Part 1: Trudy’s post + N&S Quiz + Book Giveaway

Dear Readers,

      Today I have such a treat for you I can hardly contain my glee!

Fellow Richard Armitage/North & South connoisseur and author extraordinaire Trudy Brasure has accepted my invitation to share with us her take on Gaskell’s masterpiece and she’ll be spoiling us today and Friday, so make sure you stop by.

Most of you are familiar with Trudy’s writing as she has long been considered one of the most notable fanfiction turned published authors with an uncanny ability to capture our Mr Thornton and make us fall for him hard all over again.

I leave you in the capable hands of my guest blogger and one of my most favorite N&S continuation authors (not to mention a thoroughly lovely person…):

Trudy Brasure

Five things you probably didn’t know about me:

1. I had a great childhood. As one of nine children, I was surrounded mostly by brothers. Boys? Yeah, we got ’em. I faked my first crush in school to fit in with the crowd. Heck, I didn’t find boys that mysterious or enchanting in those pubescent years.

2. My obsession before I discovered John Thornton/Armitage was … um… Abraham Lincoln. What can I say? I love a good, brooding man in a top hat.

3.  My first plane ride was from Toronto to Paris – alone, at age 17 – to stay for a month with the family of the exchange student our family had hosted the summer before. Unforgettable adventure for a small town girl from Pennsylvania.

4. I’m the organist/pianist on Sundays at the church I attend. All those years of piano lessons were not wasted!

5. I’ve never been to England! I know, I know…. it’s really quite presumptuous of me to write stories set in a place I’ve never been. Thank goodness for my British editor. I’ve been close, though! My husband and I spent our honeymoon in Ireland and Scotland.

Get your pencils (or quills) ready for QUIZ TIME!

(John has studied hard for this.)

Think you know North and South? I’ve seen a few fun quizzes posted here and there. But they were too easy.  Try this mean baby if you’ve read the book.   Hey, if you’ve read my stories you might be able to answer a handful of these.  Level: Wicked

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s post for the answers!

1. How old is Margaret at the time of Edith’s wedding?

2. Where is the Lennox family from?

3. What military rank did Aunt Shaw’s late husband hold?

4. What is Mr. Bell’s first name?

5. Is it Bessy or Bessie?

6. What is the port town nearest Helstone?

7. How did Leonards happen to be at the station to discover Fred?

8. What are Mr. and Mrs. Hale’s first names?

9. True/False:  Gaskell was a master of precision in writing the sequence of events.

10. What pet did Aunt Shaw have?

11. What is the name of Frederick’s intended (and later, wife)?

12. Name one of the books that Hannah Thornton reads from.

13. What personal tragedy did Hannah silently recall during her visit with the dying Mrs. Hale?

14. True/False: The Great Exhibition is mentioned in a conversation between Thornton and Mr. Hale.

15. True/False:  Thornton discovers that Margaret has a brother from Mr. Bell.

16. True/False: Higgins calls Thornton a bulldog.

17. Mr. Thornton made a point of visiting Helstone while returning from a business trip to what venue?

18. True/False: Mr. Thornton attends the funeral of both Margaret’s mother and father.

19. What is the name of the member of parliament who comes to dinner at Aunt Shaw’s house in the penultimate chapter?

20 . How much time passed between Thornton’s post-riot declaration of love and the final scene in London in which Margaret offers her fortune to Thornton?  (a.) six months  (b.) a year  (c.) 18 months  (d.) two years

BOOK GIVEAWAY!

If you loved the angst and repressed passion Richard portrayed as John Thornton in North and South, you’ll love my new story! In Consequence puts a twist in the story at the time of the riot which spins the developing story of love and attraction in a whole new direction.  Available for free at C19 and Wattpad, In Consequence is also for sale as a Kindle book at Amazon. It will soon be available in print and as a Nook, ibook, etc. as well.

Leave a comment on this blog post for a chance to win a copy of In Consequence – paperback or Kindle. (worldwide) The winner will be announced next Thursday, February 6th.

Share what you love most about N&S, ask me a question, or talk to me about my story or Gaskell’s.  There’s nothing I enjoy better than engaging in discussion about North and South!  

Coming up tomorrow: Trudy’s pet peeves regarding all things North and South as well as the answers to the quiz!

The Book Giveaway is now finished!

Thorin and Thranduil, The Sassy Kings of Middle Earth (and their hair is pretty too!)

This post contains recommendations of fanfiction that are of a mature nature and may contain explicit slash writing.

There’s shipping, OTPing, slashing and so forth, so be warned, if that’s not your cup of tea, that’s fine by me, I note your objections 😉

As always with regards to comments, keep it clean, don’t be mean!

Ever since I watched The Hobbit: Desolation of Smaug I’m fascinated with Thranduil, played by Lee Pace.

The Elven King is the perfect and most worthy adversary for Thorin, the King under the mountain.

I love the scene when Oakenshield and his company are captured and he stands at the foot of a freaky moose-horn throne (they sell those in IKEA BTW, if you’re interested), and Thranduil is giving the pint-sized dwarf a nice pat on the head and trying to strike a bargain to get his hands in the crowned jewels he had long desired  (and when I say the crowned jewels I’m being literal, for smut scroll down) .

By the way, I found the object of Thranduil’s fascination a tad confusing: are they shiny like stars or made out of stars, what’s that all about?

Looked like costume jewellery to me…

Anyway, the scene was electric and the sass was flying left and right.

 All that’s missing is RuPaul sitting there shouting “Reading is Elementary*” while the two whip their hair back and forth throwing shade*…

* I realised that maybe not all of you have seen RuPaul’s Drag Race and aren’t familiar with drag queen terminology so here it goes:

to read someone means to point out someone’s negative traits, usually in a form of a funny one-liner.

throwing shade is a derivative from reading and means to point out someone’s flaws.

Back to sass and shade, I have to ask:

Anyway, I’m not the only one that’s digging these two (although I may be the only one who insists on waving my hand and snapping my fingers going: Oh no he di int! every time their scene comes up… at least I hope I’m the only one…).

Here are some fanfiction goodies I’ve come up with to quench a Thorin/Thranduil thirst, scratch that Thorinduil/Thradrin itch (does this ship have a name? it should because it’s already sailed…).

In The Mirkwood’s Dungeons – Thorin x Thranduil at Silvery Night (non-NS)

When Thorin is captured by elves guards, Thranduil discovers that he is irresistibly drawn to this arrogant and proud king. However, the king of the elves are not used to not getting what he wants, so he try to seduce Thorin without thinking of the consequences it may bring him.

The Last Alone by pherede

For good Hobbit slash/mature writing check out pherede’s other fics.

Thorin is victorious, and the terms of Mirkwood’s surrender are unbearable. There might be, however, another way. And Thranduil is not above sacrificing for the good of his people.

The Healing ~ Thorinduil Fanfic by |è†hål ð³§ir³s

Thorin stood in awe, forgetting to breathe, as he admired the divine being that approached Thror’s throne. The ElvenKing had come to pay respect to his grandfather. Never had he laid eyes on beauty so surreal…

Power Play by Destielixer

Thorin doesn’t really know how it turned out like this, him on his knees kneeling before Thrandiul on the throne…

Mortal Offence by Ludovica

When the King under the Mountain, frustrated by the Elvenking’s demands, insults him and his kin with equally insolent demands of his own, it becomes apparent that Dwarven culture and Elven culture are far more different than he thought…

Turmoil by malum_animi

While imprisoned in Mirkwood, Thorin and Company get caught up in a rebellion to overthrow Thranduil and kill his young son Legolas. When Thranduil is seriously injured protecting Legolas, Thorin realizes that his pride and hatred will lead nowhere but pain and suffering.

Honored Guest by pherede

Thranduil will do anything to protect his own. Even submit to Thorin’s punishment for his misdeeds.

I hope you enjoyed the recs and happy Thorinduiling 🙂

Season 3 is on and I’ve been Sherlocked!

*may contain Sherlock spoilers!*

I had scheduled an Arty Farty for today but seeing that BBC’s Sherlock is back I felt the occasion needed a bit of celebration.

And I’m not the only one, judging by KathrineD’s reflections about the BBC.

How was I supposed to not get excited after such a long wait, a cliff-hanger to rule them all and a teaser that makes you salivate like a rabid dog whets your appetite.

I knew I’d have to go into Tumblr/Twitter/Blog blackout until I watched the first episode of season 3- The Empty Hearse as the internet is crawling with spoilers.

I tried streaming it live as it aired on January 1st at 9pm but the traffic was so intense that all feeds were interrupted.

I then decided to scout the internet for fresh uploads and did that till I finally gave in after 2 am (I still got up absolutely knackered after dreaming I was obsessively trying to watch Sherlock…).

I finally got my hands on the episode on the following day (how? a magician never reveals her/his naughty tricks), but I knew that I needed to find a better solution to watch the next episode which airs January 5th.

After scouting the internet I came across ways of accessing BBC iPlayer.

You need to open it through Firefox and download an app which hides your proxy.

It may be shady but it works (I’ll link to the advice page when I find it again…).

So I’m all set for Sunday and I’m bursting with excitement.

I won’t be writing about the plot as I’m only too aware that many folks are waiting for the episode to air on TV in their respective countries, I will only say that I had shivers running down my spine during the first half.

I’ve expressed before how much I enjoy emotionally charged scenes, ones that show the characters unraveling and there plenty of Sherlock/Watson goodies here, including the process of mourning the loss of a friend, the fight to build a new life and dealing with betrayal.

The second half wasn’t really my cup of tea- give me a juicy murder mystery over a V for Vendetta knock-off.

Anyway, there are some delicious nods to the Sherlock fandom, a clear indication that the creators know very well about ships and tease us with them.

I also grinned when Ben’s parents popped up, then realised it’s creepy that I knew straight away who those people were…

Anyway, one may say the game is on, but the Sherlock fandom has a few cards up their sleeves too, if the tumblr Sherlock tag is any indication.

To celebrate the start of season 3 you can check out this pretty amazing list of the most delicious Sherlock fanfiction, although be warned, some contain Johnlock/slash.

Belstaff coats at the ready, it’s going to be a Sherlock winter 🙂

Don’t mind me, I’ll just Hoot! Hoot!

I’ve held on to this image for over 2 years in hopes that I will one day use it…

What’s that in my hand?

Why, it’s my very own horn.

I hate to hoot it but…

HOOT! HOOT!

I am Oh! so very proud to be able to share with you the news that both Magzy and I are have graduated and gotten out MA.

And we kicked arse, if you don’t mind me saying 🙂

The grading standard system at Polish Universities is 2-5 and we both got a 6 and have graduated with distinctions.

It came as quite a shock as I didn’t even know that was possible and a 5 was really the top of my dreams.

For those who don’t know, I was writing my MA thesis on the subject of online communities, the Network Society, fandoms and fan labor, fanfiction in particular.

I’d like to once again thank all of those who took the time to take part in my fandom survey and to those wonderful fanfiction authors who filled out my questionnaire.

The third and final chapter was based on the analysis of how fanfic authors saw themselves with regards to notions created by media and sociology scholars and I think the reviewers felt the data was interesting enough that it could serve as a basis for publication.

Thank you to all of those who have rooted me on, especially Ms S who was cheering me up and cheering me on with encouraging RA images in my darkest hour.

To my dearest sister Magzy:

Congraduation!!!

 It’s been a rocky road but you and I are an unbeatable team and there’s no one else I’d like to be on this or any journey with 🙂

UPDATE:

Thanks so very much for all your comments!

Magzy was especially please with all of you mentioning her.

She was hooting so hard I had to take the horn out of her hand, the conceited cow 😉

Fanfiction Paradise at My Blog Story!

I’m slowly starting to compile notes and summarising thoughts that were a result of our brainstorming on blogging/reading/commenting.

I’m so happy we had a chance to exchange ideas and opinions, so thank you for engaging in the discussion and I hope we can all learn from it.

In future it’s BYOB (bring your own booze) and a pot luck.

Or we should organize it as a huge online sleepover, again, it’s BYOS (bring your own sleeping bag).

I’ll be posting on issues from the comments in the next few weeks, but if there’s anything else you think would be worthwhile mentioning, please let me know!

One of the notions that came up was that fanfiction writers often don’t get feedback on their work.

There are many reasons for this, often it’s just a case of traffic: if no one knows it’s there, they aren’t going to read it.

Understandably, fanfiction writers are adamant about “putting themselves out there” and promoting their stuff, so apart from word of mouth and recs, the fanfic ends up gathering dust.

Often times readers aren’t or don’t want to log in to leave comments (Guilty!), so although they enjoy the work, there’s no tangible proof of that.

Maybe you’re just like me and you do a quick “grab and read” without acknowledging the writers at all.

To help solve some of these issues,  The Arkenstone has created My Story Blog, a place where fanfiction writers can post links to their work, but also where readers can recommend their favourite stuff.

It’s so easy: all you have to do is leave a link to the fanfic, with a short description and a link to an image that suits, if you like.

The comment will go into moderation to be picked up by TheArkenstone and featured in a post.

How snazzy is that?!?

Please remember that YOU (yes, you!) provide the content!

Add it to your daily blogroll and make sure you check in regularly as there’ll be some delicious fanfic goodies waiting for you.

Remember that you can either press the “follow” button or follow the blog via email so you get updates regarding new content.

The success of this enterprise depends on us, so in the words of the wonderful Tim Gunn: “Make it work!” 🙂

Calling All Kind-Hearted Fanfiction Writers!

I’ve been missing from here and I truly wish I could attribute it solely to writing my MA thesis paper.

The truth is so much more embarrassing, but I guess as the author of this blog, I’m way past the feeling of shame (got lost, along with my dignity around the 7th time I wrote about Richard Armitage’s behind…).

What actually happened is I got into The Forsyte Saga, bitten so hard that I ended up having to download all the episodes.

There WILL BE a post on this, as I don’t remember the last time I actually started watching a series around 8pm and had to force myself to unstick from the monitor at around 6am.

Oh, the riveting social life I lead….

After watching The Forsyte Saga I just had to get my hands on more ginger hotness meaning Damian Lewis and ended up downloading Homeland.

Well, at least part of it as by the time I was half way through season 1, I had used up all of my allotted internet connection.

I have been surviving the past week on an internet connection no doubt powered by a very knackered hamster on a wheel trapped within my laptop.

Lesson learned, do not fall for the charms of ridiculously talented red haired British actors if you have other things to do online.

Anyway, my available communication technology is back to the standards of the twenty-first century and I can now return to the (somewhat) civilized world.

As I’ve hinted before, I’d love to hear from you regarding fandoms, so I’ve written a questionnaire for fanfic writers.

I am calling upon all fanfic authors who would like to participate in my MA thesis paper study.

I’m on the last chapter and I ‘dreally love to hear from fanfic writers to pick their brains regarding their opinions on fandoms and fanfiction.

Apart from helping this poor gal out, I will also be your best friend for life!

BFF’s, I tell you!

We’ll be like Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan… Ok, maybe that’s not the best example…

The questionnaire consists of 10 questions, so if you feel up to it, or know someone who’d be interested, please leave a comment and I will get back to you via email 🙂

You can also email me directly at iwanttobeapinup[at}wp[dot]pl

I really do hope to hear from you!

UPDATE:

Thanks so much to all the people who have either left comments or have emailed me directly!

I very much appreciate all of those who have taken the time to complete my questionnaire.

The answers just prove what I have known all along:

This fandom comprises of incredibly intelligent, witty and opinionated people, and I am incredibly thankful that I could take advantage of that!

BBC’s Sherlock Fanfiction Recs

As I slave away at my thesis, here are some more reading recommendations.

I’ve mentioned my ever growing love for fanfiction on a number of occasions, and I have also recommended some to date, but here’s another batch.

I’m not sure why, but I tend to read ones that are connected to BBC’s Sherlock.

There’s just something about the relationship between the characters that lends itself so well to fanfiction, but please be warned, all of these have mature content.

Like many readers out there, I’m terribly greedy about the amount of words the fic has and, no surprises, I like a multi-chapter one that has a rich story.

Luckily many authors tend to spoil us readers, so here’s a bunch of my favorites.

I’ve already mentioned the first Shelock fic titled A Cure for Boredom by emmagrant01.

It’s Johnlock, meaning it follows the evolution of the relationship between Sherlock and John Watson, and the rating on this is explicit.

This fanfic is a wonderful example of fandom collaboration, as you are linked to art pertaining to the story.

Just when you thought you’d hit naughty fanfic jackpot, the author adds Alternate and Missing Scenes from “A Cure for Boredom”.

I guarantee you’ll never look at cinnamon the same way again.

Sticking to the Johnlock theme, I’d also recommend Performance in a Leading Role by Mad_Lori.

This is a AU story and the answer to what you would get if both Sherlock and John were movie actors starring in a film together.

It’s quite touching and worth a look.

If Johnlock isn’t your cup of tea, then maybe the next fics are more to your liking.

This Sherlolly (Sherlock and Molly) series titled Sustain was written by maybe_amanda, and is one of my favorites.

It comes in 4 parts:

Sustained (or Concerto for the Famished in D Minor)

Sustain II – Refrain

Sustain III: Obbligato

Sustain: Coda, Variation One

If you’ve never imagined Sherlock as a fool in love and a family man, maybe_amanda will make you eat your words.

I’ve left this story for last because it’s a bit of a heartbreaker.

Alone on the Water by Mad_Lori is possibly the best known Sherlock fic around.

I’m not saying anything more about this one, apart from the fact that it is touching, beautiful and very sad.

After reading it I suggest you check out this fanvid (ya know, just cos you won’t be sobbing enough…)

These are just the fics I find myself going back to (more times than I care to mention…).

There are also tumblr pages such as Highly Functioning Fangirls  or SherlockXJohnRecs who specialize in fanfic recs.

If there are any more you’d like to add, pop them in comments 😉

Happy Sherlock Day! Now give me some smutty M/M fanfics to make it all better…

The post title refers to it being 02/21/13 (as written in the US) today, meaning 221 13 (B) meaning the house number of Sherlock’s residence on Baker St.

Most people don’t know that I’m actually quite a potty mouth in RL, but I don’t really feel like going back and deleting.

Not today anyway…

It never ceases to amaze me, at the same time freaking me the fuck out, how life, and the way you look at it, can change in a matter of minutes.

Things are definitely pants right now and I’m still figuring out how to cope with certain situations.

I know some of my fellow RA blogger find comfort in writing posts, either as a way of escaping RL crap, or as a means of actually understanding the whirlwind events in life.

I’m not sure I’m able to do that (or maybe not just right now…), not because I don’t believe that I would find comfort in my online friends or doubt the sincerity of their words and wishes.

It’s just that I have a very hands-on approach to any crises situation, not allowing myself a moment of weakness.

OK, I did totally lose my shit when I called my BFF to tell him what was going on, probably freaking him out as I doubt he’d ever witnessed me crying during our 12+ year friendship…

When you insist on being strong for everyone else, there comes a moment when you have to react, and passivity is my way out.

Tumblr is perfect for that, impersonal, somewhat smutty, not too challenging.

Escapism at it’s best.

It’s not so much the need to run away, at least for some time, but what I find most soothing, that has raised my internal eyebrows (whatever the fuck internal eyebrows are…).

You’d think I would retreat to RA, his characters, The Hobbit, Aidan Turner, or something down those lines.

I really can’t explain my sudden interest BBC’s Sherlock.

I think it was spurred on by a Hobbit/Sherlock crossover fanfic I had encountered, but not bothered to read.

I’d seen the series a while ago and absolutely adored the modern take on my beloved Doyle stories, not to mention how lovable I found Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sherlock and Martin Freeman’s Watson.

It’s not the series itself, however, that seems to capture my interest.

I’m so much more interested in Johnlock (a combination of John and Sherlock).

Now, I blame Durincest and Bagginshield for my sudden interest in: fanfiction in general,  M/M character pairing specifically, usually of explicit nature, but I’ll go for some angst every so often.

Damn you: Peter Jackson, Hot Dwarf Armitage and Hot Dwarf nephews, and especially talented smutty fanfic authors who know no boundaries!

What can I say?

There’s nothing like a character played by Martin Freeman finding himself utterly wrecked by another male character to brighten up an altogether grim day.

For the record, as much as I like Freeman as an actor with his wicked sense of humour, and he’s appeared in some of my favorite TV series (UK The Office) or films (The Hobbit), I’ve never really found him attractive as a man.

So how does he end up popping up in my favorite fanfics, usually in some compromising position (and I AM smiling and smirking as I type this…)?

Anyway, the first Johnlock fanfic I’d read, and one that I’m afraid has ultimately spoilt me for all others,  is A Cure For Boredom written by emmagrant01.

Just so we’re clear, this is definitely explicit and covers a range of topics of a sexual nature that some may find disturbing, but I found wonderfully distracting.

Just when the author deserved an online hug from me for perfectly capturing the characters of Sherlock and John while still managing to place them in the smuttiest (and sluttiest) of circumstances, it turned out she’d also written Alternate and Missing Scenes from “A Cure for Boredom”.

These extra chapters are mostly written from Sherlock’s perspective and it was just what I needed to find today.

Oh, it was like finding a banknote stuffed in the pocket of an old jacket when you thought you were skint.

My delightfully weird escape, which I can’t explain, even if I tried.

BTW, the way I’m feeling now, I’d sacrifice Martin flying all the way to New Zealand to continue filming The Hobbit just to have him stay in London to film season 3 of Sherlock and provide a new fix.

That should tell you something about where I’m at at the moment.

I’d still love for Richard Armitage to make an appearance in the BBC series though, so maybe I’m not a hopeless cause…

Thorin’s Majestic Dear Diary Rec

It’s the bad blogger (who’s doing her best) here!

Ya know, the one who either doesn’t post or posts fillers, and wouldn’t you know it, I have a bit of a filler for you today (again), but this one is Oh! so good.

As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been enjoying Hobbit related fanfiction, and today I’d like to share the single funniest one EVER!

Thorin Oakenshield’s Majestic Diary ,written by Fruitsie, had me laughing out loud!

Just imagine the majestic king writing a diary that Bridget Jones would be proud of, determined NOT to fancy the Hobbit burglar, and trying to tolerate his idiot nephews.

And Gandalf?

He’s an: “intimidatingly powerful wizard as well as a weed-smoking tree-hugger who deals in illegal fireworks”.

This really is very funny and I hope it brightens up your Saturday 🙂

Have a wonderful weekend!