Holly

Now getting to the point, do you know how many top 100 hits Maroon 5 has had? A lot. They’re even on billboards top 100 artists of all time (ALL TIME). And it’s understandable, because pretty much every song they put out is fucking awesome. Sugar, Don’t Wanna Know, Moves Like Jagger, Payphone, This Love, She Will Be Loved, Cold, Animals, Maps, Misery, Harder to Breathe, Never Gonna Leave This Bed… to name a FEW.

These shitheads have been popping out jams since I was a little kid. Well over a decade worth of killer music. Every other song I hear on the radio is Maroon 5. It’s always Maroon 5. And I fucking love it. I love all their songs. Everyone does, they’re awesome.

But here’s the thing. They’re never the top selling artists. On the top 100 list, they’re only in the 40s. They very rarely have a number 1 hit. They’re considered good, I suppose….. but not great. Not the best.

How many people have you heard say Maroon 5 is their favorite band? For me it’s zero. For many of you, it’s zero. If you’re thinking to yourself “what? No I love them, they’re my fave!” Are you sure? Are you really sure? They’re your absolute complete FAVORITE band ever??? I doubt it. You’re just saying that because the band is on your mind now. If I asked you your fave band any other time you’d come up with another answer. Everyone always does.

But they SHOULD be everyone favorites. Look at all of those songs. They’ve got so many top hits. Everyone loves their music. Everyone sings along and knows the songs. They should be my favorite band, I think I like more of their songs than of my actual favorite artist. But they are not my favorite. They are no ones favorite.

I think they made a deal with someone. Satan? God? A dude down an alleyway? Who knows. But I believe they made a deal to ensure everyone would love their music. And we do. It’s great music.

But the twist is that they’ll never truly be recognized as one of the best. Sure, their songs will play on the radio and everyone will sing along. They’ll have sold out concerts. Plenty of fans. But not enough. They’ll be just good. Never great. Never the best. Even if they should be our favorite, they never will be. They’ll never sell enough albums or have their songs reach as high on the billboards as they should. Everyone loves their music, per the agreement. But no one loves them.

Cristina.

Kit.

Ty.

And Dru.

The scene where Matilda was dancing around her living room making things fly around to the song “Little Bitty Pretty One” was very nerve-wracking for Mara. She told Danny that she was anxious to do the scene, and he said, “You know why? Because you’re the only one dancing! We just have to have everyone else dance too! Then it won’t be scary!” 

So everyone–the crew, the rest of the cast, the people at the craft services table, everyone–danced along with the song, at Danny’s insistence. Apparently the only one who wasn’t doing the full on dance was the camera man, who just did a foot shuffle so the camera wouldn’t jiggle. 

i made a post like this about six months ago but i’ve realised a) that as a wlw, there are literally No books about wlw on there, and b) ive read loads more books that are Fab and deserve a place on there

so to fit on this list, there are only 2 conditions

there must be lgbt+ characters in the book

said characters’ entire plotline must not revolve around them being lgbt+. this can be referenced, but they have to have wider development. eg: trc is acceptable as even though ronan goes through a process of accepting he’s gay, his arc is also involving accepting other (spoilery) things about himself

feel free to add your own as i’ve not read nearly enough fiction about wlw, as long as it’s not just to do with being lgbt as this is a list for people who want to see themselves in fantasy, crime, mystery, adventure, school novels specifically without having All the focus on being lgbt+.

OKAY ONTO THE LIST

carry on by rainbow rowell. this is the first book i ever really read where the sexuality of the characters wasn’t the most important thing about them. it isn’t for everyone (read: blatant harry potter references) but i did and still adore it. mlm relationship, queer & gay. 5 stars.

the raven cycle by maggie steifvater. the representation is nowhere near as good as some of the others on this list but it’s this high up because of the writing and the characters. mlm relationship, gay & bi. 5 stars.

the foxhole court by nora sakavic. again, not astronomical rep, but the plot and characters make up for it. mlm x2 relationships, one main. 5 stars.

six of crows by leigh bardugo. fantastic cast of characters. mlm relationship, gay & bi, and bi female character. 5 stars.

a darker shade of magic by ve schwab. beautiful worldbuilding. mlm relationship (both bi i think?) which is also own voices.  5 stars.

vicious by ve schwab. fantastic dark plot. ace main character, kind of adheres to the “ace characters are heartless” on which way you look but i think basically everyone’s a little bitch in the book so. 5 stars.

they both die at the end by adam silvera. so sad but it’s not Bury Your Gays as such since that’s the entire preface of the book. mlm relationship, gay & bi. own voices!  5 stars.

a gentleman’s guide to vice and virtue by mackenzi lee. mlm relationship.   4 stars.

radio silence by alice oseman. gave me an existential crisis. wlw and mlm solidarity, bi female mc, gay m and gay f, gay demi m. 4 stars.

i want to put more than this by patrick ness on here (4 stars) because he’s a fantastic ov rep and i love him and this is his most non-Gaytm book, but if you do want a book about being gay in the deep south then def read release and im breaking my own rule here but it’s amazing 5 stars.

ink and bone by rachel caine has a couple that remind me of holt and kevin from brooklyn nine nine (just much sadder.) worth reading just for the concept. mlm minor relationship. 4 stars.

again, i feel like you could squeak the song of achilles by madeline miller on here by the skin of its teeth. dont read this if you dont want sadness. 4 stars.

daughter of the burning city by amanda foody is a fantastic spooky book and so original. bi mc and aspec love interest. 3.5 stars.

ash by malinda lo. cinderella retelling. i didn’t personally like this one too much but it’s a cute wlw relationship. 3 stars.

history is all you left me by adam silvera. i very much didn’t like this one for personal reasons but i know a lot of people love it. mlm rep with a bi character (watch out bc the mc is slightly biphobic.) 2 stars.

i haven’t read adaptation by malinda lo yet but my friend loved it. it has a bi mc with a bi love triangle.

likewise i haven’t read of fire and stars by audrey coulthurst but my friend LOVED it with a passion. wlw relationship.

Summary: You and Steve are friends who go way back, but never quite get along. Yet you pretend to be dating. You’re supposed to break up. But when do things ever go as planned? (Modern-Day AU Drabbles)

Word Count: 711

“Before Long” Masterlist

A/N: I take forever and I apologize. But we’re almost done! Yay!

Knowing that you had taken a long time to answer, you still agreed to meet Steve before facing your family. Despite realizing that they would most likely be angry at you for making them wait, you’d rather face them a million times than live with the uncertainty of Steve’s feelings for you. 

You had basically kicked him out. 

Summary: You and Steve are friends who go way back, but never quite get along. Yet you pretend to be dating. You’re supposed to break up. But when do things ever go as planned? (Modern-Day AU Drabbles)

Word Count: 711

“Before Long” Masterlist

A/N: I take forever and I apologize. But we’re almost done! Yay!

Knowing that you had taken a long time to answer, you still agreed to meet Steve before facing your family. Despite realizing that they would most likely be angry at you for making them wait, you’d rather face them a million times than live with the uncertainty of Steve’s feelings for you. 

You had basically kicked him out.