artea || 🌵🌻🌞🍋

My piece for Loved you then, love you still (always have, always will) written by the lovely inanoldhouseinparis for the @geraltjaskierbang

There will be one more for the last chapter so make sure to subscribe ;)

There's that scene where Grace is sitting alone in the Don't Go Crazy room looking at an image of a beach, and he looks to the side and sees himself walking towards him. Waves splash over his sneakers, and you wonder for a tiny moment if this is real, maybe it's one of his memories. But then, the ship alerts that it's decelerating, he rushes upstairs, and the moment is never brought up again.

The version of Grace walking on the beach is wearing the same outfit that he wears at the end of the movie on Erid.

I keep trying to write out exactly how it felt, what it meant for me to be there, but nothing seems to be enough. I’ll keeping working on it, and I’ll post more of the photos and videos I got soon (most likely when I’m back in the states and can take a breath lol).

I will say though, that the connection I felt to every person in that room was near spiritual. To anyone who was not able to make it, if it’s any comfort know that we were carrying all of you with us 💕

 "The most improper job of any man … is bossing other men. Not one in a million is fit for it, and least of all those who seek the opportunity.“

I don’t think it was even 6 months later that he contracted trench fever and was sent home. 

His entire command was wiped out in one charge shortly after, the majority of a whole countryside’s youths slaughtered while he survived. Youths who were brave and steadfast, but thought of as lesser than their superior officers while still being the ones carrying the actual battle. Youths who deserved fellowship, respect, and above all to go home and dance with their own Rosie.

But there is a soldier in Lord of the Rings who does not come back, and I don’t mean Boromir.

I mean the being who was a common hobbit, but who became corrupted by darkness and poison, who’s face is described in ways reminiscent of a gas mask.

The soldier who doesn’t come home, who is poisoned by gas and stress and insanity.

Aragorn’s entire arc isn’t to be the steadfast hero saving the day, it’s to hold the line in terror and horror and blood while the overlooked folk are the people who save the world. And then, what makes him a king, is not his skill in battle, but his healing hands.

Which then ties into both Eowyn and Faramir’s arcs. Eowyn goes into healing not because she’s a weak and meek woman, but because war is horrible and saving lives is better than taking them. Aragorn is glorified within the text for his healing, and so is Eowyn.

Also, tying into the common man thing, in the movies it’s Faramir but in the books it’s SAMWISE who questions what brings a man so far from home to fight in a war and if he is really so different.

LOTR is anti-war propaganda.

"'fandom' is a vehicle of marginalized subcultural groups (women, the young, gays, etc.) to pry open space for their cultural concerns within dominant representations; it is a way of appropriating media texts and rereading them in a way that serves different interests, a way of transforming mass culture into a popular culture"

Jenkins, Henry. “Star Trek Rerun, Reread, Rewritten: Fan Writing as Textual Poaching.” Critical Studies in Mass Communication 5, no. 2 (1988): 85–107. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295038809366691.  

How do you ask for a beta reader? If you have a friend in your fandom, you can ask them if they’d be willing. If you don’t, or if you’re shy about it, you can put up a post here on tumblr and/or add an author’s note to the end of your chapter or fic. Basically, let people know you want a beta and people who are willing will reach out. 

Where/how do you send them work? This is something that you can work out with your beta reader, but a popular method to use is Google docs. It allows you as the author to give the beta suggesting privileges instead of editing privileges, so they can comment and suggest changes but you still have full control over the text. If docs isn’t your style, you can write emails back and forth, share Words docs, hop on a discord server, etc. Whatever works for both of you. 

What should you ask of them? That depends on what kind of help you’re looking for. There are different kinds of beta readers and different skills they’re willing/able to provide. You might end up wanting multiple betas to cover different things. Some things betas can read for are:

spelling, punctuation, and grammar (often referred to as SPAG)

canon compliance

sensitivity (around race, sexuality, gender issues, ableism, etc)

plot structure

As you can see, those are all very different things requiring different skills and knowledge base. You could have a sensitivity reader who has never seen the canon, for example. You could have someone who is an expert in canon who can’t help with SPAG. Etc. 

What can you offer in return as thanks? Very often, all betas want is a shout out in your author’s note. Still, since every person is different, just ask your beta and see what would be appreciated. 

Other advice: Talk to your beta. Talk to them before they start work to let them know what you want them to do, and more importantly what you don’t want them to do. If you want them to focus on plot and save the SPAG stuff til later, make that clear right up front. If something they are doing is making you uncomfortable, tell them. They can’t read your mind, and since they’re trying to help you, you need to tell them if they’re not doing that. You also need to listen to them. If you’re asking them to do something they aren’t comfortable doing, then accept that you’ll need a second beta for that part of it. And if you aren’t a good fit as writer and beta, that’s okay! We all have different styles of writing and communicating. It doesn’t mean you can’t be friends. It just means that this particular writer/beta relationship just doesn’t work. 

Offer or ask for a trigger/squick list.  I find it good practice to put a working tag list up at the top of my document along with a rough summary so my beta has enough information to tap out if they need to.  If I’m in brainstorming mode, I’ll mention where the plot may be going.

We've a role for people who are interested in offering beta help and a channel specifically for people to find someome who is interested in beta'ing their work.

I've dabbled for friends, though I'm not a great option for a beta partner (I'm thorough and thus very slow and I have too many of my own projects to be able to dedicate the time to someone else's that I feel would be necessary). But I do a chapter or half a chapter from time to time.

My advice as you're looking for a beta? Be sure you know what help you want. As a beta, going to someone and asking "what do you want me to focus on?" And being told "just let me know if it's good" is very unhelpful. When I edit my own work, I do rewrites and plot edits as needed and those are a lot of work. If you really want me to go over "everything," then I can and will give you suggestions that will double your writing time if you took them all.

Now, I do not actually do that because I've never met someone who actually wants it. But figuring out a balance has been hard for me. So, my advice, pick out 1-3 things you care about the most - spag, characterization, plot coherence, canon compatibility, etc - and request the beta focus on that.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mzi3toGLNzk1DSaE9C251IUkERAtAwW3/view?usp=drivesdk

this is a 1 hour 14 long uncut audio but if anyone wants only the songs, i can try to cut it when i get back home