Tutorials
Mar. 19th, 2026 12:15 amThe Secrets of Story
Mar. 18th, 2026 12:27 pmThe Secrets of Story: Innovative Tools for Perfecting Your Fiction and Captivating Readers by Matt Bird
A how-to-write book. Despite the title, mostly for TV and movie writers, down to and including explaining that a prose writer has it easier.
Nevertheless, some useful ideas, particularly about irony, such as the character's flaw should be a flip-side of a strength to add reason to not want to fix it. None of the jargon was impenetrable.
A how-to-write book. Despite the title, mostly for TV and movie writers, down to and including explaining that a prose writer has it easier.
Nevertheless, some useful ideas, particularly about irony, such as the character's flaw should be a flip-side of a strength to add reason to not want to fix it. None of the jargon was impenetrable.
Warrington-Runcorn New Town Development Plan community
Mar. 18th, 2026 11:32 amAnyone is free to join, even those who have never listened before! Although if that is you, I'd recommend checking out the project's Soundcloud, Bandcamp, and Youtube to get acquainted :D
Discussion on the community will include, but is not limited to, avourite songs/albums/album artwork, physical media, how you discovered the music, recommendations for similar music, etc.
The current rules are pretty standard: no harassment/discrimination against any other Dreamwidth users; no NSFW/explicit content unless it's directly connected to the community's theme; and please keep any posts/comments on topic as much as possible. Anything else can be decided on in the future.
I (
Withnail & I communities
Mar. 18th, 2026 09:35 amAlthough not entirely new (made in October 2025) both communities are unused as of yet, due to most of the fandom being on other platforms. Feel free to join whether you're a casual fan, or if it's your favourite film of all time, or if you're somewhere in between!
The Snake Prince and Other Stories
Mar. 16th, 2026 10:46 amThe Snake Prince and Other Stories: Burmese Folk Tales by Edna Ledgard
A varied collection. I think a little overwritten, but the tales are a new slice, fitting a new culture. Fairy tales, including a kind and unkind girls featuring a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and a unique take on burning the skin of the shape-shifted: the Naga prince is not killed but he is rendered mortal to live and grow old and die with his bride.
Also tales of fools and clever men, and animal tales.
Most are recognizable types, but not close to other variants.
A varied collection. I think a little overwritten, but the tales are a new slice, fitting a new culture. Fairy tales, including a kind and unkind girls featuring a mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, and a unique take on burning the skin of the shape-shifted: the Naga prince is not killed but he is rendered mortal to live and grow old and die with his bride.
Also tales of fools and clever men, and animal tales.
Most are recognizable types, but not close to other variants.
PostSecret Ted Talk
Mar. 15th, 2026 12:06 amThe post PostSecret Ted Talk appeared first on PostSecret.
Annual TED Radio Hour – PostSecret
Mar. 15th, 2026 12:01 am

The post Annual TED Radio Hour – PostSecret appeared first on PostSecret.
galorechallenge | Round 14 is now open!
Mar. 14th, 2026 11:32 pmAlso once the round ends, we'll vote on our favorites by fandom & you can get a fancy award. Or if there is only 1 crossover for a particular fandom, it will move on to the next round.
While it is a multi-fandom challenge, and SO MANY fandoms are allowed, there are some restrictions, so check out the fandoms currently allowed.
Round 14 is open until June 30, 2026 @ 11:59 EST.
Rules & FAQ | Prompts | Submit New Prompts/Crossovers |
Performing some traffic maintenance today
Mar. 14th, 2026 01:04 pmHappy Saturday!
I'm going to be doing a little maintenance today. It will likely cause a tiny interruption of service (specifically for www.dreamwidth.org) on the order of 2-3 minutes while some settings propagate. If you're on a journal page, that should still work throughout!
If it doesn't work, the rollback plan is pretty quick, I'm just toggling a setting on how traffic gets to the site. I'll update this post if something goes wrong, but don't anticipate any interruption to be longer than 10 minutes even in a rollback situation.
Temples, Tombs & Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt
Mar. 13th, 2026 06:54 pmTemples, Tombs & Hieroglyphs: A Popular History of Ancient Egypt by Barbara Mertz
A light discussion of Egypt. Admittedly covering a long period of history and so necessarily cursory in place. Discusses what records we have and what archeological evidence we have found, and various Pharaohs and changes.
A light discussion of Egypt. Admittedly covering a long period of history and so necessarily cursory in place. Discusses what records we have and what archeological evidence we have found, and various Pharaohs and changes.
Wacky weather, work, FIL, books, etc
Mar. 13th, 2026 06:08 pmSo, we had this really wild spate of warm weather this week - we had temps of about 80F/26.6C several days in a row, right up through yesterday. We basically went from early March weather straight through to June, with sunny warmth Mon through Wed.
Then Thursday afternoon, it snowed.
Sigh.
I mean, it didn't snow a LOT. It came down good for a couple of hours, but because of the warmth earlier in the week, the snow didn't actually stick to much of anything except the grass and cars, and even then it was a thick dusting at most. But still - after traipsing around in shorts on Tuesday and Wed afternoons, it was really insulting.
In other news, my 92-year-old FIL is in the hospital. Both his legs started swelling over the weekend, resulting in wounds on both legs (since his skin is so thin these days, the swelling causes tears). Will took him to the cardiologist yesterday morning, but the doctor said he should probably go to the hospital for more thorough evaluation. The ER decided to admit him (although he didn't get an actual room for nearly 12 hours). They're still working out the best treatment for him aside from Lassie, but he's stable and in good spirits for now. Here's hoping they figure things out and he can be home again soon.
Work continues apace. I do feel like I'm reasonably in the groove, although there's definitely still some imposter syndrome going on. Because the librarian I've replaced is still too wrung out to handle her phone and return anyone's texts, more than 6 weeks after her surgery, I think it's likely I'll be finishing the school year. (The soonest she'd have returned was early May.) But that's just a guess. Anyway, I handled rescheduling our planned "author" visit ("Author" in quotes since he's actually a magician who does literacy/reading-themed magic shows for schools) - he was initially supposed to come on 24 Feb, right after we got 14"/30cm of snow, when school was cancelled. The rescheduled event was Thurs, and it went well. I've also started the process of getting ready for the annual summer reading challenge, which I would have had to do, regardless, as the challenge always kicks off in early May, and thus would have to be fully up and running even if the librarian DID come back then.
But I am also EXHAUSTED. Oof.
I finished watching Bridgerton S4. I enjoyed it very much, although I admit to being a bit disappointed by ( minor spoiler under here )
On to books!
15. Every Step She Takes by Alison Cochrun ( Woman trying to figure out her sexuality ends up on a queer Camino and falls in love )
16. That Self-Same Metal by Brittany N Williams (audio)
( Teen Black girl in Shakespearean England comes from line of African supernatural beings, so everyone in her family has secret powers. )
17. Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim (audio)
( Asian mythology remixed with Hans Christian Anderson's The Wild Swans )
18. Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid
*coughcough* I'm pretty sure most of you know what this is about already, but just in case: Half-Asian Canadian hockey star secretly hooks up with his main rival, a Russian-born player for an American team. They accidentally fall in love along the way. Having both seen the TV series and now read the book, I can say that the visual version is HIGHLY faithful to the printed version. Very enjoyable brain candy, especially if you like m/m spice.
19. The Power of One* by Bryce Courtenay (audio)
( English boy grows up in 1940s and 50s South Africa, overcomes childhood trauma, dreams of being a champion boxer, befriends both blacks and whites (and among whites, both English and )
In the meantime: Happy 6th anniversary of the day the world ended. :-P
Then Thursday afternoon, it snowed.
Sigh.
I mean, it didn't snow a LOT. It came down good for a couple of hours, but because of the warmth earlier in the week, the snow didn't actually stick to much of anything except the grass and cars, and even then it was a thick dusting at most. But still - after traipsing around in shorts on Tuesday and Wed afternoons, it was really insulting.
In other news, my 92-year-old FIL is in the hospital. Both his legs started swelling over the weekend, resulting in wounds on both legs (since his skin is so thin these days, the swelling causes tears). Will took him to the cardiologist yesterday morning, but the doctor said he should probably go to the hospital for more thorough evaluation. The ER decided to admit him (although he didn't get an actual room for nearly 12 hours). They're still working out the best treatment for him aside from Lassie, but he's stable and in good spirits for now. Here's hoping they figure things out and he can be home again soon.
Work continues apace. I do feel like I'm reasonably in the groove, although there's definitely still some imposter syndrome going on. Because the librarian I've replaced is still too wrung out to handle her phone and return anyone's texts, more than 6 weeks after her surgery, I think it's likely I'll be finishing the school year. (The soonest she'd have returned was early May.) But that's just a guess. Anyway, I handled rescheduling our planned "author" visit ("Author" in quotes since he's actually a magician who does literacy/reading-themed magic shows for schools) - he was initially supposed to come on 24 Feb, right after we got 14"/30cm of snow, when school was cancelled. The rescheduled event was Thurs, and it went well. I've also started the process of getting ready for the annual summer reading challenge, which I would have had to do, regardless, as the challenge always kicks off in early May, and thus would have to be fully up and running even if the librarian DID come back then.
But I am also EXHAUSTED. Oof.
I finished watching Bridgerton S4. I enjoyed it very much, although I admit to being a bit disappointed by ( minor spoiler under here )
On to books!
15. Every Step She Takes by Alison Cochrun ( Woman trying to figure out her sexuality ends up on a queer Camino and falls in love )
16. That Self-Same Metal by Brittany N Williams (audio)
( Teen Black girl in Shakespearean England comes from line of African supernatural beings, so everyone in her family has secret powers. )
17. Six Crimson Cranes by Elizabeth Lim (audio)
( Asian mythology remixed with Hans Christian Anderson's The Wild Swans )
18. Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid
*coughcough* I'm pretty sure most of you know what this is about already, but just in case: Half-Asian Canadian hockey star secretly hooks up with his main rival, a Russian-born player for an American team. They accidentally fall in love along the way. Having both seen the TV series and now read the book, I can say that the visual version is HIGHLY faithful to the printed version. Very enjoyable brain candy, especially if you like m/m spice.
19. The Power of One* by Bryce Courtenay (audio)
( English boy grows up in 1940s and 50s South Africa, overcomes childhood trauma, dreams of being a champion boxer, befriends both blacks and whites (and among whites, both English and )
In the meantime: Happy 6th anniversary of the day the world ended. :-P
2026 52 Card Project: Week 10: Manager
Mar. 13th, 2026 01:18 pmAs I have referred to obliquely before, I am Doing Something with regard to the events in Minneapolis/St. Paul.

I was pulled in as a volunteer, oh, perhaps a month and a half ago. I was asked to set up the project, and despite my genuine nervousness at the responsibility I was handed, I did. I analyzed what needed to get done, wrote documentation to describe the process, and handled it alone for three days. Then more volunteers were added, and I was asked to train them. Then the team was doubled again, and I had to train them, too, and incorporate them into the team. Then I had to set up a couple of subteams, hold standup meetings, and start thinking about process, team building, donor relations, technological security, resource sharing, and budget.
Rather to my astonishment, now that I have retired, I have become for the first time in my career, no kidding, an actual manager, overseeing a team of ten people.
Over the last week, things have ratcheted up, and the phrase "It's like herding cats" has definitely floated across my mind.
I've been told I'm rather good at it. But it's a bit daunting. I'm definitely spending more hours at it than I spent at my job at the Synod.
Wow. I'm an actual manager. Who knew?
Image description: Lower third: a double monitor showing a world map, and a hand holding a phone, also showing a map. Center: a hand holds a marker writing the words "Project Planning" in red letters. Just below stands a row of cats, lurching forward in an uneven line. Upper right: a partial view of a woman with the word "Manager" superimposed over her. Upper left: Signal icon.
Manager

Click on the links to see the 2026, 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021 52 Card Project galleries.

I was pulled in as a volunteer, oh, perhaps a month and a half ago. I was asked to set up the project, and despite my genuine nervousness at the responsibility I was handed, I did. I analyzed what needed to get done, wrote documentation to describe the process, and handled it alone for three days. Then more volunteers were added, and I was asked to train them. Then the team was doubled again, and I had to train them, too, and incorporate them into the team. Then I had to set up a couple of subteams, hold standup meetings, and start thinking about process, team building, donor relations, technological security, resource sharing, and budget.
Rather to my astonishment, now that I have retired, I have become for the first time in my career, no kidding, an actual manager, overseeing a team of ten people.
Over the last week, things have ratcheted up, and the phrase "It's like herding cats" has definitely floated across my mind.
I've been told I'm rather good at it. But it's a bit daunting. I'm definitely spending more hours at it than I spent at my job at the Synod.
Wow. I'm an actual manager. Who knew?
Image description: Lower third: a double monitor showing a world map, and a hand holding a phone, also showing a map. Center: a hand holds a marker writing the words "Project Planning" in red letters. Just below stands a row of cats, lurching forward in an uneven line. Upper right: a partial view of a woman with the word "Manager" superimposed over her. Upper left: Signal icon.

Click on the links to see the 2026, 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022 and 2021 52 Card Project galleries.







































