New book (pope not dead this time)
This video on Women and the Men Who Write Them discusses, among other things, the way The Last of Us Part II ends up arguing against itself on the subject of revenge because it tries to apply a narrative about "breaking the cycle of violence" to a character whose experience of violence and power is vastly different from that of a conventional male protagonist. And it got me thinking about marginalized characters and revenge plots.
In stories where the thesis boils down to "Revenge Bad," the character pursuing revenge is usually positioned as someone who's taking justice from the hands of a rightful authority and into their own. They are circumventing a fair and correct process and abusing their own power for the sake of personal satisfaction — attempting to kill a murderer themselves instead of turning that murderer over to a court of law, for instance.
Of course, this kind of story hinges on a number of assumptions: that the character's world contains a rightful authority, that the systems of justice in this world function fairly and correctly, and that the character has any power to abuse.
If a character is disempowered, if there's no justice to be had from authority, then revenge (as mentioned in the video) becomes the only form of justice available. And if you're still trying to use this character and world to say "Revenge Bad," you're not making the point you think you are.
New Novelette: "Sebastian Moran Gut-Punches a Pimp"
Kitty Winter is in trouble. She can just about make rent by posting photos to subscription service SecretStar, but now an exploitative agency called Wayward Talent is attempting to seize control of her account. The law can't help ... so it's a good thing Sebastian Moran and Jay Moriarty are the furthest thing from the law.
But as Moriarty and Moran set out to dismantle Wayward Talent, an old enemy of Moriarty's resurfaces — one eager to tear apart not only the con, but Moriarty and Moran's lives.
"Sebastian Moran Gut-Punches a Pimp" is the eighth story in my series The Casefile of Jay Moriarty, a modern-day queer take on the iconic Sherlock Holmes villain, his partner Sebastian Moran, and the various crimes they commit together.
You can get "Sebastian Moran Gut-Punches a Pimp" most places ebooks are sold, or by clicking here.
This Week's Links
Massive Creator Platform Fansly Bans Furries
The changes blame payment processors for classifying “some anthropomorphic content as simulated bestiality.” Most people in the furry fandom condemn bestiality and anything resembling it, but payment processors—which have increasingly dictated strict rules for adult sexual content for years—seemingly don’t know the difference and are making it creators’ problem.
Unauthorized sexual enhancement products may pose serious health risks
The risk posed by these products is very real, but unfortunately the names are also very, very funny.
EP-1320 medieval - the world's first medieval electronic instrument
Hurdy gurdys, lutes, Gregorian chants, thundering drums and punishing percussive Foley FX. The EP-1320 is the first of its kind: featuring a large library of phrases, play ready instruments and one-shot samples from an age where darkness reigned supreme, the instrumentalis electronicum is the ultimate, and only, medieval beat machine.
God, how funny would it have been if another pope died right before the release of this book?
-K
