Why not?

[grundyscribbling]

As seen several places (it has been a long day and I don't remember whose entry popped on my reading page first.) I believe fiachairecht originated it:

Ask me anything. Stuff about my writing, my characters, my wips, favourite canons, favourite anythings, my pets, the state of fandom, life in general, whatever you fancy. No politics please but anything else is fair game.

Comments

[spiced_wine]

Oooh, what piece of writing have you found most satisfying?

When did you first read Tolkien?

What are your thoughts on the state of the fandom at the moment?

[grundyscribbling]

I enjoy the Daughters of Celebrian 'verse in its entirety, but I suppose if forced to narrow it to just one, as of right now, it would be Picking Up The Pieces. Not only does it finally give Maeglin something better, it also ties in a number of things from the past (and one or two hints for the future.)

First read Tolkien...not sure exactly when, but grade school, The Hobbit first. (Should mention I'd seen the animated Hobbit first!) And unlike all the folks who talk about LotR when they were little, I tried to follow on with Fellowship of the Ring but found it deadly dull because I hadn't read enough yet at that point to accomodate for the style.

My thoughts on the state of the fandom are that I really only know my little corner of it, primarily revolving around the SWG, TRSB, and Innumerable Stars. As such, I'm not really able to comment on anything wider than that. I think my little corner is going well, though I'm mildly concerned there's drama just over the horizon after seeing a couple of posts that imply something blew up in Snowflake land. (And, while we said no politics, I have been and remain concerned about the potential for spillover into fandom from real-life events. So far it hasn't, but that doesn't mean it won't.)

[spiced_wine]

Thank you, Grundy 🙏🏼

Not only does it finally give Maeglin something better, it also ties in a number of things from the past (and one or two hints for the future.)

That sounds very satisfying!

I'm mildly concerned there's drama just over the horizon after seeing a couple of posts that imply something blew up in Snowflake land. (And, while we said no politics, I have been and remain concerned about the potential for spillover into fandom from real-life events. So far it hasn't, but that doesn't mean it won't.)

I really don’t think the Silm fandom is going to be accused of the kind of things that Snowflake were and I’ve no clue if there was anything in that accusation. Anyway, you can’t accuse a whole fandom, it’s not a monolithic entity.

[grundyscribbling]

The "drama just over the horizon" concern was less thinking that there would be a repeat in the Silmarillion fandom than concern that when there's drama elsewhere, some people try to import/continue it in other spaces. (I do not think it would be any of the people I've seen allude to it so far. But without knowing what went down/who all was involved, I'm braced for spillover.)

And to be clear, I don't actually know what happened or what Snowflake were accused of - all I've seen are some vague posts that imply something blew up. I haven't had the time/energy to go looking. (I assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that whatever went down had to do with the known abuser who got involved with them last round.)

[narya_flame]

Any pets you would really like to have but can't realistically see it happening?

Your favourite OC?

Favourite book of 2023?

[grundyscribbling]

I would happily have another cat or a small dog, but realistically it's a no until something changes. Wags might be able to adapt to the notion of another animal, but my living space at the moment can't.

Favorite OC is probably Pelendur, though Tasariel and Califiriel are a close (and joint) second. Oh, wait, Anairon... Blast. Settling this could take a while.

Favorite book of 2023 I will limit to fiction, because most of the non-fiction was quite good and thus difficult to narrow down. I will also further limit it to new books because obviously it's cheating to pick something I like well enough to re-read. Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman.

[narya_flame]

Thank you! Yes, as someone living in a multi pet household, it can occasionally feel like inhabiting a zoo...

I have been meaning to try some Richard Osman! I'll give that one a go if you recommend it.

[grundyscribbling]

It's less 'inhabiting a zoo' than 'I just don't have space'. :( Maybe whenever I get the attic under control. (Or if my mother relents on allowing cats downstairs in more than brief spurts while I'm supervising.)

If you haven't tried Richard Osman yet, you should start with The Thursday Murder Club - Last Devil To Die won't hit the same if you don't know the characters.

[saelind]

What's your favorite part of glassblowing?

[grundyscribbling]

Honestly, there's very little about it I don't like. I mean, you're taking a molten material and making it into something of your choosing. (Well, you hope.) And I'm still very much in learning mode, so it's not like I'm a master or anything. I'm particularly fascinated by color, technique, and how it all developed. (Like, who is the magnificent bastard who looked at natural glass and thought 'I could do that' - and then made it happen?? This is among the wildest of ancient inventions in my book, right up there with corn.)