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choose joy

@nrivanwrites / nrivanwrites.tumblr.com

a tiny writeblr ; follows from @birdfrenchforbird ; ro, they/them ; please tag me in your wips i beg of you!

did anyone ask for a SUPER LONG writeblr/wip intro?

my name is Ro, I'm 23 years old, and I currently work full-time as an optician while I juggle approximately a dozen projects. please please PLEASE tag me in your projects, tag games, whatever. I love to look at things :)

here's a handful of my current projects. let me know if anyone wants to be on a gen/specific tag list!

THE LAST LORINEAN

epic fantasy, draft 3.2

A marathon of a project, spawning from an absentminded idea in 2011. While the central cast has undergone some face-lifts over the years, the bones have remained somewhat unchanged. There's probably a million drafts of this out there, but we'll call my current one the third big effort to get the story written.

Found family, magical road-trip, and laying the foundations for an interconnected multi-series exploration of the universe in which it's set.

Those born on the Aronian continent do not dream, long-cursed by the Witch Queen of the previous age. The dream-weaving Lorineans, who once provided a reprieve from the curse to the Aronian people, conspired against the kingdom and earned their eradication at the hands of the now-immortal Emperor. The empire now lives in dreamless peace, a united force of human, elven, and faerie kingdoms.
In the rural south of the Empire, Lilliana Karington has been living a quiet life. Unbeknownst to her, a Lorinean has been hitching a ride on her soul for her entire life—a secret that will send her on the run. She is joined by a fugitive by the name of Sadene from the faerie kingdom of Kyrania who carries secrets of her own, secrets that could topple the Kyranian monarchy and pantheon both.
With Imperial soldiers and Sadene's twin brother on their heels, Lilli must learn to trust the Lorinean she is bound to if she is ever to find a way to return to her peaceful life. But as she learns more about the secrets her Empire hides, the harder it will be to find peace ever again.

THE DAUGHTER OF DENMARK

historical fantasy, draft 3

a.k.a. I played Hamlet seven years ago and now it's everyone's problem. A novelization/reimagining of Hamlet through the lens of gender, queerness, and what a religious conflict means when there is concrete memory of Denmark's pre-Christian heritage. However, please don't expect historical accuracy from this project. It's about vibes.

Court intrigue, love quadrangles, repressed trauma, tragedy… y'know, the Shakespeare of it all.

Hamlet has known what her life was meant to be from the very moment she was born. Named a Ragnarson to ensure her claim to the Danish throne, she has been sheparded by her kind-hearted father and traditional German mother towards the title and burden of King.
When a hunting accident brings Hamlet near death, she is sent to her mother's old university for safety, far from the politics of Denmark. The things she saw in the world between life and death haunt Hamlet between her studies and blossoming friendships.
All too soon, Hamlet is called back to Denmark, where a dark shadow has robbed her of all she once knew. Through madness and memory, she must spiral to the end of a story that was written long ago.

PROJECT: ATLANTIS

epic sci-fantasy, outlining

Inspired by a Google+ roleplay group the two of us were members of in 2014-2019, a friend and I have been building a world and narrative that stretches years of cowriting. We are slowly finding a way to adapt our work into novelizations. One day, we'll even come up with a title!

Political intrigue, vast worldbuilding, and a web of characters spanning one end of the world to the other. Featuring a conlang and neography!

After fifteen years of tenuous peace in Atlantis, the question of succession has risen again. Faolan Althaea is of age to take her family's throne, but the banished descendants of Faolan Agallai have retained their influences in the dark, and they are ready to make another bid for the throne. Althaea is thrust headfirst into the boiling conflict, and she must learn fast which faces to trust.
On the other side of a once dormant portal, Faolan Illyrius is paying the price for rescinding his claim to the coveted throne. The godless, ransacked world of Aegina—known as Earth to its inhabitants, the aeg'oroi—is hiding knowledge that could turn the tides of the Faolan and Agallai conflict, and he is the one who must get his hands dirty to find it.
The Agallai loyalists have not been dormant since orchestrating the death of Althaea's parents. They have gathered supporters of a new generation, preying on the aeg'oroi that regent Priar Arsina, ruling in Althaea's stead for the last fifteen years, is so determined to alienate. As the succession crisis comes to a head, loyalist agents vie for control over the portal connecting Atlantis to the aeg'oroi homeland.
Something dark lurks in the shadows of Entropy connecting these two worlds. The gods have fallen silent, and their people are divided. Will Atlantis stand, or will sickness devour it all?

ON THE PRECIPICE OF THE UNIVERSE

narrative sci-fi poetry, final draft

Return of the king… because I am going to be self-publishing her! I am starting a fresh round of edits and will be looking for some beta readers soon. Mostly need a vibe check on the amount/length of poems and general format. Then comes cover design (will be commissioning a college friend), page design, and figuring out how the hell I'm gonna do this!

Sentient spaceships, loneliness, and the great unknown.

When the last war broke out on Earth's surface, the spaceships launched. No one expected the fires to reach high enough to knock the entire fleet out of the sky—save one, a sole survivor drifting onwards to a new planet.
Years later, only one of the ship's passengers remains alive, going through the motions of the day without fail. The last human alive cleans the vents and weeds the hydroponic gardens. And, they write, chronicling the little life they have left to live.

OEDIPUS REGINA

tragedy, draft one

Apparently, I am allergic to writing a play about anything but the ancient Greeks. Yet another gender reimagining! This came at the request of some college friends who acted in The Kassandriad and have done some readings of my other Greek plays. Still debating if I will be swapping the masculine and feminine for the names.

Cycles of fate, inherited trauma, and the inherent eroticism of riddles.

Oedipus, princess of Corinth, is a young woman when she hears the prophecy that she kill her mother and bed her father. She flees the home she has always known and finds herself in Thebes, a city living in the shadow of a sphynx and the absence of their queen. The childless, widower king takes an interest in her; an interest that sets in motion a cacophony of disasters for the Theban throne.

EAT HER HEART OUT

drama, draft one

Guess what. It's a reimagining of a Greek myth. Who is surprised. This one is taking a look at the Homeric Hymn to Demeter—and yes, I am aware of how many Persephone retellings there are in the world. Leave me alone. What if I'm built different (I'm not).

Motherhood, dependence/independence, and unreliable narrators.

We visit three worlds: of the gods, where Demeter searches for her daughter and Persephone toils in the Underworld; of the mortals, where Demeter hides among a mortal family during her endless winter; and of the Muses, who tell the story à la true crime podcast. The lines intertwine and an old story is made new (again).
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daughter of denmark ; playlist

i'm procrastinating. no one tell my roommate that follows me on tumblr and knows where i sleep. some lyric highlights below :)

Spare the Wicked - Hezekiah Jones You’re a hungry ghost with a taste for your past Your appetites are backwards, you better change course fast A quick dry wash keeps a clean glass Where a holy rolling ocean needs a solid sailed mast (shout out to @starsarefire824 for introducing ollie to this who then introduced it me)

Salt - Jordan Mackampa And whilst you were sleeping I sat in the dark With all of my offences The creases on my heart

Goodbye, My Danish Sweetheart - Mitski There's some kind of burning inside me It's kept me from falling apart And I'm sure that you've seen what it's done to my heart But it's kept me from falling apart

First I'm Sorry - Haley Heynderickx Mother knows I drown in my lies Father knows I learned my lessons the second time Ask me where I'll go I'll say I do not know No, I do not know

a couple years ago the eric carle museum of picture book art had an exhibit on diane & leo dillon who are responsible for so many iconic illustrations. i went back twice just to see the collection again. this is a sliver of their work— it’s hard to find high res images.

writing share tag

i got tagged @zmwrites so i'm gonna throw out a flashback scene from daughter of denmark

Gertrude’s eyes were red from lack of sleep or tears or both. She left the bible face down on her chair and rushed to Hamlet, kneeling at the side of her bed. “Darling,” she said, speaking in a hushed German. “How are you feeling?” “My head hurts. And it hurts here.” Hamlet tried to move her hand to press against the ache in her chest, but her mother intertwined their fingers together and held fast. She tutted under her breath, smoothing loose strands of hair out of Hamlet’s face and bringing a damp towel to wipe at the crust that formed in her eyes. “There was a deer,” Hamlet whispered. A face of bone and magic flashes in her memory. “I saw a deer.” “You are safe now, I promise,” Gertrude replied, not knowing how to listen. She began braiding her daughter’s hair, gentle and slow as not to tug at the scalp. Hamlet fell back to sleep with the repetitive motion.

tagging @souverian-are-we @raevenlywrites @gossamergrove and whoever wants to do this!

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writing share tag

I was tagged by @space-writes! Thank you!

Here's a bit from Second Chances WIP bc that's the only thing I've worked on recently:

“Talea!” She threw her arms around her and squeezed her in the tightest hug Talea had ever received. “Are you okay? Are you hurt? Am I hurting you?” “Hi Edith.” Talea patted her back. “I’m okay. I’m alive.” She pulled back far enough to inspect her. “I was really worried.” “I’m sorry.” “For what? Saving me from that creature?” Edith shook her head. “Don’t be silly.” “Now that your sister is awake, I hope you’ll be able to give us more details about what happened,” Lord Blackbriar said. “Of course. Thank you for your patience,” she replied earnestly. He nodded and excused himself, clicking the door shut behind him.  Edith’s sweet earnestness dropped. “Talea, what the fuck happened out there?”

Edith and Talea are half-sisters and don't really know how to be sisters, but they know that they have to stick together at this point.

I tag @sleepyowlwrites, @ace-malarky, @nrivanwrites, and anyone else who wants to play! As always, no pressure!

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  • WIP updates ⋆˙⟡🪶─ .✦📜⊹₊ ݁.

⋆.˚ ✶ BIG ANNOUNCEMENT ✶⋆.˚

Ohagi and I have decided to make a new blog for The Chrysalis! It will be run by the both of us, and we’ll keep everything on there solely focused on the story. You can still expect rambles and the occasional drabble on our separate blogs, but everything else will shortly be moved over onto our alt.

If anyone wants to still keep up with the story, you can go follow:
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Ages (a month) ago @nrivanwrites tagged me for the Nine Lines, Nine People writer thingy.

Sorry it took so long!

from a Star Wars fic

In the end there is the door and the plinth, still the same as it was when he first saw it. No dust covers the surfaces of the room, no plant has yellowed and died. With sure feet Cody steps through the door and then, finally, he holds [redacted] and [redacted] in his hand again. The faint blue glow at the edges of his sight doesn't surprise him.

and Soft Wars OCxOC thingy

"I liked that story about the Bin Nuna." A pause. "Very funny." The rhythmic woosh of the light rail underlines the silence between them. Awkwardly, she shifts in the seat, fold her hands over each other, tries again. "They make good eating."

I have been away from the writer side of tumblr and my dash for too long and don't remember who still writes.

If you do and have even the slightest desire to participate in the Nine Lines, Nine People tag game, please, feel free to share something of your writing!

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daughter of denmark ; playlist

i'm procrastinating. no one tell my roommate that follows me on tumblr and knows where i sleep. some lyric highlights below :)

Spare the Wicked - Hezekiah Jones You’re a hungry ghost with a taste for your past Your appetites are backwards, you better change course fast A quick dry wash keeps a clean glass Where a holy rolling ocean needs a solid sailed mast (shout out to @starsarefire824 for introducing ollie to this who then introduced it me)

Salt - Jordan Mackampa And whilst you were sleeping I sat in the dark With all of my offences The creases on my heart

Goodbye, My Danish Sweetheart - Mitski There's some kind of burning inside me It's kept me from falling apart And I'm sure that you've seen what it's done to my heart But it's kept me from falling apart

First I'm Sorry - Haley Heynderickx Mother knows I drown in my lies Father knows I learned my lessons the second time Ask me where I'll go I'll say I do not know No, I do not know

daughter of denmark ; playlist

i'm procrastinating. no one tell my roommate that follows me on tumblr and knows where i sleep. some lyric highlights below :)

Spare the Wicked - Hezekiah Jones You’re a hungry ghost with a taste for your past Your appetites are backwards, you better change course fast A quick dry wash keeps a clean glass Where a holy rolling ocean needs a solid sailed mast (shout out to @starsarefire824 for introducing ollie to this who then introduced it me)

Salt - Jordan Mackampa And whilst you were sleeping I sat in the dark With all of my offences The creases on my heart

Goodbye, My Danish Sweetheart - Mitski There's some kind of burning inside me It's kept me from falling apart And I'm sure that you've seen what it's done to my heart But it's kept me from falling apart

First I'm Sorry - Haley Heynderickx Mother knows I drown in my lies Father knows I learned my lessons the second time Ask me where I'll go I'll say I do not know No, I do not know

"problem plays" this "romances" that I'm proposing new and exciting Shakespearean Play Groupings for your amusement!

  • The Bad Dad Triad: King Lear, Henry IV Part 1, Romeo and Juliet
  • The "My Wife's A Floozy" Trifecta: Othello, Much Ado About Nothing, the Winter's Tale
  • The "Me And My Shitty Little Minion Are About To Fuck Up Your Shit Hardcore" Trilogy: A Midsummer Night's Dream, Richard III, the Tempest
  • The Falstaffiad: Henry IV part 1, Henry IV part 2, The Merry Wives of Windsor
  • The "Holy Fuck There's Two of 'Em" Saga: Twelfth Night, the Comedy of Errors
  • The "Dear Diary My Homoerotic Bullshit Has A Body Count Now" Series: Richard II, Julius Caesar, Coriolanus
  • The "Why Are The Fucking Trees Trying To Kill Me. Hate This Shit" Trilogy: Macbeth, the Winter's Tale, As You Like It

A few more for the road. Why not

  • "Somebody Call Ghostbusters!": Hamlet, Richard III, Macbeth, Julius Caesar
  • "This Protagonist Sucks So Much Not Even In A Funny Way I Hate This Guy For Real": The Merchant of Venice, Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Taming of the Shrew
  • "Kill Claudio. Many Such Cases": Much Ado About Nothing, Measure for Measure, Hamlet*
  • "Is It Really Shakespeare Unless The Protagonist Is Drenched In Blood 25/8? I Put It To You": Titus Andronicus, Richard III, Coriolanus
  • "And Then Some Fucker Named Sebastian Got Shipwrecked And Caused Problems": Twelfth Night, The Tempest

*Close enough

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over six months after moving i realized that i am close enough to chicago that i can submit plays to theatres in the city..... dumb of ass

going through my own tag and found this post. I FORGOT..THAT I CAN REALISTICALLY SUBMIT TO CHICAGO. dumb of ass!!!

writing in the middle of the night is always such a gamble. who knows what I'll come up with? a masterpiece, so gut-wrenchingly beautiful that it'll leave you questioning the meaning of life? indecipherable gibberish, sentences so oddly structured that there's no way to tell where tf I was trying to go with them? best of luck to future me, she's gonna have one hell of a time finding out.

it's rotten work, but without the rot nothing can grow

it's rotten work but decay is an essential part of the cycle of death and rebirth

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