obligatory intro post

[queenslayerbee]

I am, once more, Trying to Make Blogging Fun For Me (Again) xD

Finding myself more and more frustrated by tumblr* each passing day, I decided to make a new account here. I have another one I haven't used in over a year, paired with my main tumblr. But this (very cool, IMO) username is linked to my original stories & writeblr, and that's one of the things I'll want to talk about more here, as I (re-)develop them.

(*will I still use it? Sure. There's plenty to enjoy there, especially my mutuals & friends. I'll post the occassional gifset or graphic, etc. etc. But between the changes the site's implementing now, and the limitations of the platform itself, I wanted to give old school blogging TM another shot!)

As for what I'll post about here... as I said, things regarding my original stories (and, eventually, actual writing!!) is likely. I rarely feel tempted to go deep into my personal life online, but if I ever do, those will be the only entries locked; other IRL, less personal stuff is a tad more probable (politics, current issues, articles & essays I read...). Although it's much more likely I'll post widely known (and far more obscure) fandom stuff as I go. I love film, literature, all forms of art, and I want to discuss it more here. So you can expect book reviews (I have goodreads and storygraph accounts for that as well), commentary on films & shows, musical recommendations... the works.

For some specifics, in case anyone wants to know:

What I'm reading right now: I'm subscribed to a few substack newsletters to read a few of those classics I've missed out on (Pride and Prejudice, Sherlock Holmes, L. Frank Baum's Oz collection...), or re-read old favourites (The Divine Comedy). One of them is The Public Domain Book Club, which posts a new one each month. Right now I'm reading "The Scarlet Letter", and absolutely loving it just a handful of chapters in. I'm also reading a play, "Angels in America", and re-reading a friend's just-published novel ("When The Stars Alight", the first instalment of her trilogy; if that review entices you, I can't recommend it enough). In addition to that I have, unfortunately, fallen prey to DC again, and I'm tentatively reading comics again, old & new alike; right now I'm focused on Jason Todd, but I won't try to lie to myself and swear it'll stop there...

What I'm (soon) watching right now: at the moment I'm on a tv hiatus, but that won't last long. I want to finish the likes of "Attack on Titan" or "Battlestar Galactica" or "Dark Angel" this year, among other shows I started but never got around to finishing it. There are many many films I want to watch and rewatch; at the top of the list of the latter is Pablo Berger's "Blancanieves", one of my favourite Spanish films, since I kind of want to watch more local cinema & ~share it with the world LOL.

What I will be writing SOON: some fic, I won't lie, but I'll talk less about that here (might post links when it's posted). As for original stories, I have a three series that have been near and dear to my heart for years (especially the first two, as the latter is newer; although tbh the former have gone through so many changes as well LOL):

• THE REDSTART'S LEDGER (space fantasy, space opera). In a faraway galaxy already heavily populated before it was colonised by humans, Captain Latoya - pirate, hybrid, daughter of tyrants starts her release from prison in an eventful way. She meets a mysterious and beautiful woman, steals a ship with a faulty artificial intelligence, and goes on the run from the shady organisation that freed her with a new crew of mismatched criminals.
• THE WICKED WITCHES OF TRICKSTOWN (dark fantasy). Early 80s. Everyone in Trickstown, USA, knows their town is cursed, especially three young women: Sadie, a talented witch; Gillian, her complicated best friend; and Denise, the prodigal daughter returning after the murder of her last living relative... where everything points to Sadie as the culprit. / Early 00s. After years apart, the three women reunite in Trickstown, for it is a place nobody can quite escape.
• THE TRAVELS OF SOYOLMAA (high fantasy, futuristic fantasy). In a world of creatures of magic alongside humans born without it, Soyolmaa, an immortal centenarian woman, has lived through medieval times into a futuristic society. Part of a now disolved order of fellow human women turned invulnerable, she's determined to continue honouring its mission of making information available to the masses. Strange adventures, hidden treasures, and historical mysteries interrupt her path.

I have some shorter stories; some are within Soyolmaa's universe, as she's a chronicler, and include dark fairytales, gothic horror, noir, etc., all within that world of fantastical sapient creatures. Others are "All About Eve(s)" (magical realism, set in the 1950s, with fae & time travel); "Beneath the Foam" (historical fantasy & horror, set in Al-Andalus); "A Child's Covenant" (revenge tale, dark fairytale); "Underground Elysium" (political fantasy, born from a harebrained idea about vampires running a protection racket in a zombie apocalypse that I took very seriously), "House of Providence" (gothic horror, mirror twin sisters + identical mother in a quaint house that hides a horrible secret); "The Wings Behind The Stage" (existential horror; an angel becomes obsessed with a play, and the actors, especially the past-her-prime diva, are caught in the crossfire); "One Over Many" (mystery; men disappeared a year ago, but Maude is more interested in the disappearence of one Odette Farrow in that same day).

And some old favourites & fandoms that I never quite leave that you might expect to see:

• Books & Authors: Agatha Christie, Ana María Matute, Angela Carter, "Batman: Under the Red Hood", Camilla Andrew, "Carmilla", Charlotte Perkins Gilman, "Dangerous Liaisons", Daphne du Maurier, "El cordero carnívoro", "Frankenstein", "Hymn to Demeter", "Iron Man: Fatal Frontier", Kemy Ashing-Giwa, Marjane Satrapi, "Medea", "Paper Girls", Philip Pullman, "Pygmalion", Shirley Jackson, Terry Pratchett, "Wuthering Heights".
• Films & Directors: the Alien franchise, Ang Lee, "Batman Returns", "Black Swan", "Blancanieves", Bong Joon Ho, "Colombiana", "El verdugo", "Hustlers", "Jennifer's Body", "Jupiter Ascending", "Pan's Labyrinth", Park Chan-wook, "Phantom Thread", Pilar Miró, "Practical Magic", "Princess Mononoke", "Rear Windwo", Ridley Scott, Sofia Coppola, "The Banshees of Inisherin", "The Lion in Winter", "The Terminator", "True Grit", Zack Snyder.
• TV shows: "Black Sails",  the Buffyverse, "Desperate Housewives", "Dollhouse", "El ministerio del tiempo", "House M.D.", "Killjoys", the CW's "Nikita", "Person of Interest", "Reign", "Scandal", "Severance", "Shingeki no Kyojin", "Supernatural" (... in a way), "Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles", "The Expanse", "The Good Wife", "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel", "The Wire", "Underground", "Veronica Mars", "Xena: Warrior Princess".
• Music artists & Composers: Aaliyah, Amaral, Amistades Peligrosas, Amy Winehouse, Ani DiFranco, Antonio Vivaldi, Aretha Franklin, Bear McCreary, Bruce Springsteen, Christopher Beck, Clint Mansell, Dessa, Doja Cat, Donna Summer, Ella Fitzgerald, Ennio Morricone, Fiona Apple, FKA twigs, Florence + the Machine, Gang of Youths, George Bizet, Hans Zimmer, Hole, Johnny Cash, Julie London, Kate Bush, Kovacs, Lil Nas X, Lyeoka, Mägo de Oz, Mariah Carey, Mirel Wagner, Mitski, Montserrat Caballé, Nancy Sinatra, Nina Simone, Peggy Seeger, PJ Harvey, Portishead, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Queen, Serguéi Serguéievich Prokófiev, Siouxie and the Banshees, The Pretty Reckless, Tina Turner, Tracy Chapman.

I also like to think I'm a moderately talented graphic-maker, so I'M TAKING ICON REQUESTS, if that's something people are interested in (to see my ~portfolio LOL, just look at my icons here).

I also welcome recommendations, especially book & film recs! Adult lit, classics, SFF, horror, mystery... if you love something deeply & want to suggest it, feel free to send it my way.