Sunday Sale Digest!

Aug. 31st, 2025 08:00 am
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Posted by Amanda

This piece of literary mayhem is exclusive to Smart Bitches After Dark, but fret not. If you'd like to join, we'd love to have you!

Have a look at our membership options, and come join the fun!

If you want to have a little extra fun, be a little more yourself, and be part of keeping the site open for everyone in the future, we can’t wait to see you in our new subscription-based section with exclusive content and events.

Everything you’re used to seeing at the Hot Pink Palace that is Smart Bitches Trashy Books will remain free as always, because we remain committed to fostering community among brilliant readers who love romance.

Dear FIAB Creator Letter

Aug. 30th, 2025 11:09 pm
alley_skywalker: (Default)
[personal profile] alley_skywalker
THIS IS A WIP


AO3 name
: Alley_Skywalker

Dear FIAB Creator,

First, thank you for creating for me! Length of fandom sections or the order the fandoms are in no way indication of how much I want fic for any given fandom; I would be absolutely delighted to receive a gift in any of the fandoms and for any of the relationships I asked for. I've tried to provide some details on the sorts of things I like (and don't) and give prompts for each of my fandoms/ships!

GENERAL STUFF



FANDOMS

IWTV )
sovay: (Sydney Carton)
[personal profile] sovay
My paramount goal for last night was sleep and it failed so horrifically that I have had a flat and frustratingly nonexistent day, but in listening to the three different cast recordings of 1776 which I now own—1969 Broadway, 1970 London, and 1972 film—and rewatching a handful of scenes from the handily streaming film, thirty years after initial exposure in eighth grade social studies it finally clicked with me that so much of the appeal of its John Adams is directly proportional to his being such a disaster. Especially as incarnated by the superbly obstreperous William Daniels, the delegate from Massachusetts is simultaneously an incandescent engine of rage against the machines of tyranny and an indignant wet cat of a man endowed with the inalienable right of shooting himself in the foot, cf. the opening number devoted to establishing that he has achieved the political and personal milestone of pissing off an entire continental congress. His capacity for chill is somewhere in the decatherms and he wasn't even close enough to the door to be standing behind it when social finesse was handed out. He has the self-aware saving grace of a sense of humor which quirks out in unsuccessfully repressed smiles, but he's the awkward straight man just as often as he snarks drily for the Colonies; one of the best details of his physical acting is a nervous flicker of the fingers which stands sometimes for his constant restive thought and sometimes for not knowing what the hell to do with his hands. It's not a comic characterization, but it does make the moments where he lets his guard down all the more quietly effective, because too often it's punctured for him. His own personality is among the obstacles of policy, philosophy, and factionalism facing a successful declaration of independence and down to the wire the play never lets him forget it. He dances so gravely and gracefully with Blythe Danner's Martha Washington, he earns the smugness with which he calls across to Howard da Silva as they whirl into the showiest choreography of the song, "We still do a few things in Boston, Franklin!" Who wasn't supposed to imprint on that unbeatable combination of furious integrity that shouldn't be let out on its own for five minutes? Damn this government for making any national celebration so meanly jingoistic, I couldn't even think about attending this spring's sestercentennial of the Battle of Lexington in my eighteenth-century shirt.

Get Rec’d with Amanda – Volume 97

Aug. 31st, 2025 06:00 am
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by Amanda

Hello, everyone!

This edition has a couple, somewhat topical non-fiction titles. That’s kind of where my brain is out right now. There’s also some translated magical realism and a crafting book.

Are there any books you’d like to recommend? Drop them in the comments!

The Chaos Machine

I wouldn’t say this is an uplifting read, but it sure is eye-opening. I think it’s especially pertinent right now.

From a New York Times investigative reporter, this “authoritative and devastating account of the impacts of social media” (New York Times Book Review) tracks the high-stakes inside story of how Big Tech’s breakneck race to drive engagement—and profits—at all costs fractured the world. The Chaos Machine is “an essential book for our times” (Ezra Klein).

We all have a vague sense that social media is bad for our minds, for our children, and for our democracies. But the truth is that its reach and impact run far deeper than we have understood. Building on years of international reporting, Max Fisher tells the gripping and galling inside story of how Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and other social network preyed on psychological frailties to create the algorithms that drive everyday users to extreme opinions and, increasingly, extreme actions. As Fisher demonstrates, the companies’ founding tenets, combined with a blinkered focus on maximizing engagement, have led to a destabilized world for everyone.

Traversing the planet, Fisher tracks the ubiquity of hate speech and its spillover into violence, ills that first festered in far-off locales, to their dark culmination in America during the pandemic, the 2020 election, and the Capitol Insurrection. Through it all, the social-media giants refused to intervene in any meaningful way, claiming to champion free speech when in fact what they most prized were limitless profits. The result, as Fisher shows, is a cultural shift toward a world in which people are polarized not by beliefs based on facts, but by misinformation, outrage, and fear.

His narrative is about more than the villains, however. Fisher also weaves together the stories of the heroic outsiders and Silicon Valley defectors who raised the alarm and revealed what was happening behind the closed doors of Big Tech. Both panoramic and intimate, The Chaos Machine is the definitive account of the meteoric rise and troubled legacy of the tech titans, as well as a rousing and hopeful call to arrest the havoc wreaked on our minds and our world before it’s too late.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

How to Survive a Plague

This also has a documentary of the same name, which I believe came out before the book. One of my more politics-involved friends is reading it right now as a way of connecting more with science activism causes. 

A definitive history of the successful battle to halt the AIDS epidemic, here is the incredible story of the grassroots activists whose work turned HIV from a mostly fatal infection to a manageable disease. Almost universally ignored, these men and women learned to become their own researchers, lobbyists, and drug smugglers, established their own newspapers and research journals, and went on to force reform in the nation’s disease-fighting agencies. From the creator of, and inspired by, the seminal documentary of the same name, How to Survive a Plague is an unparalleled insider’s account of a pivotal moment in the history of American civil rights.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Lost Souls Meet Under a Full Moon

Imagine if Before the Coffee Gets Cold and The Teller of Small Fortunes had a cousin. 

A suspenseful magical realism novel about a mysterious teenage “Go-Between” who arranges meetings between the living and the dead, from multimillion copy Japanese bestselling author Mizuki Tsujimura.

I bring together the living and the departed. I am the Go-Between.

When a young woman from Tokyo contacts the Go-Between to request a meeting with a deceased TV star who once helped her, she doesn’t expect a teenage boy to show up. Dressed in a designer duffel coat and carrying a tattered notebook, Ayumi Shibuya, our mysterious intermediary, offers an extraordinary he reunites the living with their dearly departed. Meeting his clients at a luxury hotel, Ayumi lays down the ground each reunion is a one-time arrangement that the dead can refuse; the service is entirely free, and the meeting must take place during a full moon.

As Ayumi arranges these reunions, we encounter a resentful eldest son who wants to ask his mother to unearth the deeds to a plot of land; a teenage girl who blames herself for her best friend’s death; and a weary businessman seeking answers about his fiancée’s disappearance days after he proposed. With each rendezvous, clues begin to surface, leading readers to unravel the mystery of the boy in the duffel coat, whose own story is eventually revealed.

A runaway, multimillion copy bestseller in Japan, Lost Souls Meet Under a Full Moon is storytelling at its finest, from an international sensation whose work has been hailed as “strange and beautiful” (The Guardian). With an artful balance of heart and mystery, Mizuki Tsujimura creates an unforgettable page-turner in which the living and the dead are given one last chance for closure.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Unofficial Bridgerton Embroidery

Is it too early to start talking about gift books for the holidays?

Create elegant, Regency-inspired embroidery projects with Unofficial Bridgerton Embroidery, bringing the opulence of your favorite Netflix drama to your stitching.

Inspired by the hit Netflix series and Julia Quinn’s bestselling books, this collection of in-the-hoop embroidery projects lets you stitch your way into the lavish world of Bridgerton. With easy-to-follow instructions and stunning designs, you can create elegant keepsakes and accessories fit for royalty. Perfect for both beginners and experienced embroiderers, each project captures the beauty, charm, and drama of the Bridgerton universe.

Whether you’re looking to re-create the grandeur of Lady Danbury’s diadem or craft a project reminiscent of the Featherington sisters’ vibrant wardrobe, this book offers everything you need to bring the magic of Bridgerton into your stitching. Easy-to-follow step-by-step tutorials for basic embroidery stitches help embroidery debutants stitch projects fit for Queen Charlotte, while experienced stitchers of The Ton enjoy recreating iconic motifs!

20 unique in-the-hoop embroidery: Beautiful designs inspired by the Bridgerton series and popular motifs of the Regency era.

Step-by-step instructions for basic: From beginner-friendly to advanced projects, you’ll be able to make any design with the comprehensive stitch guides.

Go beyond the master in-the-hoop methods and create stunning pieces with ease.

High-quality photos and visual guides help you bring the opulence of Bridgerton into your home.

Unofficial Bridgerton Embroidery 
is your ticket to creating handcrafted pieces inspired by the beloved world of Bridgerton—perfect for gifts, home décor, and more!

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Today's Adventures

Aug. 30th, 2025 11:38 pm
ysabetwordsmith: Cartoon of me in Wordsmith persona (Default)
[personal profile] ysabetwordsmith posting in [community profile] flaneurs
Today we went to the Tuscola Family Fun Day and the Arthur Amish Country Cheese Festival.

Amusingly, I'm wearing a goldenrod-yellow T-shirt with a corncob and the caption "This is my crop top." (It's full length.) I got at least half a dozen compliments on it. :D I bought it earlier this year at another event, definitely a good choice for fall festivals.

Read more... )
[syndicated profile] post_secret_feed

Posted by Frank

For two decades, we have shared millions of secrets, each one a piece of a larger story—our story.

Today we are launching a new project and are seeking contributors to help us build an interactive digital home for these secrets, creating a searchable archive that will allow us to discover new patterns, themes, and connections, and use these as creative catalysts to uncover new stories about us.

[Phase One] Developers: We need individual or business expertise in databases, web development, and AI to help us code the platform.

[Phase Two] Curators: We need your help to review and correct the words and images from postcards, ensuring every secret is captured with accuracy.

[Phase Three] Storytellers: We need writers and artists to work with our new tools, helping us uncover connections and discover new stories hidden within our secrets.

We are in [Phase One] now. If you can help with the following, please email me directly. frank@postsecret.com (Please share any relevant experience or skills). (Please don’t reply for Phase Two or Three now.)

• AI-powered text and image identification from handwritten postcards

• Integration of searchable metadata into files

• Creating a text, graphic, and semantic searchable database

• Familiarity with MAMP and MySQL 5.6

• Building a user-facing web interface.

Be part of PostSecret history by unlocking this global treasure trove of secrets in a new way, enabling deeper connections and a greater understanding. All volunteers will be credited on the project page and I will be happy to write personalized LinkedIn recommendations.

None of the analog beauty or anonymity of PostSecret will be lost. Our goal is to uncover and celebrate more humanity from the the growing collection.

As always, your contribution is invaluable. Thank you for your passion, your trust, and your secrets.

The post Transforming Secrets Into Stories: Developers Needed appeared first on PostSecret.

MCU100 - a weekly drabble challenge

Aug. 30th, 2025 11:17 pm
flareonfury: (Bucky Barnes)
[personal profile] flareonfury posting in [site community profile] dw_community_promo
 mcu100
[community profile] mcu100 is a weekly drabble challenge for the Marvel Cinematic Universe!

o1. Join the community & you can JOIN AT ANYTIME!!
o2. Read the rules/FAQ. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.
o3. Once you're a member and have read the rules, be prepared to join a team.
o4. Start writing once the prompt is posted! & Earn points for your team to win!
o5. If your team wins, you get a badge!

This first prompt will last two weeks, from August 16th to 30.

fiber redux

Aug. 30th, 2025 06:04 pm
yhlee: Alto clef and whole note (middle C). (Default)
[personal profile] yhlee
Cloud is SO HAPPY with her new nesting material:



Y'all. I'd missed an earlier message (thanks, FaceBook!) but I managed not to pick out sheep fleece (breed unknown). Due to the holiday weekend, this wasn't an in-person transaction, although I hope to return in a bitand be able to talk to the farmer in person!

...I am sitting on a few pounds each of alpaca (definitely huacaya, not sure if one is suri) and angora goat fiber a.k.a. MOHAIR. Mind you, I would have been very happy to work with raw WOOL.

Well, I'll be picking through vegetable matter and sorting this VERY SLOWLY for the rest of 2025 lol. :) I do own hand carders but I think I save my pennies for a drum carder for the holidays...

small delights

Aug. 30th, 2025 11:54 pm
kaberett: Trans symbol with Swiss Army knife tools at other positions around the central circle. (Default)
[personal profile] kaberett
  1. Went out to get mozzarella to have with lunch. Realised halfway down the hill that we could go all the way down the hill and watch the latest batch of cootlings. DID SO while eating raspberries. Excellent.
  2. Lunch also included home-made Tomatoes and Basils and Bread, and also separately a small baguette with fig jam courtesy of my mother and brie courtesy of Somerset via The Supermarket. V pleasing.
  3. Excellent chapter of book has introduced me to all kinds of things including pain asymbolia.
  4. I have DONE SOME ADMIN: THE LRP PAPERWORK. There is paperwork that is DONE and consequently in the RECYCLING. I have sent SO MANY E-MAILS. I am getting some really lovely responses! And soon there will be FEWER THINGS.
  5. Playing with pens! Continuing to really enjoy playing with pens.

a cautionary note

Aug. 30th, 2025 06:46 pm
twistedchick: watercolor painting of coffee cup on wood table (Default)
[personal profile] twistedchick
Some years back, I was asked to spin the shed fur from a very fluffy dog so the owner could knit a coat out of it. There was definitely enough -- but the bags of fur she left me had not been washed. I carded them into rolags (outdoors) and gave them back to her, and asked her to find someone else to do it.

But in the process of doing that, I looked online and discovered that it was illegal, in the state I was living in, to sell any object or garment made from fur that could be construed as pet fur.

Why? Because nobody wanted to start having to deal with trapping pets and killing them for their fur. Never mind that it was shed fur and combed off a still-living pet. It was still illegal. I don't remember what the penalties were.

There are already enough dognappers stealing pets from hunting-type breeds to sell as 'trained hunting dogs.' One of my cousins lost a dog that way for a month, until he turned up in a neighboring town after running all the way back from the Adirondacks to Rochester, well over 100 miles. I still don't know how he survived.

So, a suggestion: check the laws in your state about this, if you plan to card and spin and knit something that isn't for yourself from Bowser's or Fifi's fur.

Fandom things

Aug. 30th, 2025 02:40 pm
sholio: aged sepia paper with printed text saying "If undelivered, return to Air Ministry, London" (Biggles-london air ministry)
[personal profile] sholio
My fandom gift basket is up: find it here!

Meanwhile [community profile] caseficexchange revealed and I have received TWO STUNNING GIFTS in two different fandoms, both of which I genuinely could not love more; the authors nailed the feeling of the caseficcier parts of canon in each of these fandoms, and I have had SUCH a good time last night and this morning reading and commenting on them!

The Case of a Forced Landing (Biggles books, 6800 wds, light Biggles/EvS)
Perfectly captures the feeling of the short SAP stories, with Biggles and EvS on an enforced holiday on the countryside with mysterious happenings and rural ambiance. Delightful!

The House Always Wins (Babylon 5, 16K words, Garibaldi & various)
Early season one casefic with Garibaldi investigating a missing artifact that both Londo and G'Kar claim cultural ownership of. Pitch-perfect character voices and canon tone, feels like it could literally be an episode.

Sunday @ 8:08 am

Aug. 31st, 2025 08:08 am
alisx: A demure little moth person, with charcoal fuzz and teal accents. (Default)
[personal profile] alisx

Reminded that the AO3 banned me for making an hplovecraft account to archive all his out-of-copyright stories, but they will allow "AI" generated slopfic.

Leave a comment.+

Activity #97 - Love Is In The Air

Aug. 30th, 2025 09:42 pm
tinny: POTC2: Elizabeth and Jack Sparrow almost-kissing (potc2_wildest dreams)
[personal profile] tinny posting in [community profile] icontalking




I've watched a lot of romances lately, and I thought, why not turn this into a theme this month?

Icon things that you associate with love or romance! Any interpretation is fine, this is a free inspirational challenge.

Romantic inspiration material under here )

* You can make as many icons as you like (if you need a goal, five is a good number :))
* There is no minimum, 1 icon is enough to enter this activity
* Please submit your icons (and URLs!) to this post, all in one comment (if possible)
* Everyone can participate, you don't have to be a member of this community

* I will collect all the icons from the comments and make a result post
* Everyone can leave comments on the inspiration and activity result posts
* There is no voting

Deadline: Saturday, September 20th, your end-of-day

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