olivermoss | Network

The July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl made its $200 goal, so you get a free epic. Everyone is eligible to vote in this poll. I will keep it open at least until Monday night. If there's a clear answer then, I'll close it. Otherwise I may leave it open a little longer.

Here are your options:

"Meeting in the Middle"
Kan Ying sees through the lies of the Parthians and makes his way to Rome.
76 lines

"Once the Avalanche Has Begun"
A foolish choice in a neighboring town makes life challenging for Shaeth's followers.
70 lines

Poll #33354 Free Epic for the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 0

View Respondents

Which of these should be the free epic?

View Answers

"Meeting in the Middle"
0 (0.0%)

"Once the Avalanche Has Begun"
0 (0.0%)

Current Mood: busy

Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House

Journaling: What is making you smile these days? Create a top 10 list of anything you want to talk about.

Creative: Write from the perspective of a house or other location.

Post your answer to today’s challenge in your own space and leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so!

( Read more... )

Current Mood: accomplished

This poem was written for the Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House. It also fills the "silver / gold" square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo Fest.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

This session's theme was "Weaponized Incompetence and Malicious Compliance." I wrote from 12:30 PM to 4:30 AM, so about 14 hours, accounting for breaks. I wrote 3 poems on Tuesday and another 6 later in the week.

Participation was variable, with 10 comments on LiveJournal and another 32 on Dreamwidth. A total of 12 people sent prompts.

Read Some Poetry!
The following poems from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl have been posted:
"Always Surprised by Consequences"
"Incompetence, Sloppy Thinking, and Laziness"
"No Such Thing as Finished"
"The Pleasure of Escaping the Responsibility"
"Provoking Change by Bringing Nature"

"An Interest in the Affairs of Your Government" (Polychrome Heroics March 4, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl)
"Tomato Seedlings in Tin Cans" (Daughters of the Apocalypse, June 3, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl)

Buy some poetry!
If you plan to sponsor some poetry but haven't made up your mind yet, see the unsold poetry list from July 1. That includes the title, length, price, and the original thumbnail description for the poems still available.

This session's donors include:

janetmiles,

fuzzyred, and Anthony Barrette. All sponsored poems from this fishbowl have been posted. There are 4 tallies, so there will be a bonus fishbowl on Tuesday, July 15.

The Poetry Fishbowl has a landing page.

Current Mood: busy

2025/106: Moira's Pen — Megan Whalen Turner

He should have recognised the danger when the king insisted on a formal introduction every time they met, forcing his sullen attendants to recite the diplomatic courtesies again and again, always with the pretense of never having heard them before, always with that same look of gleeful idiocy on his face. Beyond petty, beyond tedious, it was ridiculous. What kind of a king makes a mockery of himself? Melheret wished he'd seen the answer sooner... Only a king who was very sure of himself could afford to be laughed at. ['Melheret's Earrings, p.124]

A collection of short stories woven in and around the canon of the Queen's Thief series (which I have recently devoured and fallen in love with) plus maps, essays on archaeology and historical inspirations, and some beautiful illustrations. I'd read some of the stories and essays before, appended to the novels, but it is nice to have them all in one place. Even if that place is a hardcover book...

( Read more... )

Current Mood: calm

The following poems from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl are currently available. Poems may be sponsored via PayPal -- there's a permanent donation button on my Dreamwidth profile page -- or you can write to me and discuss other methods. There are still verses left in the linkback poems "Delight in Another," "A Sense of Weather Changes," "Ouroboros Insects," "The Loving Embrace of Night," "Generations of Cooks Past," "Homefree and Clear, " "One Bite at a Time," "Stars and Diamonds," "Mishpocha," "Changing Your Nature," and "Besa."

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

This poem is spillover from the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl. It is posted here as the second freebie, courtesy of new prompter

gothfvck. It was inspired by a prompt from

see_also_friend. It also fills the "bad girls" square in my 7-1-25 card for the Western Bingo Fest.

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

1. I finished another of these 300 piece Disneyland anniversary puzzles from the multipack. This one went much faster than the Mickey head shaped one, but was still fun.

2. Tonight we saw Paul F. Thompkins' Varietopia again and it was a lot of fun.

( Read more... )

3. New favorite picture of Molly.

🎵 All Time Low, “Dear Maria, Count Me In“

Leave a comment.⁺

In tonight's game, ( the rest under a cut for those who don't care. )

And that's where we left off.

Current Mood: accomplished

2. 35-billion-year-old Moon rock found in Africa rewrites lunar history

A 2.35-billion-year-old Moon rock that fell to Earth in Africa is rewriting what we know about lunar volcanism. This rare meteorite, studied by UK scientists and unveiled at a major geochemistry conference, reveals that the Moon was volcanically active far longer than previously thought. With a unique chemical makeup and an age that bridges a billion-year gap in Moon rock samples, it suggests the Moon had internal heat sources that persisted for ages.

Current Mood: busy

I've been talking about placemaking with a friend, and how to connect the dots with different activities...

( Read more... )

Current Mood: busy

I am sad. This is the second time in 6 weeks when I've run into a changing deadline from a publisher. I had finished a story I was pretty happy with. The pay for this open call was high. I KNOW the deadline because I checked it repeatedly. Got the beta edits back, checked to triple check the word count...and the date is changed. It's frustrating. It feels like a waste of everyone's time. Yes, I can probably find another open call this will fit eventually but this bullshit of closing early and changing deadlines sucks.

I'm trying to see it from their point of view. Maybe they have SO many submissions they can't handle it and close early. Still, I can't be checking every day to places I plan to submit to see if this is going on. Most of these publishers don't have blogs. Maybe they tell duotrope or another service something they're making a change but I don't know. You can't watch them all.

How do you all keep track of deadlines/places you're interested in?

Not the writerly ways i planned to give but this is what you're getting

Open Calls

Odysseus Odysseus from Greek Mythology

Horrorsmith’s Teen Forge Novel Line Young Adult speculative fiction of any genre

Baubles From Bones July 2025 Window Fiction that broadly falls in the realm of science fiction and fantasy

Dark Waters Volume 3 Whatever “dark waters” means to you – stories of trepidation, the unknown, the dangerous, the creepy, the suspenseful.

Space and Time July 2025 Window Stories with speculative elements

5 Paying Literary Magazines to Submit to in July 2025

39 Themed Submission Calls and Contests for July 2025

From Around the web

Why Intentional Storytelling Matters in an Era of AI and Algorithm-Driven Content

One Author, Many Faces: Managing Multiple Identities

What Isn’t Said Still Screams: Writing Subtext in Horror Fiction

Ambiguity and the Horror of the Unknown

The Art of Rewriting: Where Good Writing Goes to Die (and Get Resurrected)

How Niche Authors Can Use Long-Tail Keywords in Metadata

How to Recognize and Avoid Book Scams

How to Achieve Great Character Development in Your Story

From Betty

How to Deal With a Powerful Faction Helping Team Good

Six Tips for Doing More With Less

Why I Stopped Chasing Algorithms and Started Creating Experiences

Sovereignty: Owning Your Voice is the Ultimate Power Move

Write an Unforgettable First Line

The Star Does All The Good Stuff

How to Find Symbols in Your Settings

Three Hidden Reasons Writers Procrastinate

The Backwards Law for Writers

Moral Rights: What Writers Need to Know

How to weave more voice into a query letter

Professional Development for Writers

Writing a Meaningful Book Review

Current Mood: aggravated
Current Music: Star Trek OS

This is your check-in post for today. The poll will be open from midnight Universal or Zulu Time (8pm Eastern Time) on Sunday, July 13, to midnight on Monday, July 14 (8pm Eastern Time).

Poll #33352 Daily check-in poll

Open to: Access List, detailed results viewable to: Access List, participants: 15

How are you doing?

I am OK
10 (71.4%)

I am not OK, but don't need help right now
4 (28.6%)

I could use some help
0 (0.0%)

How many other humans live with you?

I am living single
4 (26.7%)

One other person
9 (60.0%)

More than one other person
2 (13.3%)

Please, talk about how things are going for you in the comments, ask for advice or help if you need it, or just discuss whatever you feel like.

Soon after I moved to the Bay Area, probably recommended by my knowledgeable housemate, probably at the then-independent Bill's Drugs which is now a CVS, I purchased small metal needle-sharp tweezers in a small plastic tube with a metal cap.

Thirty-mumble years later, the plastic tube is somewhat cracked, but the tweezers were recently as useful as ever to extract first a ceramic splinter from my hand, and then a wood splinter from my foot.

I got curious and looked it up, and there is an old-style website unclebillstweezers.com with testimonials, and they come up as available for purchase on various sites, including Amazon. The Chamber of Commerce says that Uncle Bill's Tweezer Co is located nearby in Albany, CA.

Highly recommended! I don't use them often, but when I do, they are exactly what I need.

Dear Carolyn: I have an older sister, “Amy,” who was prettier and more outgoing than I was, so I kind of lived in her shadow, but I adored her and she was always my best friend growing up. Her sophomore year of college, I found out from a friend at her school that she was doing drugs and her boyfriend was a dealer. She’d secretly dropped half her courses and was barely passing the rest. I offered to find her some help, but she just ridiculed me. As things worsened, I was worried about her, so I told our parents. She lied and said I’d made the whole thing up because I was so jealous of her. My parents believed her and even said I might need therapy for telling a lie that big, until she was arrested a few months later and the whole truth came out.

For years following, she kept lying, stole so much money from me, wrecked my car and said/did many other horrible things to me. I moved away and cut her out of my life. She skipped out on her treatment program and got arrested again.

Last year, Amy completed rehab and is supposedly clean. She also had a baby last month, has minimal support from the father and is back living with my parents.

They want me to forgive and forget and be part of my nephew’s life, but I see it as insisting I give Amy another chance to hurt me. I still have so much resentment against her. I don’t want to take it out on her son, but I can’t stand the thought of being around her. She never apologized or tried to make amends for all she put me through, and I’m not sure I could ever trust her again. Is it even worth trying to be a part of my nephew’s life when I feel that way about his mom?
— Distrustful

( Read more... )

( You're about to view content that the journal owner has advised should be viewed with discretion. )

The Pinch Hits are due the same time as regular assignments. The deadline is set for Saturday 16 August at 20:00 UTC. You can view a countdown here.

To claim: please reply to this post with your AO3 username and the name and number of the pinch hit you want to claim. Comments are screened. You can also email tentaclemod@gmail.com.

Anon commenting is fine but bear in mind that I cannot reply if you comment anon!

You don't have to be signed up to the exchange to claim a pinch hit, but you do need an AO3 account.

All pinch hits must comply with the rules here. The minimum is a completed work of fanfiction of at least 1000 words or a completed piece of fanart or 500 words of podfic (depending on what the recipient has requested).

( PH 1 - [All Fanfic] The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien, 莲花楼 | Mysterious Lotus Casebook (TV), The Time Master Series - Louise Cooper, The Elric Saga - Michael Moorcock, The Inheritance Cycle - Christopher Paolini, 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018) )

( PH 2 - [All Fanfic] The Persuaders! (TV 1971), The Limehouse Golem (2016), Critical Role (Web Series) RPF, British Comedy RPF )

( PH 3 - [All Fanfic] Red One (2024), Justin and the Knights of Valour (2013), Spacelords (Video Game), Original Work )

( PH 4 - [All Fanfic] 英雄伝説創の軌跡 | Hajimari no Kiseki | The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie (Video Game), 英雄伝説閃の軌跡 | Sen no Kiseki | The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel Series (Video Games), Star Trek: Enterprise, Kushiel's Legacy - Jacqueline Carey, Final Fantasy XV, Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Sweet Valley High - Francine Pascal, Dark Is Rising Sequence - Susan Cooper, Another Eden (Video Game), SK8 the Infinity (Anime) )

( PH 5 - [Mixed Media] 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018) RPF, 镇魂 | Guardian - priest, Crossover Fandom, 镇魂 | Guardian (TV 2018) )

( PH 6 - [Fanfic + Fanart] NoPixel (Web Series), 鴨乃橋ロンの禁断推理 | Kamonohashi Ron no Kindan Suiri | Ron Kamonohashi: Deranged Detective (Manga), 文豪ストレイドッグス | Bungou Stray Dogs, 吸血鬼すぐ死ぬ | Kyuuketsuki Sugu Shinu | The Vampire Dies in No Time (Anime), Runescape (Video Games) )

( PH 7 - [All Fanfic] Formula 1 RPF, There Is Another Sun (1951), The Man from Bitter Ridge (1955), The Glass Key (1942), Dial M for Murder (1954), Briarpatch (TV), Cripple Creek (1952), Pit Stop (1969) )

( PH 8 - [All Fanfic] Bandom, Cool Runnings, due South, Good Omens, Zootopia, Real Genius- )

( PH 9 - [All Fanfic] Dishonored (Video Games), BioShock 1 & 2 (Video Games), Revenge (1990) )

( PH 10 - [Fanfic + Fanart] Wind Breaker (Anime), The Owl House (Cartoon), Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, The Dragon Prince (Cartoon), Demon Lord 2099 (Anime) )

( PH 11 - [All Fanfic] X-Men: The Animated Series (Cartoon 1992), World of Warcraft, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (TV 2000), Hellboy (Comics) )

( PH 12 - [Fanfic + Fanart] Free!, Discworld - Terry Pratchett, The Batman (Movie 2022), Mystery Skulls Animated, EPIC - Jorge Rivera-Herrans (Albums), Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic (Video Game), Our Flag Means Death (TV), Crossover Fandom )

( PH 13 - [All Fanfic] 翔んで埼玉 | Fly Me to the Saitama (2019), Pluto (Anime), 毒恋～毒もすぎれば恋となる～| Doku Koi: Doku mo Sugireba Koi to Naru | Love Is a Poison (TV), Hikounin Sentai Akibaranger )

( PH 14 - [Fanfic + Fanart] Bleach (Anime & Manga), Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends, フェルマーの料理 | Fermat no Ryouri (TV) )

( PH 15 - [All Fanfic] 赤ちゃんと僕 | Aka-chan to Boku | Baby and Me, 銀と金 - 福本伸行 | Gin to Kin - Fukumoto Nobuyuki, 忍たま乱太郎 | Nintama Rantarou )

Signups have closed, matching has run, assignments are going out now!

The deadline is set for Saturday 16 August at 20:00 UTC. You can view a countdown here.

If your assignment does not contain a ship you offered, please get in touch as soon as possible at tentaclemod@gmail.com with your AO3 name and a description of the issue. Assignments cannot be changed for any other reason.

Info about posting, defaulting, treats, etc. is in the rules post here.

If you're interested in treating: you can view the requests summary here or the nice shiny automagic app here.

Locked/placeholder letters: Some locked letters and placeholders are absolutely to be expected at this stage. However, if you linked to a letter in your signup and it's currently locked and/or is a placeholder, it would be much appreciated if you could complete and/or unlock it as soon as you're able!

Recipient questions: Remember, if you need to ask your recipient a question related to your assignment, please email your question to me at tentaclemod@gmail.com and I'll send it on your behalf. Do not contact them directly. This is in order to maintain your anonymity and keep the fandom in which you're creating your gift a surprise!

Any issues, please email me at tentaclemod@gmail.com. Pinchhits will be out in a bit.

Challenge #4

Fun House
Journaling: What is making you smile these days? Create a top 10 list of anything you want to talk about.

1. Ellita
2. Feeling hopeful about work (but also nervous)
3. Watching Ted Lasso with E (y’all were SO right! Thank you for encouraging me to stick with it)
4. My plants/garden
5. Sitting in the hammock with Ellita and talking with E
6. Having the time and energy to read
7. HEB Peach Guava sparkling water
8. Postcrossing
9. Changing up my work wardrobe
10. Having my ear piercings reopened so that I can wear earrings again

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Oliver Moss

July 2025

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Oliver Moss

Network

Free Epic Poll

Sunshine Revival Challenge 4: Fun House

Poem: "The Bee Tree's Gift"

Poetry Fishbowl Report for July 1, 2025

2025/106: Moira's Pen — Megan Whalen Turner

Unsold Poems for the July 1, 2025 Poetry Fishbowl

Poem: "Provoking Change by Bringing Nature"

Daily Happiness

Music Monday

Titansfall D&D: Summary for 7/13 Game

Space Exploration

Placemaking: How to Connect the Dots

Writerly Ways

Daily check-in

Boost: Uncle Bill's Tweezers

(no subject)

I will not be taking judgement at this time.

Initial Pinch Hits #1-#15

Assignments Are Out!

Sunshine Revival #4

Profile

Links

July 2025

Most Popular Tags

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