Happy Pride To Everyone In The Community!! Happy Pride To Those Who Are Out, Those Who Are Not, Those

My GIFT-XPERT™ algorithm will help you with those tricky Christmas shopping decisions!

List of British words not widely used in the United States. Lists of words having different meanings in American and British English. List of American words not widely used in the United Kingdom.

Have you ever wondered where books come from?

Well then, let me show you, because that’s what I do for a living.

Right now, it’s this time of the year, and the little ones have just freshly hatched:

You’ll notice they’re still blind and naked when they hatch. So I make them little coats to keep them warm during their first winter:

See how they happily line up to put them on:

See? Better. Now they’re ready to go and explore the world.

And if they make it through the winter and we take good care of them, they will grow up to be strong and wise like their older fellows:

So, in case you were ever wondering, now you know.

figured out a meme to explain the difference between blocking and muting on AO3

Blocking someone on AO3 means that they can't comment on your works or reply to your comments elsewhere on AO3.

Muting someone on AO3 means that you won't see their works posted in your search or tag results anymore.

Good haul. I assume that Deth (?) is reaching to catch Morgon when he inevitably falls of the stairs because of those ridiculously unpractical frilly boots. And omg is he wearing a fanny pack?

big fan of: used bookstores, and 80s fantasy covers

Things Real People Do in Dialogue (For Your Next Story)

Okay, let’s be real—dialogue can make or break a scene. You want your characters to sound natural, like actual humans talking, not robots reading a script. So, how do you write dialogue that feels real without it turning into a mess of awkward pauses and “ums”? Here’s a little cheat sheet of what real people actually do when they talk (and you can totally steal these for your next story):

1. People Interrupt Each Other All the Time In real conversations, nobody waits for the perfect moment to speak. We interrupt, cut each other off, and finish each other's sentences. Throw in some overlaps or interruptions in your dialogue to make it feel more dynamic and less like a rehearsed play.

2. They Don’t Always Say What They Mean Real people are masters of dodging. They’ll say one thing but mean something totally different (hello, passive-aggressive banter). Or they’ll just avoid the question entirely. Let your characters be vague, sarcastic, or just plain evasive sometimes—it makes their conversations feel more layered.

3. People Trail Off... We don’t always finish our sentences. Sometimes we just... stop talking because we assume the other person gets what we’re trying to say. Use that in your dialogue! Let a sentence trail off into nothing. It adds realism and shows the comfort (or awkwardness) between characters.

4. Repeating Words Is Normal In real life, people repeat words when they’re excited, nervous, or trying to make a point. It’s not a sign of bad writing—it’s how we talk. Let your characters get a little repetitive now and then. It adds a rhythm to their speech that feels more genuine.

5. Fillers Are Your Friends People say "um," "uh," "like," "you know," all the time. Not every character needs to sound polished or poetic. Sprinkle in some filler words where it makes sense, especially if the character is nervous or thinking on their feet.

6. Not Everyone Speaks in Complete Sentences Sometimes, people just throw out fragments instead of complete sentences, especially when emotions are high. Short, choppy dialogue can convey tension or excitement. Instead of saying “I really think we need to talk about this,” try “We need to talk. Now.”

7. Body Language Is Part of the Conversation Real people don’t just communicate with words; they use facial expressions, gestures, and body language. When your characters are talking, think about what they’re doing—are they fidgeting? Smiling? Crossing their arms? Those little actions can add a lot of subtext to the dialogue without needing extra words.

8. Awkward Silences Are Golden People don’t talk non-stop. Sometimes, they stop mid-conversation to think, or because things just got weird. Don’t be afraid to add a beat of awkward silence, a long pause, or a meaningful look between characters. It can say more than words.

9. People Talk Over Themselves When They're Nervous When we’re anxious, we tend to talk too fast, go back to rephrase what we just said, or add unnecessary details. If your character’s nervous, let them ramble a bit or correct themselves. It’s a great way to show their internal state through dialogue.

10. Inside Jokes and Shared History Real people have history. Sometimes they reference something that happened off-page, or they share an inside joke only they get. This makes your dialogue feel lived-in and shows that your characters have a life beyond the scene. Throw in a callback to something earlier, or a joke only two characters understand.

11. No One Explains Everything People leave stuff out. We assume the person we’re talking to knows what we’re talking about, so we skip over background details. Instead of having your character explain everything for the reader’s benefit, let some things go unsaid. It’ll feel more natural—and trust your reader to keep up!

12. Characters Have Different Voices Real people don’t all talk the same way. Your characters shouldn’t either! Pay attention to their unique quirks—does one character use slang? Does another speak more formally? Maybe someone’s always cutting people off while another is super polite. Give them different voices and patterns of speech so their dialogue feels authentic to them.

13. People Change the Subject In real life, conversations don’t always stay on track. People get sidetracked, jump to random topics, or avoid certain subjects altogether. If your characters are uncomfortable or trying to dodge a question, let them awkwardly change the subject or ramble to fill the space.

14. Reactions Aren’t Always Immediate People don’t always respond right away. They pause, they think, they hesitate. Sometimes they don’t know what to say, and that delay can speak volumes. Give your characters a moment to process before they respond—it’ll make the conversation feel more natural.

Important note: Please don’t use all of these tips in one dialogue at once.

Too hard to pick a favourite. I dive into his books when I want to visit my friends there depending on my mood.

I savour every reread. There is always a layer more to discover. More kindness and understanding wrapped in wonderfully weird fantasy stories. Another joke to chortle at.

Looking forward to enjoying many more years of reading Terry Pratchett.

Celebrating Terry Pratchett Day.

On what would have been Terry's 76th birthday, we are filling today with Pratchett joy and invite you to join us.

We'd love to see your routes through Discworld on the #terry pratchett day tag - you can download images to share your favourite books and recommended place to start in Discworld via terrypratchett.com.

You can also find recipes from Nanny Ogg, templates to recreate your own favourite Discworld cover, and ways to get involved for all ages. Whether online or offline, we hope your day is full of Pratchett magic!

Happy New Year, love you all ❤.

A flirty confident Aziraphale. Lots of innuendo. Fun and very hot! Mixed with a lot of sweetness.

Crowley’s love life is on the rocks so he finally swears off men. Typical that his new job places him with a co-worker who’s so straight up sexy.

Or in which, Aziraphale tries to mix things up, Crowley is shaken and Anathema is a right stirrer.

In the end though, a relationship is worth a shot.

read it here

Today, Aziraphale felt self-conscious. He wasn't usually one for vanity, but he caught his reflection in the mirror and just stood and looked for a moment, frowning. Crowley spotted him, approached him rapidly, grabbed his shoulders, and kissed the daylights out of him until he was pink-cheeked and bright-eyed and had completely forgotten there was anything else to think about before.