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Fandom-dropping process, January report [Jan. 16th, 2026|01:45 am]

erinptah
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It’s no longer the 15th of the month as I’m finishing this post…but I ran all the numbers on the 15th, so I’m counting it as a regular scheduled update.

I’ve finished one A-to-Z pass of “handing off and/or punting specific webcomics.” In total, that knocked a couple hundred fandoms off my list. Guess I’ll do another, go harder, and knock out a couple hundred more.

There was a point when I thought about starting a habit of “sweep the Unassigned Fandoms list for tiny underloved Christmas movies,” because sweeping for underloved webcomics was working well. Didn’t end up doing it regularly, though — I just got 12 movie fandoms with 1 fic each, and stopped there. So I dropped all of those in an afternoon. (In the years I was babysitting them, the most active of these fandoms came out with…a whole 2nd fic.)

I also dropped some Random Things that I picked up through the irregular process of “checked out a new canon, enjoyed it, went to see if there was any fic on AO3, found an unwrangled fandom with 1 work.” Stuff like Phoebe in Wonderland (2008), Gary and His Demons (Cartoon), or Her Voice is a Backwards Record – Ozy Brennan. They almost certainly won’t suffer if they stay unwrangled for a while.

(There’s still only one fic for Shadow Man – Melissa Scott…and it’s the one I wrote. Guess it’s depressingly safe to leave “the queer intersex revolution/romance where everyone’s on space drugs” unwrangled, huh.)

With bigger Random Things, when they’re active enough I don’t want to leave them unwrangled, I’ve been making the occasional post about “looking to hand off this fandom, will anybody take it?” Breaks up the monotony of the batches of webtoons, I think. And it’s had maybe a 50-50 success rate — not bad. I’ll keep at it.

…I did actually add 2 new fandoms since the last update. A couple fans wrote about the Toon Makers US Sailor Moon pilot for Yuletide 2025, so that has a fandom tag now, and I picked it up to go with the rest of the Sailor Moon fandom tree.

Then it came up in the “wranglers wanted” channel that Pet Shop of Horrors was unassigned. And how was I supposed to resist picking up PSOH? I love PSOH. That manga reread I just recently started will pair perfectly with a review of the existing PSOH tags.

So my current total number of fandoms is 1183. (The number of “fandoms that actually have any new tags to deal with right now” is 28.)

344 down, 733 more to go…

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Follow Friday 1-16-26: Leverage [Jan. 16th, 2026|12:09 am]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

Today's theme is Leverage.

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current fandom events [Jan. 15th, 2026|07:34 pm]

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[community profile] cultivativity is a community for cultivating creativity.

[community profile] 5soulmates is a prompt table writing challenge that focused on the soulmate theme

[personal profile] kingstoken has posted their 2026 Book Bingo Challenge.

[personal profile] kitarella_imagines is running Funuary, a fun/funny themed prompt challenge, through the month of January.

[community profile] traumaticexperiences, a (psychological) trauma themed multifandom exchange, is open for sign-ups until January 16th, 8PM PST.

[community profile] threesentenceficathon has posted their 2026 schedule. Prompting will open on January 17th.

[community profile] seasonsofdrabbles, an exchange for the creation of drabbles and drabble variants which runs 4 times a year, is open for sign-ups until January 18th, 11:59PM EST. Nominations will also remain open until sign-ups close.

[community profile] seasonalremix is a quarterly, trope-based multifandom event where you sign-up and write a 1-5k work that is a remix of some sort. The Winter Round is currently open for sign-ups until January 24th, 11:59PM GMT and you can find out more info (including where to sign up) HERE.

[community profile] lul_soulmatesex, a soulmate themed exchange, is accepting nominations until January 25th, 11:59PM AM CST.

[community profile] smallfandombang, a big bang for small fandoms, is open for artist sign-ups until January 31st.

[community profile] ksspringfever, a Kirk/Spock community, is open for sign-ups and prompt collecting for Kirk/Spock Spring Fever until January 31st.

[community profile] wipbigbang is running International Fanworks Day Mini Bang for works that are too short for the regular big bang (has to be less than 7.5k). The writing period started on January 9th and the earliest posting is February 1st and will go till the 15th.

[community profile] crackthewip, a challenge to help you finish your WIPs, is running and accepting sign-ups during the first half of the year.
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Poem: "There's an Art to It" [Jan. 15th, 2026|09:13 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

This poem is the linkback perk for the July 5, 2022 Poetry Fishbowl, originally hosted by Dreamwidth user Dialecticdreamer. It is spillover from the March 1, 2022 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by prompts from Dreamwidth users Heartsinger and Zeeth_kyrah. It also fills the "Colored Pencils" square in my 3-1-22 card for the National Crafting Month Bingo fest. This poem belongs to the series Arts and Crafts America.

Read more... )
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Read "Hordes of the Khan" [Jan. 15th, 2026|08:19 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

My partner Doug tipped me to "Hordes of the Khan" by Scott R. Brooks, a Johnny Quest fancomic.

Check out the "Quest for Knowledge" page. That is very typical of comics in Terramagne, which often throw in some fun facts about the setting, history, flora and fauna, etc. even if the story is wholly fictional.

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2026 sure has been something so far [Jan. 15th, 2026|06:49 pm]

donutsweeper
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So... ummmm... this January has been something, huh? Although I don't go out of my way to talk about where I live I don't try to hide it either so let me just say that while things are chaotic in my general area, it's not in my (very) specific immediate area and me and mine are fine. Generally speaking, there's the potential for things here to get as bad, if not worse, as when there were the riots a few years ago but here's hoping it all dies down before then. With the egos involved it seems unlikely (which really says something about the world today that I am even typing that) but, hey, it's possible.

But, in trying not to dwell on any of that or going into details on an unlocked post... craft spam time!

Feast your eyes upon this adorable Werewolf in a Top Hat (made by request and done by adapting a few different patterns)


He's a fine gentleman and tipping his hat to you in greeting. :)

I've also made two rugs
White rug with grey stripe Blue and white knotted rug


The pictures are a bit deceiving, the white and grey one is small-medium sized, 27"x17", while the following blue and white one is one of the larger I've made, 43"x30".

I don't really have a plan or a place for either (nor for the one I'll make out of the fabric strips I'm currently cutting) but upcycling stained/torn sheets and shirts is better than tossing them and I enjoy doing it so who cares.

Have two weeks of [community profile] recthething recs! One MDZS/Untamed fic and tumbr art for that, Merlin, Murderbot and ST:TOS:
I'll Stop the World (And Melt With You) by Rainewritesfanfics (28k)
Summary: Lan Zhan comes from a long line of aerokinetic heroes. Over time, his family came to found the Cloud Recesses School for Young Heroes. Lan Zhan will now be attending this very same school, however he, unlike his relatives, has no powers. To make matters worse, even though Wei Ying is only steps away, they are barely on speaking terms since the incident before summer break. Add in a dash of conspiracy, a school full of ghosts, and cryptic fortunes, and Lan Zhan and Wei Ying are in for a lively first year! (This is a Sky High fusion but I only know the broad strokes of that movie and still thoroughly enjoyed this fic and its accompanying art)

tumblr art:
MDZS/The Untamed
- Something is gained when something is lost (3 panels, LWJ and A-Yuan, oh my heart)
- When had children started growing up so fast? (two LWJ raising A-Yuan sketches, adorable)
- Wei Ying and his ducklings (adorable wwx and the juniors art)

Merlin
- Still waiting for his king… (hauntingly beautiful)

Murderbot
- I just want to watch my shows I can relate, Murderbot. I can relate. (too valid these days)

Star Trek:TOS
- uhura sketch ^^ (love this style)

And, not rec related, but I know there's some due South fans here and I wanted to share an excellent fandom-specific resource I just discovered: A due South tumblr that posts archival stuff from the show like making of episodes and scripts as well as character bios and episode storylines and whatnot. (I really love the first 5 pages of the second draft to the pilot posted here)
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Poetry Fishbowl Themes for Early 2026 [Jan. 15th, 2026|02:42 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | curious]

This poll covers the ideas proposed in the recent call for themes. Everyone is eligible to vote in this poll. I will keep it open until at least Friday night. If there are clear answers then, I'll close it. Otherwise I may leave it open a little longer. If you don't have a Dreamwidth account, you can vote in an anonymous comment or email to me, but include some kind of handle to distinguish yourself.

For this poll, you can vote for as many themes as you find appealing. I recommend that you don't vote for all of them, since that makes it harder to whittle down the list. The themes are arranged in alphabetical order.

Here are your options ...

Read more... )
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snowflake challenge #7 [Jan. 15th, 2026|12:44 pm]

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two log cabins with snow on the roofs in a wintery forest the text snowflake challenge january 1 - 31 in white cursive text

Challenge #7:
LIST THREE (or more) THINGS YOU LIKE ABOUT YOURSELF. They don’t have to be your favorite things, just things that you think are good. Feel free to expand as much or as little as you want.

I kind of struggle with these things but I'll try. :D

1. I'm punctual. I like that I'm on time and even if I stress myself out a little when I work backwards, it's less stressful than the alternative. I don't mind being at the airport two hours early and I'm glad I can tell someone a time and unless there are certain unforeseen circumstances, I will be there then.

2. I'm fairly easy to talk to and am a good listener. I am best with at one on one or a couple of people, but I can carry a conversation if they're engaged and am happy to listen to other people/be a shoulder/offer advice if needed.

3. I'm a good baker and a decent cook. I can follow a recipe and can make the right modifications if needed and am aware of my limitations/can do what I know how to do well.
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Wildlife [Jan. 15th, 2026|02:21 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

Monkeys With Smaller Testicles Scream Louder to Compensate

It's a "calls vs balls" tradeoff.

It’s a long-held belief that loudmouths overcompensate for something, but in the case of howler monkeys, science has confirmed it’s a biological fact. A landmark study by Dr. Jacob Dunn at Cambridge University, along with 2026 follow-up research, has established that monkeys who scream the loudest effectively “pay” for that volume with significantly smaller testes and lower sperm counts
.


You gotta wonder if this applies to humans and some of their absurd behavior.

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Neighborhood Poetry [Jan. 15th, 2026|02:06 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

[personal profile] sef1029 shared a picture of a tiny bulletin board for neighborhood poetry.  This is the kind of thing that anyone could put up, a riff on the Little Free (whatever) concept.  It would work just as well for any kind of creative writing that fits on one page, like nature writing or drabbles, as well as things like copies of a journal page with a sketch and description of local flora or fauna. 

No poem?  No problem!  Sponsors of my work get nonexclusive reprint rights.  I'd be happy to write one-page poems for neighborhood use.  See something of mine that you already like?  Chip in, you're a cosponsor, you can pass around free copies. 

Also keep an eye out for local poets in your area who might like to participate.  Watch for bookstores, libraries, coffeehouses, etc. to host an open mike night, poetry reading, author signing, etc. where you can meet poets from your area.  These also make good places to put up a poetry post, indoors or outdoors.

Of course, you could also look up classic poems in the public domain and use those.
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Birdfeeding [Jan. 15th, 2026|01:38 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

Today is mostly sunny and cold.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a flock of sparrows and a starling.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 1/15/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 1/15/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 1/15/26 -- I did some work around the yard.

I've seen a downy woodpecker drumming on a branch, and a pair of cardinals flying away.

EDIT 1/15/26 -- I dumped out the cloverleaf pots and stacked them upside-down on the patio.  Last year I tried growing wild strawberries in towers.  This didn't work great because 1) the berries weren't very good, 2) the towers were difficult to water, and 3) they were prone to falling over.  However, I learned some things so it wasn't a wasted effort.  I'm not sure what I'll try next.  Certainly I could plant better strawberries, either my wild ones or the pink-flowered Toscano that produced excellent berries last summer.  Watering should be easier with a hose.  Stability, hmm, I might try stakes or just spread them out.



.

 
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Snowflake Challenge 8: Creative Process [Jan. 15th, 2026|11:51 am]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

Snowflake Challenge 8: Creative Process

Talk about your creative process.

This challenge looks at what goes on behind the scenes to produce all the wonderful fannish contents that come to be in the world. By ‘create’ we don’t just mean fic or art or videos -- there’s a process behind every blog post, comment or any other kind of fannish engagement. We’re all creators -- and every creator loves to know about other peoples'
.


Snowflake Challenge: A flatlay of a snowflake shaped shortbread cake, a mug with coffee, and a string of holiday lights on top of a rustic napkin.



I write fanfic "derive in, extrapolate out." This means I look for something in the canon that could use more explanation, think about how it could have gotten that way, then consider how that could influence further stories.

My biggest fanseries is Love Is For children (The Avengers). Several of these entries dig into the backstory of the characters, starting with a scene in canon that shows something already developed which must have had a way to get started but that part is never mentioned. So I used the character as known, and the context, to build something that would logically fit into that gap.

In the first Iron Man movie, we see Tony Stark build the Mark I suit in a cave, with a box of scraps. Specifically, we see him swinging a hammer, like Hephaestus at his forge. Now blacksmithing is one of those things that cannot be learned entirely from a book. It requires muscles and muscle memory; you actually have to do the work, a lot, over a long time. If you want to learn efficiently and also not set yourself on fire too much, it also requires a master blacksmith to teach you the tools and techniques. But the movie says nothing about how or where or when Tony learned any of that; it shows the end result of a mastersmith building a supergizmo out of junk.

I wrote "What Little Boys Are Made Of" to fill in that part of Tony's backstory. The earliest sections describe, also inspired by canon, examples of Tony's relationship with his father and Howard Stark's A+ parenting. Then it covers college, Tony's boredom because it's too easy, and his continuing efforts to get Howard's attention. The real key comes when Tony revisits Museum Village in Monroe, New York. There he meets a blacksmith and hits on the idea of working as an apprentice for the summer. And the rest is history.

Consider the Six Layers from Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud. With fanwriting, a creator necessarily starts at the surface of the canon element, in this case a movie. "Derive in" means picking a point on the surface, then delving underneath into the structure which supports it, and often consulting the idiom. To create something new requires an idea, which is the first or core layer. From there, "extrapolate out" simply works back up to the surface again.

There in a nutshell is the process for most of my fanwriting. It works equally well with all sizes and media. I use some other methods, but I usually pair them with this one.
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Community Thursday [Jan. 15th, 2026|08:06 am]

linky
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[mood | tired]

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has marked as possibly inappropriate for anyone under the age of 18. )
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Community Thursdays [Jan. 15th, 2026|01:15 am]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

This year I'm doing Community Thursdays. Some of my activity will involve maintaining communities I run, and my favorites. Some will involve checking my list of subscriptions and posting in lower-traffic ones. Today I have interacted with the following communities...


* Replied to a post by [personal profile] fox_in_me on [community profile] addme.

* Posted "How to use habit science to help you keep your New Year’s resolution" in [community profile] goals_on_dw.

* Commented under the January 14 Just One Thing post in [community profile] awesomeers.
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Content notes for "The Most Dangerous Animal in the Zoo" [Jan. 14th, 2026|10:16 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

These are the content notes for "The Most Dangerous Animal in the Zoo."

Read more... )
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All 10 references to Dust in the second Book of Dust volume [Jan. 14th, 2026|11:07 pm]

erinptah
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A thing I kept noticing in The Secret Commonwealth: any time someone brought up Dust, as in Rusakov particles, it went by fast. One character would mention it — another one might react — but then the conversation would move right along to something else.

The original HDM trilogy did a really solid job with this concept. Lyra first hears about it as one of many mysterious Scholar Things she spies on without understanding. When she gets a child-friendly explanation, it’s the Church-doctrine propaganda version. Readers follow along with her, and later with other POV characters, building out our knowledge as they hear more perspectives and see more experimental results.

There are good reasons Dust wouldn’t come up much in La Belle Sauvage. It’s a flashback, so even the experts are 10 years’ less knowledgeable, and young Malcolm (unlike Lyra) isn’t interacting with those experts much in the first place. If anything, the Rusakov physics in that book felt kinda shoehorned in. Bonneville is a Rusakov researcher, Malcolm finds his notes…then Mal keeps asking about it (even though it’s not relevant to surviving the flood, and he has no reason to expect it would be), and Bonneville keeps giving accurate answers (even though he has no motive to be honest, and every motive to make up something scary/demoralizing).

But TSC is a flash-forward. They have all the discoveries of HDM, plus another 10 years’ worth of research. A bunch of the main characters are professionally interested. This would be the point in the trilogy where you get to properly reintroduce Dust to the reader!

And instead…well, here are all the times it comes up:

 


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Poetry Fishbowl Update [Jan. 14th, 2026|08:58 pm]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

The Call for Themes is still open if you want to suggest topics for early 2026. Now's the time, because I hope to post the poll on Thursday.
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Birdfeeding [Jan. 14th, 2026|11:59 am]

ysabetwordsmith
[Tags|, , , , ]
[mood | busy]

Today is cloudy, windy, and cold.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a few sparrows.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 1/14/26 -- We saw a flock of geese flying mostly north.   
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Location notes for "The Most Dangerous Animal in the Zoo" [Jan. 14th, 2026|01:08 am]

ysabetwordsmith
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[mood | busy]

Here are the location notes for "The Most Dangerous Animal in the Zoo."

Read more... )
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Cuddle Party [Jan. 14th, 2026|12:48 am]

ysabetwordsmith
[Tags|]
[mood | busy]

Everyone needs contact comfort sometimes. Not everyone has ample opportunities for this in facetime. So here is a chance for a cuddle party in cyberspace. Virtual cuddling can help people feel better.

We have a cuddle room that comes with fort cushions, fort frames, sheets for draping, and a weighted blanket. A nest full of colorful egg pillows sits in one corner. There is a basket of grooming brushes, hairbrushes, and styling combs. A bin holds textured pillows. There is a big basket of craft supplies along with art markers, coloring pages, and blank paper. The kitchen has a popcorn machine. Labels are available to mark dietary needs, recipe ingredients, and level of spiciness. Here is the bathroom, open to everyone. There is a lawn tent and an outdoor hot tub. Bathers should post a sign for nude or clothed activity. Come snuggle up!

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