Thank you! 

3. What were your top five books of the year?

The Regeneration Trilogy by Pat Barker - Can they count as one? Because they ruined my life and I love them beyond words. A trilogy set during the First World War, but about so much more than that. Each book is quite distinct in setting and focus, but the common threads of deeply lovable and deeply flawed characters, the looming horror of a ravenous war, and the manifestations of trauma on an entire generation of young men were moving, disturbing, and heartbreaking. And as an added bonus, there are multiple queer characters. 

The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt - This book got me back into reading after a long time of feeling like I just couldn’t focus long enough to manage it, so on top of being a fantastic book I feel really fond of it for that reason too. Two brothers, guns for hire, are sent to kill a man called Hermann Kermit Warm during the California Gold Rush, told from the perspective of one brother who’s growing disillusioned with their way of life. It’s very, very good. 

The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker - Pat Barker coming for my life again with a beautiful story of the silenced and forgotten women of Troy. There’s just something about her writing, that looks so simple and unassuming at first glance, that pulls me in and paints painfully vivid pictures with characters that feel incredibly real. 

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman - Another book that I really loved reading but that also has time and place connotations that make it special for me. Neil Gaiman is a bit of a Pat Barker, I think, in that his prose isn’t that flashy, but damn does he create vivid worlds and characters. This book had that in spades.

Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman - Exhausting ‘Problematic! Controversial! How could you?!’ discourse aside, I really enjoyed this book, and part of the reason I enjoyed it was actually how irritating I often found Elio. He felt like a beautifully realised, true to life, immature boy figuring out how to be a man, and his inconsistencies and mood swings and illogical but desperate wants and needs got under my skin in an almost personally nostalgic way. 

12. Any books that disappointed you?

I’ll go for a book I actually finished, despite being disappointed. The Bedlam Stacks by Natasha Pulley. I couldn’t finish her Watchmaker book because I hated it so much, so maybe it’s not fair to say this one disappointed me? But there’s a recognisable pretentiousness to her style that I find grating and although there were characters I liked in Bedlam I didn’t always love how they were written. Plus, this book seems to end up on every other ‘great queer books!’ list on tumblr, and it Is Not That. Implication is not representation and if somebody’s mother can read the book and not see that the characters are implied to be not straight then it doesn’t deserve to be on those lists. I’m not saying they need to bang in inventive ways over hundreds of pages, but still. Just my opinion.

25. What reading goals do you have for next year?

That saves me at least an hour(?)! I was gonna give it a try this week

Silver - How different are you to the person you were 5 years ago?

Quite a few things have changed in 5 years. I’m much more self-confident about my abilities in my job, partly because of experience and partly because I passed my CELTA (English teaching certificate) a few years ago. I’ve also become more creative and more active in fandom, mainly thanks to Black Sails. I’ve also lived through more life drama/trauma than ever before in the past five years, with two family members dying (an uncle and a very young niece), two uncles getting seriously ill and many worries about my mother’s health (this is why I’ve been quiet lately). It’s That Time Of Life, I’m nearly 40 (on Feb 27) and I suppose it comes with the territory, but I can’t say I like it at all.

Miranda – Name 3 books/pieces of music that are important to you.

Marion Zimmer Bradley’s The Mists of Avalon, for all its faults (tbh I’m not sure I could read it again nowadays in light of everything we know about the author), was an incredibly important part of my life for a long time. I was 10 years old when I read it, and it was an incredible inspiration for my personal writing. I spent the next 10 years writing stories inspired by it.

Terry Pratchett’s Hogfather was the first book of his that I read. I bought it at the airport when we were coming home from a memorial ceremony for my grandmother, and I guess it was the right book for the right time, because it’s been a comfort-book ever since. I read it at least once every two years, and it was my gateway into the Discworld, which I’ve loved ever since.

And JK Rowling’s Harry Potter played a very big role in my life for a long time. I’m kind of nostalgic of the time between Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince was published, because that long gap was filled with fanfiction and theories and fun possibilities. And even though I felt let down by the books after OotP, I think I’ll always remember this series fondly in spite of its problems.

(I’m very aware of the irony of posting about three fantasy novels/series when I spent years getting a Masters in English Lit, but that’s just how it is!)

Randall – What’s your favourite thing to cook?

As per the Silverflint Domestic Prompt List 

18. Sulking, 31. Countryside living and because I am clearly the fandom’s pet lady and fulfilling a specific request from @linzorz,  7. Pets

Silver slapped his neck for the third time in the last 5 minutes, in a vain attempt at killing one of the million mosquitoes around the river. How was this supposed to be relaxing? As with everything, he decided to make his feelings known.

“How is this supposed to be relaxing?” Silver waved the fishing rod from side to side.

“I’m starting to wonder the same thing myself,” Flint grumbled, just loud enough for Silver to hear.

Silver decided to pretend he hadn’t heard it. “What did you say?”

Flint grabbed Silver’s wrist, to stop him from waving the fishing rod around. “I said, you’ll scare the fish like that.”

Silver huffed a long suffering sigh. An uneasy silence settled between them. Silver tried his best to sit still and appreciate his surroundings. The dragonflies were sort of pretty. In an ugly alien bug sort of way. Oh god, one was flying his way! He started waving his arms around preemptively.

“Fuck sake! Can’t you be still for five minutes? What’s wrong with you?!” Flint growled.

Silver quickly pondered his options here: he could make a very city boy scene and storm off;  he could apologise and continue to endure this torture disguised as a hobby, or he could just approach this rationally and explain this was not the type of activity that he found enjoyable.

“You’re so fucking old sometimes,” Silver whined.

Or that.

“And you’re a fucking brat,” Flint spat back. “Just bloody leave, if you’re so unhappy, so I can finally have some fucking peace!”

Silver got up and tossed both the rod and his curls dramatically. “Fine!” He turned on his heel and stomped off toward their cabin. He managed to resist the urge to look back to see if Flint was looking. Serves him right, grumpy old fool. Why had a young, feisty thing like himself ever gone for that dried up, ginger prune? Silver kicked a stone in his path, scaring some pigeons out of a bush.

Silver hated the countryside. It was bugs, sap, and mud, and nothing but the eerie crying of the foxes and owls at night. Flint loved coming here a few times a year, apparently, and Silver was trying to be supportive of it, as any good boyfriend should. He wasn’t doing a good job, but it was the thought that counted, right? He was here, “enjoying” the stupid dirt.

After a thirty minute trek, the cabin finally came into view. Silver sighed in relief. He could just lay down on that lumpy, orange sofa, crank up his playlist on the headphones, and pretend this whole thing wasn’t happening. On the way to the door, he stopped and backed up a few steps, to peek into the front yard. Wait, hadn’t he left the clothes on the line this morning?

He rushed towards the backyard and was met by the dullest stare in the world, in the form of a goat’s bulgy eyes. She was sat on two of his white tees while chewing placidly on a third black one.

“Georgie! You fucking menace!” Silver yelled, snatching the t-shirt out of her mouth.

What she lacked in size, Georgie made up for in determination. Silver tried his hardest to save the garment, but the little brown goat’s jaw was deadlocked.

“Let gooooooo!” Silver set his feet on the floor and pulled with all his body weight. Now it was just a question of honour.

Georgie did the same and started giving the shirt sharp tugs on her end.

Silver pulled harder. “You fucking dem— Aaaaaah!” The resistance on Georgie’s end stopped abruptly, and Silver fell on his arse.

Could goats look smug? Silver bellowed in frustration. He crumpled the ruined shirt and threw it at the goat’s face, which seemed to unsettle Georgie enough to leave Silver’s general vicinity.

Blowing his curls upwards, Silver bent to pick up the salvageable white tees and walked back toward the cabin.

Once inside, he plunked himself on the sofa and made quick work of taking off his prosthesis. Silver groaned. He felt like flinging everything he picked up. He slumped down on the sofa and fished his phone and headphones out of his jean pocket. Turning the volume all the way up, he closed his eyes.

He was unsure how much time had passed when he felt himself be jostled. He was floating; no, being carried. Presumably to bed. He blinked upward and saw Flint’s beard. Even from this angle it was a perfectly groomed ginger hedge. Silver’s beard grew all over the place and demanded constant attention; even Georgie’s beard was more respectable! But of course Flint’s stupid beard was immaculate and steady and… mature.

He snuggled closer to the solid, warm chest pressed against his cheek and sighed deeply.

Stupid, perfect old man.

Thank you! ❤️

I: Do you have a guilty pleasure in fic (reading or writing)?

Reading I definitely do but those are private, sorry. ;D Writing...I guess I really like when I can work a silly one-liner in there, a joke so bad you groan at it, that kind of thing. I enjoy making people laugh. 

R: Are there any writers (fanfic or otherwise) you consider an influence?

Oh definitely! @vowel-in-thug is the main person who inspired me to get into writing in this fandom in the first place, I talk ideas/scenes/etc with @jamesflint practically every day, and @jadedbirch has been a big influence on me as well. So has @old-long-john, I love y’all! 

W: Do you like more general prompts, or more specific ones?

thank you dear! <3

Madi – Do you consider yourself to be a political or social activist? Do you want to be?

I definitely wish I had the guts to defend my ideals! But I’m the kind of person who likes to stay in the background so I often choose comfort over confrontation. 

Miranda – Name 3 books/pieces of music that are important to you.

I’m going with music for this one!

1. Alexis Ffrench - Bluebird. This is such a sweet and gentle piano piece. The world can be so stressful and aggressive; and this piano piece is a moment of peace and innocence to me.  

2. Kensington - Do I Ever. I feel like I’ve mentioned this song somewhere before but it’s so relevant to how I feel about my life; moving forward and growing and then doubting if you’re even growing at all. 

3. BØRNS - American Money. I’m mentioning this one because I first listened to it after seeing a silverflint photoset inspired by this song so I looked it up and then I put it on repeat for two weeks straight because I just love it. 

Oh no. When I read about the election results I was like, What's the worst thing she could do now? And... yeah. Did she not address the issue in her speech at all??

Why would she? She remains in power after all. She’s beeen chancellor for twelve years. For twelve years, she hasn’t done anything to address any of the dire problems we’re facing. It’s not going to be any different in her fourth term. It’s only about staying in power, maintaining status quo. 

YES I FEEL YOU OMG

olga-eulalia replied to your post “i just watched the Black Sails finale and long story short I have been...”

Seems like your voicing my internal monologue re: Black Sails