General update

[luzula]

1) I'm okay, though my shoulders and hands are achy from too much computer time. I know how to avoid this, and it's by going running and working out more, but that sore throat I had kept creeping back when I tried. *sigh* Hopefully it'll be gone soon.

2) I'm surprised at how much it didn't help the students to have access to the course literature and the internet during exams. When I gave them problems which were fairly standard, I expected that they would find a corresponding problem in the exercise book and just adapt the solution of that problem to the exam problem. But no, many of them didn't manage that, which I guess means they understand less of the course material than I thought. : (

3) I have finished the first draft of my long Flight of the Heron fic and sent it off to beta! *accomplished* It feels so weird to be done with it--I wrote a total of 50,000 words in three months, in a sort of daze. Sometimes it didn't even feel like I was the one writing it; it just sort of wrote itself through me. Which is definitely a cool thing to happen! I do have more fic ideas, one of which is a stupidly ambitious historical divergence AU which I am not at all sure I will actually be able to write. The first part of that could be written as a fairly free-standing story, though, so that is probably what I'll attempt next. It features Keith failing to escape at Fassefern, so it goes AU fairly early in the book, as opposed to late in the book, which is what I did in the finished story.

4) So, um, I made my fannish book club read Flight of the Heron. Some of them enjoyed it, some of them didn't finish it, none of them became as besotted as me, which, to be fair, would be difficult. Those who finished it did think it was extremely slashy though.

Comments

[chestnut_pod]

I'm surprised at how much it didn't help the students to have access to the course literature and the internet during exams.

That's really too bad; I'm sorry! On the other hand, perhaps it was less a reflection of their ability to understand the material, and more a reflection on the incredible disorder they're likely dealing with?

[china_shop]

Yeah, I was wondering that. Perhaps the advantages of the open-book exam were countered by the general stress and distractions of the times. :-/

+1 for ubiquitous stress

[jesse_the_k]

...and inability to use the tools that are in front of them.

[luzula]

Hmmm. I'm not sure about that--talking with some other teachers who have held those kinds of exams before, they recognized the phenomenon as a common one, at least. But of course I can't say what's the cause of it.

But a fair amount of them also did really well, so I'm happy about that, at least!

[regshoe]

Oh no, I hope you feel better soon :(

That 'the fic just wrote itself through me' feeling is the best, isn't it :D Good luck with your other ideas!

And yay for making more people read Flight of the Heron, I'm glad some of the book club enjoyed it—we are getting quite the megafandom these days :D

[luzula]

No worries, I'm okay! I went for a long walk today and I feel pretty much fine now.

we are getting quite the megafandom these days :D

Ha ha, I do my best, but I don't think FotH will actually become big unless there's a movie or something. : )

[ride_4ever]

We are on a shelter-in-place order of at least two weeks here because of the pandemic (and I don't know what restrictions, if any, you are having in your part of the world). I thought this was going to be an opportunity to get a lot further into Flight of the Heron but I am finding that the massive amount of doing home-cooking plus the attendant kitchen clean-up -- along with the telecommuting assignments from work -- are making for very full days and nights.

Concerned about you having a sore throat. Take good care of yourself.

[luzula]

I actually feel like I have more time in general when working from home, because there's no commuting. OTOH I get less reading done, because the commuting is precisely when I used to get a solid hour of reading into my day! So it kind of changes your habits in unpredictable ways.

Stay safe! <3 And don't worry about me; I got this sore throat two weeks ago, and if it was going to become something more, I think it would have by now. And it's almost gone, anyway.

[china_shop]

Congrats on finishing the draft of your fic! *\o/*

[luzula]

Thank youuu! <3

[hyarrowen]

Take good care of yourself!

Glad to hear the fannish book club saw the book in the same light as the hardcore fans. A shame some didn't get to finish it. But I've come across people who couldn't finish "Left Hand of Darkness"or found it dull. There's no accounting for tastes...

[jesse_the_k]

...I'm rereading LHoD for the first time as an adult--what a great book it is!

[hyarrowen]

It's one of my desert island books!

[luzula]

I'd love it if you posted about that experience! I see new things in the book every time I reread it...

Thanks for the encouragement

[jesse_the_k]

...I really appreciated Charlie Jane Anders new afterword, where she convinces me that Genly Ai is a narrow-minded gender-bound fart. Six chapters in, and this is clearly the case.

More anon!

Re: Thanks for the encouragement

[luzula]

Yeah, I think the gender aspects of the book, which of course were groundbreaking when it came out, actually are the bits that have aged the most. Although I do think that Genly being gender-bound is probably intended.

There's this bit from one of the Investigators: The First Mobile, if one is sent, must be warned that unless he is very self-assured, or senile, his pride will suffer. A man wants his virility regarded, a woman wants her femininity appreciated, however indirect and subtle the indications of regard and appreciation.

It is of course possible that I'm fooling myself, but in the vast majority of my social interactions I do not feel that I want my femininity appreciated (to the extent that I have any in the first place--I mean, my usual look is short-cropped hair and flannel shirt). I just want to be treated like a human being.

I started a fic once about these aspects, with a contrary opinion from another Investigator, but alas it was never finished.

Re: Thanks for the encouragement

[jesse_the_k]

my usual look is short-cropped hair and flannel shirt

...this was my aesthetic when I was in the working world as well. Once I'd become a non-person in capitalism, I began to find joy in dressing up for the world, but I wanted to be seen as human, not necessarily as female.

Speaking of which, your notes to The End and the Way mention podfic available, but I didn't see a link there. Can you point me (or was it lost in the audiofic catastrophe?)

Re: Thanks for the encouragement

[luzula]

That's funny, the AO3 connection is there in the podfic, but not in the fic. I've edited, let's see if it turns up. Meanwhile, the podfic is here. Caveat, as always, for it being an older podfic, which I never like as much as my current ones. Why did I read so slow back then?? Ah well.

Re: Thanks for the encouragement

[jesse_the_k]

Oh my goodness, Luz that story is SO FABULOUS!

I think your narration is perfect: can't move too fast in the cold because sweat will freeze you solid.

You captured Le Guin's style and aesthetic and maybe you'll write about Beshem again in your lifetime but even if you don't I'm so lucky you wrote this.

Re: Thanks for the encouragement

[luzula]

Awwww, thanks! <3 So glad you enjoyed it. No, I don't think I will ever write about Beshem again, but I'm glad I wrote the story, too.

[luzula]

Oh, I'm not sure I knew that you're a Le Guin fan! Left Hand of Darkness is one of my favorite books ever. ♥ There's also an absolutely brilliant audiobook of it that's one of my favorite audiobooks ever; it's narrated by someone called Ruth Stokesberry, if you want to find it.

Actually I wrote a fic for LHoD that I think is one of the best stories I've written; here it is, if you want to read it at some point in the future. It was another one of those that just wrote itself. But it's about original characters on Gethen--I find it really hard to write fic about the two main characters, because the book is so damn perfect the way it is, and I don't know what more I'd want to say about them.

[hyarrowen]

That's gone on my "mark for later" list; ie when I've got my head out of the 18th century! Yes, LofD is one of my top five books. I love it, and cry my eyes out every time. I'll try and get the Ruth Stokesberry reading when I've got a brain. I loved the BBC dramatisation - up to a point.

Meanwhile I hope you're feeling OK. <3

[luzula]

Now that I think about it, both FotH and LHoD end with one main character's death. I wonder why FotH gives me an intense desire to fix that character death with fic, but LHoD doesn't! It's not like LHoD isn't a love story, because it absolutely is, although I don't have any urge to ship them in a physical sense. Hmm, must ponder this.

And yes, I'm okay, I hope you are, too! <3

[seascribble]

hahahahahahahahahaha #4, I love it

[luzula]

You had a narrow escape, since you're no longer in book club... : P

[seascribble]

WHEW

[mergatrude]

As a student, I found open book exams to be harder because I spent too much time looking things up and second guessing myself. But that was for Philosophy rather than Mathematics. I'm sorry it didn't work for your students.

I'm so glad you've found a fannish home once more. There's nothing like the feeling of being a vessel for words.

Stay safe, stay sane. <3

[luzula]

Yeah, I guess that could be a factor. But just so I'm not exaggerating, there were also lots of students who did well!

I'm kind of worried that after that long one, I won't be able to write anything else in the fandom! But hopefully I will; I do have other ideas. It just won't be the same feverish writing experience, probably. : )

Stay safe, stay sane. <3

Same to you. *hugs*

[cyphomandra]

Congratulations on finishing!!! I am hoping to get some fic-wallowing time in soon, but my concentrations’s been a bit shot recently (inexplicably :D). Am re-reading Flight of the Heron in preparation.

[luzula]

Thank you! : )

I'm kind of worried that after that long one, I won't be able to write anything else in the fandom! But hopefully I will; I do have other ideas. It just won't be the same feverish writing experience, probably.

Stay safe, and I hope your concentration/peace of mind improves!