oyceter | (no subject)

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Bored, therefore:

Everyone has things they blog about. Everyone has things they don't blog about. Challenge me out of my comfort zone by telling me something I don't blog about, but you'd like to hear about, and I'll write a post about it. Ask for anything: latest movie watched, last book read, political leanings, thoughts on yaoi, favorite type of underwear, graphic techniques, etc. Repost in your own journal if you are so inclined.

Er, given my horrible track record on these things, no promises, though I will definitely keep topics in mind!

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FASHION!!!

Um, but only if you want to. Fer instance, favorite fashions? Eras? Where would you recommend buying a new favorite shirt? Shoes? Any favorite fashion indulgences? Etc!

You already post about pretty much everything I want to see. How about... childhood ambition(s). It's always interesting to see how differently people's lives turn out from their early expectations.

I've heard so many thoughts on this lately, I'd be interested in yours also. Why do you think that many women (me too) like m/m slash fiction?

That'd be fun.

Do you ever read mysteries?

When I was a kid, my ambition was to never grow up! I didn't want to stop make-believe or stories and have to enter the real world and deal with bills and whatnot. I was particularly freaked out because I had no ambitions and thought I would be a total failure at life. This sounds rather sad, typing it out, but it's true....

Now that I am (sort of) grown up, I have discovered that I don't have to stop make-believing or reading fun stories, and that dealing with bills sucks, but it means I can finance my own hobbies. I'm getting into a career that I'm enjoying, though it was something I never would have thought of as a kid, and it has been a nice surprise to realize I am not, in fact, a failure at Real Life.

Aiiiee! Hard question!

I... don't really have an answer. I am not a slasher in that I only read slash and/or yaoi, though I do read it and like it. For me, it depends a lot on the source material or the characterization for original yaoi.

I know some people like the non-heterosexuality, or the ability to be free of gender roles, or being able to see men in a more vulnerable position.

I've also read arguments countering all of the above.

I think some stories do focus on non-heterosexuality or non-gender roles, but others don't. It depends on the story.

Soooo.... I don't know. I generally go with "read what I want to read, but also keep an eye out on gender stuff and check to see if I'm neglecting the female characters for the male ones."

Really rarely. As you may have noticed, Bob-Oracne, I have zero plot brain, which makes reading mysteries somewhat difficult ;). I generally find I'm not particularly invested in who-did-what or what-actually-happened. I bounced pretty hard off Sayers, with the exception of Gaudy Night.

On the other hand, I'll read them if I like the characters, which is how I read Sarah Smith, Lindsay Davis, and Janet Evanovich. Though I had a more difficult time getting into the Davis because of the plot-heaviness. I think I tend to like mysteries more when they're combined with other genres, like romance or sff.

That's really sweet, I was pretty sure that most people couldn't wait to grow up. I thought that it made you capable and responsible and was generally entirely different from being a child.

Me, too, though I love Sayers for Peter even in his early, somewhat flat-character stages...ditto Ngaio Marsh and Margery Allingham and P.D. James, all of which I read when I was younger.

I want to hear more about Janet Evanovitch, now.

Hrm, what do they write about? I have also been meaning to try Dick Francis for a while, per Rachel's rec, because while I am blah about plot, I like details about different jobs and/or hobbies.

Though that still doesn't explain why I bounced off Murder Must Advertise.

http://oyceter.livejournal.com/tag/a:+evanovich+janet

Yay obsessive tagging?

I read those pretty long ago though, so I don't quite remember. I really loved the first book and ended up buying it, but I think I went through the series too quickly and burnt out.

Also, I like Morelli more than Ranger ;).

Dick Francis is more suspense than mystery, I feel, and the details thing is really great (though some of the oldest ones might bug you for gender issues, like ENQUIRY, which is otherwise great).

Marsh and Allingham are fairly simple, short British mysteries, but both wrote series with ongoing characters. Marsh had some set in New Zealand, where she lived, and some set during WWII, and some in theater settings, all of which were interesting, though there are racial issues in some of hers. Allingham did the Campion series, which is a bit more spies than policework some of the time, and there're even a couple that are science-fictiony. If you don't like mysteries in general, you might not like these, as they are generally considered exemplars of the genre. Both have been adapted for television at different times.

P.D. James' novels are more complex, most of them following the rather dour and depressed policeman/poet Adam Dalgliesh. I think they're characterized as police procedurals. They're not cheery books, but I found them absorbing, back when I read them in the 80s.

I read 2-3 of these in quick succession, then stopped abruptly because it seemed like the same book over and over again.

Yeah, me too.

Ooo clothes! I love clothes, though lately I haven't had that much fun shopping because of weight gain. I also just discovered the joys of Zappos, free overnight delivery, and free returns. For work stuff, I usually go check out Ann Taylor and Ann Taylor Loft because they have good sales.

Favorite fashions! I have a horrible love of oversized, dolman-sleeved, off-the-shoulder eighties shirts. And giant circle skirts. And fuck-me high heels, though I can't wear them. And lace-up boots. And forties dresses. And little perchy hats, even though I don't wear hats. And bell sleeves. And things with waist shaping. And embroidery and lots of details and shaping.

Eras: oooo hard. I like so many of them! Every time I think I don't (80s!), I will see something I like. Although the modern era of my heart is probably the 1950s. And then I love Tang dynasty and chipao and kimono and Meiji Japan schoolgirls in hakama and Restoration-era clothes (so over the top! Wigs! Pumps! Pastels!). For some reason, I'm not that into Regency style.

I really need to read the five books on hanbok that I borrowed!

That's sort of where I'm at with her now. I liked that book, but there's only so many I need to read in a lifetime.

Whee!

My mom does too. I'm more of a Ranger girl. I think you could probably do some very funny personality analysis based on who women pick.

morelli girls unite :)

I saw a manga at the comic store today called Fujoshi Rumi about a romance involving a girl yaoi fan. I only failed to get it because I felt guilty about buying books before moving.

Hrm ok. I seem to do better with suspense than mystery. Oh, I also really bounced off a Peter Dickinson mystery (police procedural?), so maybe there is something about the lack of suspense? No clue.

Awesome!

If I were you, I'd stick with trying Francis.

Gotcha, thanks for the tip.

lady_ganesh just asked me this, and I must spread the pain!

What are the five worst books you ever read? In at least one sentence each, explain why they were so horrible.

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