The PPC Posting Board - Latest posts

I don't read music well enough to get the tune just by looking at it, but as someone who's sung in choirs my whole life, I do have some thoughts!

The first thing that jumps out at me is the slurs/melismas. Most if not all of them are probably unnecessary; the reading of the text will give the proper phrasing to any director or singer worth their salt. What you might do instead is mark places where your intended musical phrasing is different from what it might seem to be, for instance if you don't intend for a pause someplace there's a comma, or if you'd suggest a breath somewhere other than at a comma or a rest.

The next thing I noticed is that the spacing between the staves is inconsistent. This might be an issue with the program you're using, so I don't know how much you can do about it, but if there's any way to get them evenly spaced on every page, that would be nice.

Possibly related to this, your dynamic marks seem to be closer to the bottom of the staff above them than the top of the staff below, which is kind of odd. I'm not sure if you placed them there deliberately or if it just looks that way because of the spacing of the staves, but normally dynamic marks go above the staff.

A couple things on the last page:

1. The staccato marks at 105-7. Do you actually intend for those notes to be sung short and detached? Seems surprising, maybe even out of place, since there's nothing like that in the rest of the piece. If you intend to emphasize those notes, maybe marcatos or tenutos would be better? Or, instead of suddenly marking up a cluster of notes, perhaps a direction such as once more, with feeling accentato?

2. The bunch of fermatas at the end. I'd suggest simply indicating a ritardando instead, with a single fermata on the last note. Much cleaner notation, same effect.

I do have MuseScore, so I'll see if it'll read the PDF and let me hear the actual tune. {= )

~Neshomeh

*throws confetti*

And yeah, Herr used to be a lot more active here. (Also, *Wozzeck. *collects mini-boarder*) I miss him too.

You have great taste in fandoms, so here's a dozen bottles of Bleeprin, a Minecraft figure of Commander Riker, and some Sony headphones with the Ravenclaw insignia! Enjoy your stay! :D

For your newbie gift, have a stone which may or may not have some kind of magical ability or give you superpowers. I am not responsible for the consequences of touching or using it.

Hope you have a great time here!

Actually, when I wrote it I was thinking 120. I wasn't really setting out to write a dirge, though I also experimented with slower speeds. It also works pretty well at 80, I think (although there's a very small chance of me attempting to sing it at 80).

But this is why I'm looking for other people's opinions. Is that too fast? Would it sound weird, given the content, to go at that speed? (I've been singing this song to myself, to almost this exact tune, for over fifteen years now, so I really wouldn't know if I'm going too fast at this point.)

Thanks for having a look, anyhow! :P

What's the tempo? I don't think it's marked down... I'd imagine it's somewhere in the 60-80 bpm range, but a more exact number will help.

In terms of my fanfiction, I have a fair number of stories over at FF.net. Not all of them are particularly good (in fact, only one is really decent, at least as far as I'm concerned), most of them video game ones. My most notable story is the Destiny fanfic Outbound Hopes, which I'm currently on hiatus from while I deal with some personal issues.

Here's the link if anyone's interested:

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12681906/1/Outbound-Hopes

I also have two stinkers which you're free to let loose at.

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12381342/1/Borderlands-The-Post-Sequel

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12375809/1/The-Depths-of-the-Night

They're both from really early on in my FF writing career, and they're old shames of mine.

Have one of my own shed feathers and a complimentary kit of Spikes!

Also, for identification purposes in future posts, you can put your username in the "Author" text box when posting replies or messages. That way we'll know you made the post straight away and your activity will be easier to track!

First of all, have a suit of Imperial Guard flak armor. Second of all, no need for cricket noises, I've read some missions written by Herr Wozzak. Third of all, welcome fellow 40k player! Admittedly, I played my first game the day before yesterday, but I have a fully painted IG kill team and a partially painted space marine kill team. What format of 40k do you play?

I'll be posting the bracket tonight after I get home from work.

Oh, forgot Smeg. That’s always a useful one

Hi Boarders! I’m Crazy Minh, a Fanfiction author and riffer of badfics. I’ve got some experience dissecting travesties of fanfiction over at Library of the Damned, where I’m a guest riffer. I believe Herr used to frequent these parts of the internet? Herr Wozzak? Anyone?

*potential cricket noise*

Eh, not important. Anyway, with some experience riffing fanfics under my belt, I thought I’d try my hand at PPC’ing some fanfics. Before anyone asks, I’ve read the FAQ, the Constitution, the Permission Guidelines, and the Original Series (well, most of it. Haven’t quite found the time to finish reading episodes 17 onwards, but I’ll get round to it)

A little about myself: I’m a avid Sci-Fi geek, and my everday vernacular is often littered with exclamations of Peta’Q, Gorram, Frak, Zark, and other such phrases. I’m a massive Trekkie, specifically TNG and DS9, though I absolutely DESPISE STD. I mean, this is mouth-frothing, eye-popping hatred we’re talking. That insufferable Sue Burnham can die in a fire for all I care. Where was I?

Ah yes, about me. I’m hyperlexic, and have forgotten more books in my 28 years on this ball of rock than most will ever read in a lifetime. I’ a big fan of Asimov, Heinlein and Clarke, and have read I, Robot so many times that I can recite it word-for-word. I’m not as big of a fan of fantasy, but I have read Tolkien’s works, and I have been a fan of Harry Potter since the day it was released.

I’m alsoa avid tabletop gamer, having played Warhammer 40k to death (to’tau’va folks!), and currently play D&D every Wednesday evening with my gaming group. I’ve also been known to play Cyberpunk, Shadowrun & MTG on occassion.

Well, that’s anout it for intros. Catch you in the funny pages, folks!

This is a good one! I really like your writing; it's one of the few styles that can still just suck me in and have me sitting there reading pages and pages without stopping. And I love the kinds of unexpected ideas you explore in a lot of your works. Especially with the way this one started, where it seemed at first to be heavy-handed metaphor and then turned out to be completely literal. Brilliant, that.

I really liked this bit, too: Alchemical concoction of memory and prejudice and ambition and the stupid kid-dreams nobody really let go of, not really, no matter how far and how hidden and rotted they were left in the backs of dreary, tired skulls. Glorious, unstable, alchemical Rebis. The stink of personhood–sentience.

It smelled like rotted strawberries and paint.

Like, that's so cool? The way you take this entirely intangible idea which is tangible to the character and then tie it down to a concept that the average real-world reader can pin down.

You did occasionally use themselves when I think you meant to use themself, but other than that I didn't see much wrong with it. I really like the way your writing reads like a modernist short story from the sort of person who wants you to think about inexplicable Jesus statues or something but without the drudging aversion to fun. Wish I could write like that.

I don't compose my own very much, but I am trying to do an original piano/vocal arrangement of the funeral song for Boromir from chapter one of The Two Towers. So far I've only written the vocal part, and I'm pretty happy with where it's at, but I'd like a second opinion. So if anyone knows sheet music I'd be much obliged if you could take a look and tell me:

1. Does it make sense?
2. Does it sound good?
3. Does it seem like a good melody that works with the words instead of just kind of existing alongside them?
4. Anything else you think needs said about it.

Thanks in advance! (And yes, I know my real name is in the PDF. It's okay.)

What did you do wrong that you feel you need to do better?

We have a lot of writers here, and we have a lot of people who are LGBTQ. If there's a place you feel like you're falling down, I can't think of a better place to ask for help.

No, I'm fine. I just need some time to cool off. After that, I'm going to start over and try to do better.

Thanks for asking by the way.

I got it for Christmas and read it in a couple of days. For a book that starts with a meteor strike taking out Washington DC and most of the Eastern Seaboard, and deals intimately with all manner of prejudice (it is the 1950s, after all), it's surprisingly... wholesome, is the best word I can come up with. It would be very easy for that premise to go all DARKNESS -- NO PARENTS, but Kowal resists the temptation. That doesn't mean she doesn't do justice to the fact that '50s America was super prejudiced in so many ways - but she does it in a way that doesn't make me hate every single character in there.

I think part of the reason is that she doesn't take the route of 'it's Institutional, so we can't change it', but rather treats institutional prejudice as something that can be changed, and by individuals. Yes, it takes work - a lot of work, a lot of pain - but it can be done.

hS

The Hugo award finalists have been announced.

It seems like it'd make sense to have a thread to point out this list and to discuss any of them.

One interesting thing is that Archive of Our Own (the website) is a finalist for the Related Work category. It's nice to see the award-giving people recognize fandom websites as important.

I haven't read most of the things on this list (I hadn't even heard of most of them, and also grad school is hard on reading time), but:

1) Space Opera is a really good and funny book, and I'd recommend. The basic premise is humans need to fight for their survival by getting better than last in ... Space Eurovision.
2) I've already plugged the Laundry Files at length, so I'll not repeat myself
3) The Tale of the Three Beautiful Raptor Sisters, and the Prince Who Was Made of Meat got plugged here a few months ago, was well-liked, and pretty good. It's nice to see it nominated.
4) A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies is a very good (and somewhat heavy) story I read today. Judging by the reaction in the Discord, I'd suggest folks take a few minutes to go read this (if they can).

- Tomash

Is it just me, or does the narration forget the characters aren't human during the sex scenes? The anatomy and the blocking are mind-boggling.

Also, has anyone ever come across a reader-insert fic that actually works? Like, call me crazy, but I'm pretty sure I can put myself in the shoes of a character that has their own distinct but well-realized personality more easily than I can a character like this, whose only motivation seems to be freaky alien sex and who barely gets one coherent sentence of dialogue per chapter. I started thinking of "You" as the character's name, because it makes more sense that way, and You is about as interesting and sympathetic as wet cardboard.

I kinda feel bad for the literal Andalite bandits in this story. They exist for half a chapter and even get cute little bits of backstory, and then they're gone, unlamented, never to be heard from again (at least as far as chapter 4). They sound way more interesting than You. Can we get a story about them, and how Visser Three thought he'd finally triumphed over his enemies when he caught them, only to realize they're a bunch of pathetic cast-offs instead, and then they end up escaping and ruining his day anyway, because they're a Rag-Tag Band of Misfits and Wacky Hijinks Ensue? I would read the hell out of that.

~Neshomeh

This wasn't an April Fools Day "I'm quitting the Internet" thing that I didn't get because I don't know you very well? This is a real thing? If so, are you looking for some advice, or...?

~Neshomeh, confused.

Well I just finished removing all my works from Deviantart and FF.net.

And, after giving this some thought, and reading the comments posted by the deviants. I eventually came to the decision that perhaps straightening my LGBT OCs wasn't that good of an idea.

So I'm going to do some studying on how to a better job of writing LGBT characters before I can begin reposting my work.

But, for now, I need some time to cool down Before I feel ready to repost...

Seriously, last year owed a lot to luck... Still, gotta try to keep it, and prove luck didn't do all the job.

Faithful to my love of Monotype, here is my team, going with a Psychic theme this time:

Alakazam
Hoopa-Unbound
Jirachi
Latias
Necrozma
Tapu Lele
Victini

Alright, the combatants are all set,
It's time for a Death Battleeeeee!

It is way too late at night for me to look at this now, but rest assured, I shall. Y'all might want to find someplace safe to hide before I do. {; P

~Neshomeh