:47
Rating: SFW (note: contains spoilers for all of s1)
My Bookmark Tags: drama, ambiguous ending, resistance, perseverance, survival, injury, loss, identity, minor character death
Song: "The Old Religion" by Florence + The Machine (slowed-down version)

Excerpt:

"Maybe, in that last fleeting moment, you might just realize you treasure your individuality."

I used the tag 'ambiguous ending' because I don't know where canon will take us from here, but oh man, does this video (rightfully) feel like resisting and continuing to exist as yourself against overwhelming odds and pressure is its own triumph. My heart ached, my heart soared.

The editing choices are superb, focusing on the later episodes but deploying moments from the earlier ones to subtle but devastating effect to support the vid's thesis and to bring home the weight of everything that drove us to the finale. The combination of the music choice and the way Manousos and Carol's journeys up until now are portrayed—their losses, their struggles, their stubborn perseverance—gives me a new appreciation for everything that makes them them, and leaves me feeling incredibly tender toward these two Difficult (read: human) People.

Watch on YouTube

flowing_river posting in

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shadaras posting in

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azurelunatic

* didn't do much for Solstice
* amusingly, both Aunt Tish and V got me the same slipper-socks for Christmas
* pear + green tea perfume was extremely relevant to Thorn's interests, even straight out of the bottle
* got my pill boxes filled for the coming quarter
- started the desk top cleanup for that a little before Just In Time
- did the morning pills first, which always gives me a little grace period to get the evening pills done the subsequent day
- ran out of my joint supplement after the first five weeks were done, but that did allow me to put the first five weeks away and start using them
- Belovedest picked up the missing pills in a very short turn-around, yay
* NYE cat pilling results: Yellface deigned to swallow, finally, after several very polite arguments in favor of spitting the pill out; Mila was too sharp to be pilled
* watched the festivities up at the Space Needle from the comfort of bed, with Belovedest and Thorn and sparkling cider (Belovedest dipped into the Faygo stash also)
* legs still awful
* did not lose the second set of black teardrop beads for the crochet projects
* made an OTC meds order from the usual supplier (Wellspring Meds) despite the sale having expired
- if your household needs industrial quantities of Imodium and you hate blister packs with a passion, consider this vendor: 200 pills in a nice little safety cap bottle, no peeling or shoving required

candyheartsex posting in

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rachelmanija

This is a difficult book to review as almost all of the plot is technically spoilery, but you can also figure out a lot of it from about page three. I'll synopsize the first two chapters here. We follow two storylines, both set in an alternate England where Hitler was assassinated in 1943 and England made peace with Germany.

In one storyline, a young girl named Nancy lives an isolated life with her parents. In the other, which gets much more page time, three identical young boys are raised by three "mothers," in a home in extremely weird circumstances. They rarely see the outside world, they're often sick and take medicine, their dreams are meticulously recorded by the "mothers," and all their schooling comes from a set of weird encyclopedias that supposedly contain all the knowledge in the world, which are also the only books they have access to. There used to be 40 boys, but when they recover from their mysterious illness, they get to go to Margate, a wonderful vacationland, forever.

I'm sure you can figure out the general outline of what's going on with the boys, at least, just from this. What's up with the girl doesn't become clear for a while.

( Spoilers through about the 40% mark )

( Spoilers for the entire book )

This book was critically acclaimed - it was a Kirkus best book of 2025 - but I thought it had major flaws, which unfortunately I can only describe by spoiling the entire book. It's not at all an original idea, and I do think we're supposed to be ahead of the characters, but maybe not that much ahead. It also contained a trope which I hate very much and its thesis contradicted itself, but how, again, is under the end cut. It's a very serious book about very serious real life stuff, but that part really didn't work for me because of spoilers.

Lots of people loved it though. It would probably make an interesting paired reading with a certain very acclaimed spoilery book (( Read more... )), which I have not read as I have been spoiled for the entire story and it doesn't really sound like something I'd enjoy no matter how great it is. But I suspect that it's the better version of this book.

Content Notes (spoilery): ( Read more... )

runpunkrun

More screen time. I watched all of these on Netflix.

Hostage: The British Prime Minister's husband is kidnapped in French Guiana while working with Doctors Without Borders. I watched two episodes across several days, mostly for Julie Delpy as the President of France, but I just didn't care about these people's problems. And then Julie Delpy did a public end-run around the prime minister to get French troops stationed on English soil to stop migrants from entering France from the channel and my entire being just shriveled up and died with how much I didn't like that.

Minx: The evolution of an erotic feminist magazine in the early 1970s. A fun and raunchy show that wants people to succeed and be kind to each other—mostly. The main character, Joyce, is kind of a pill, but part of the fun is watching her become more flexible as she's exposed to new perspectives. The first season is about building a team and putting a magazine together, but the characters lose their way in the second season as they give in to fame and power (or are alienated by it) and the show similarly becomes muddled; appropriate, maybe, but it also felt very unfocused and even cruel at times, quite a departure from the first season. Contains: drug use, nudity, and lots of dicks.

The Staircase (2022): The thing about The Staircase (2004) is that it will make you detest Michael Peterson. Did he kill his wife? Well, an owl certainly didn't do it. Guilty or not, the man is an odious narcissist, and Colin Firth nails him right down to his way of speaking. So I hated him immediately of course. But not in a fun way. The series also stars Toni Collette! And wastes her! Outside of a death scene so raw I wanted to look away, she mainly spends her time drinking and being quietly sad, except for a scene with a leaf blower and two more death scenes that are similarly awful, but similar enough to the first that it kind of dulls the effect over time. The whole thing is pretty tedious, which might be excused in a documentary, but not in a drama. If you've seen one The Staircase, you don't need to see the other, and really, you probably don't need to watch either. It was really great to see Juliette Binoche again, though. Contains: a lot of blood; violence.

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Website/Shrine Question

Movies: We Bury the Dead, Red Rooms

Quodo Mini-fest VI - sign-ups open!

A Psalm for the Wild-Built, by Becky Chambers

Challenge Week 01/2026 - Day 2

Fanfiction: The Fic That Goes Wrong (The Goes Wrong Show)

ugh

Updating

Snowflake Challenge Day 3: Love letter to fandom

Multifandom: 5 Soulmates

State of the boob

REC: I wish to save the world by cam (Pluribus, Manousos Oviedo & Carol Sturka)

Multifandom Exchange: Traumatic Experiences - Nominations Close Soon!

Multifandom: Remix Through the Seasons: Winter 2026

Miscellaneous holiday and post-holiday scraps

CANDY HEARTS: RELATIONSHIP-THEMED EXCHANGE

The Book of Guilt, by Catherine Chidgey

politics, porn, true crime

FIC PROMPTLY: Challenge week 01/2026

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