nickelmountain

This month has been kicking my ass. A big chunk of that is school/internship related, some of it is more personal/emotional, but what it comes down to here is me not being around much recently. Which, I know - practically every non-podfic post I make has to do with me not being around much. :/

But! I've been carving out some fannish time in bits and pieces (I believe the technical term is "self care"), and I thought I'd share what I've been into lately. (By lately, I mean within the last few months.) 


( Star Trek: Deep Space Nine )



( The Vorkosigan Saga )



( Parks and Recreation )



( Fringe )



( Supernatural )



( The Walking Dead )



( Other stuff )

Man, fuck school. Who needs a career? Why do I want to "help people" anyway? I just want to sit around watching TV and movies, reading books and comic books, and living in a neverending field of fannish squee. WHO'S WITH ME?

I recorded six short podfics for the Awesome Ladies Podfic Anthology II at halfamoon this year. Serious props are due to all the mods and betas involved in putting this thing together, and I strongly encourage all of you to set aside some time to really look at that cover art. It's amazing.

I haven't had the chance to listen to the anthology yet, but I'm so excited to see so many incredible readers voicing the work of so many amazing authors. I absolutely loved listening to last year's anthology, and I cannot wait to dive into this year's.

If you listen closely to the stories that I chose this year, you might determine: a) that I'm really into waffles, or; b) that I'm really into canons in which terrible, violent acts are inflicted on women. I guess both must be true. I love waffles and female friendship (and female more-than-friendship), but I'm also really interested in stories of survival and resilience. I love tough-minded women, and I love them all the more for their flaws, their hurts, and their humanity.

The stories are listed below. Links to the entire anthology in m4b and mp3 format are available through the main post (linked to above), as are links to all the individual mp3s. The links below are to the mp3s on box.com, where you can download or stream any of these podfics.


( I'm running a race and these are the fics I read )


It was interesting to notice the pattern in my preferences exemplified by these six podfics. I'd never really thought much about exactly how much the theme of violence against women threads through so many of my favorite shows, books, and movies. Maybe, as Emily Prentiss might point out, it's just that violence against women is ubiquitous. Maybe it's not that I like stories in which women get hurt - maybe it's that there are so few out there in which women don't get hurt. Maybe that's exactly why I'm so in love with Leslie Knope. She's smart and funny and capable, and she pursues her goals with a dogged feminism and optimism that defies you not to root for her. Don't get me wrong, I like stories in which women survive and thrive, but there's something so refreshing about a woman like Leslie, whose success story doesn't have to include a chapter in which she overcomes violence and pain. 

Anyway. These thoughts are half-formed, and need more time to gel. I'll write more about this later. I hope you like these six stories as much as I did, and I encourage you to check out the entire anthology. Awesome Ladies are awesome, indeed.