RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-11 12:32 pm

Friday 11th July 2025

8262/21181It�€s sitting in first class when you have a standard class ticket now, grandad! 
Off to Cheddar for my birthday weekend. This month it's 50 years since my family moved here, which means it's also 50 years since I had my goodbye birthday party in Loughborough and played cricket in the park with my friends for the last time and dad, who was the umpire, caught me out first ball and insisted that counted. Loughborough schools had broken up when we departed, but Cheddar schools had not.
RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-10 11:54 am

Thursday 10th July 2025

8261/21180Of course the cough decided to burrow a little deeper and get a little less dry today. I will beat this thing if it kills me.  
Time to break my silence on Stuart Cox. A lot of you have been asking what I think about him. Cox by name, Cox by nature? Stuart by name, Pooart by nature? 
Stuart is, of course, the guy who has taken it upon himself to destroy the cairns, set up by (on the face of it) pure and noble stone-clearers in the Peak District.
case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-11 07:22 pm

[ SECRET POST #6762 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6762 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 00 pages, 00 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-09 12:25 pm

Wednesday 9th July 2025

8260/21179Oh my God, after more than three months I think I might finally have shaken off this lurgy. Admittedly it hasn't been too bad for the last month- I've just had a slightly nasty phlegmy cough and been a bit tired (but is that illness or just being a dad in his late-fifties?) Today though, no cough to speak of and suddenly some energy.Though I am sure I said the same thing about six weeks ago. The ghost of the cough remains, dry now and occasional, but ready to burrow back into me if I get complacent.W
RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-08 01:57 pm

Tuesday 8th July 2025

8259/21178I am recording quite a few book podcasts in the next few days (plus a couple of regular eps) and so I find myself trying to read four books before Monday (and I am away for my birthday weekend - I am going to be 58 NOT 60!) Luckily Cariad Lloyd's book is for kids and very short (but blimey it packs a punch. It's called "Where Did She Go?" and is an attempt to explain death to children. I've read it twice and it's made me cry both times).
RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-07 09:25 pm

Monday 7th July 2025

8258/21177Is today a good day to admit that I never had testicular cancer?Yes I spent the last four years lying about my life in order to sell millions of books and get a film where Jason Isaacs plays my excised bollock. I did take a ball off just to make the story look real.
RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-06 05:12 pm

Sunday 6th July 2025

8257/21176Yes, AI is a force for evil (by which I mean Artificial Intelligence, not Al Murray... although...) but I used it the other day to create that mock up of me being 60 with a birthday cake, so I could be like all the other celebs on Facebook. And while I had the app open I wondered whether AI was getting any closer to putting me out of a job.So I asked it to come up with a full stand up show script  for "Oh Shit I'm 60!" so that I didn't have to write it. And to say it came up trumps is to do the thing a disservice.
RichardHerring.com - Warming Up ([syndicated profile] richardherring_feed) wrote2025-07-05 05:10 pm

Saturday 5th July 2025

8256/21175A blistering RHLSTP tonight with the force of nature that is Bernie Clifton. What an extraordinary and lovely man he is. The show was reminiscent of Brian Blessed, though much gentler, as Bernie insisted on taking us through seemingly every detail of his life. Yet it was hypnotically fascinating and uproariously funny and my job was easy.
case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-10 06:12 pm

[ SECRET POST #6761 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6761 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 06 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
AO3 News ([syndicated profile] ao3_news_feed) wrote2025-07-09 01:07 pm

The OTW is Recruiting for Fanlore Social Media & Outreach Volunteers, Policy & Abuse Volunte

OTW recruitment banner

Are you interested in social media, community management or outreach? Or would you like to assist AO3 users by resolving complaints? Do you want to create videos and connect with fellow fans on TikTok? The Organization for Transformative Works is recruiting!

We're excited to announce the opening of applications for:

  • Fanlore Social Media & Outreach Volunteer - closing 16 July 2025 at 23:59 UTC or after 40 applications
  • Policy & Abuse Volunteer - closing 16 July 2025 at 23:59 UTC
  • Communications TikTok Moderator - closing 16 July 2025 at 23:59 UTC or after 60 applications

We have included more information on each role below. Open roles and applications will always be available at the volunteering page. If you don't see a role that fits with your skills and interests now, keep an eye on the listings. We plan to put up new applications every few weeks, and we will also publicize new roles as they become available.

All applications generate a confirmation page and an auto-reply to your e-mail address. We encourage you to read the confirmation page and to whitelist our email address in your e-mail client. If you do not receive the auto-reply within 24 hours, please check your spam filters and then contact us.

If you have questions regarding volunteering for the OTW, check out our Volunteering FAQ.

Fanlore Social Media & Outreach Volunteer

Do you have an interest in fandom history, or in fannish culture and the different tropes, ships, communities and viewpoints that make up fandom? Are you interested in social media, community management or outreach? The Fanlore committee is recruiting for Social Media & Outreach volunteers!

Fanlore Social Media & Outreach volunteers are responsible for writing and editing Fanlore's promotional posts on social media, planning and running Fanlore's editing challenges, maintaining Fanlore's social media channels, and thinking of ways to reach out to and engage with new corners of fandom.

No extensive experience required—only reliability, teamwork, good communication skills, and an interest in fandom and Fanlore in particular. Join us!

As part of our application process, candidates who pass the initial review will also be asked to create a sample social media post for Fanlore consisting of a 280-character tweet and a 100-word Tumblr post promoting a Fanlore article. Further directions will be given upon applying.

Applications are due 16 July 2025 or after 40 applications

Apply for Fanlore Social Media & Outreach Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Policy & Abuse Volunteer

The Policy & Abuse committee (PAC) is responsible for addressing questions and concerns about potential violations of the AO3 Terms of Service. We determine whether reports are about legitimate violations of the Terms of Service, and what to do about them if they are. PAC volunteers correspond directly with AO3 users and collaborate on projects both within PAC and with other OTW committees.

Our main goals as a committee are:

  • to adhere to the AO3 Terms of Service
  • to make our reasoning and processes as clear and transparent as possible
  • to handle all user reports consistently, no matter which volunteer is doing the work
  • to keep every case we work on completely confidential

We are seeking people who can:

  • Commit to working on cases regularly
  • Be patient with rephrasing explanations
  • Ask for help when needed
  • Collaborate both inside the team and with other committees
  • Act in accordance with established rules, policies, and procedures
  • Treat confidentiality and user privacy as a priority

You must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. While English proficiency is required, we welcome applicants who are fluent in other languages, especially Spanish (Español), Brazilian Portuguese (Português brasileiro), Russian (Русский), Chinese (中文), or Indonesian (Bahasa Indonesia).

Applications are due 16 July 2025

Apply for Policy & Abuse Volunteer at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.

Communications TikTok Moderator

Do you use TikTok? Do you like making videos? Do you want to connect with your fellow fans?

OTW TikTok Moderators create content for the OTW TikTok account, including drafting scripts, recording and editing videos, and reviewing other moderators' scripts and videos. Moderators address user comments on videos by responding to user questions, removing comments that violate our policies, and flagging comments for video topics. Moderators also try to regularly engage with fandom on TikTok by interacting with relevant, appropriate videos and liking, reposting, and/or commenting.

You must be 18+ in order to apply for this role. We are looking for volunteers familiar with TikTok and passionate about outreach on the platform. They should be able to maintain a consistent level of work, collaborate inside the team and with other committees, ask for help when needed, and commit to making fair decisions about how to handle comments.

Applications are due 16 July 2025 or after 60 applications

Apply for Communications TikTok Moderator at the volunteering page! If you have further questions, please contact us.


The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-09 04:29 pm

[ SECRET POST #6760 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6760 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 12 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-08 08:05 pm

[ SECRET POST #6759 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6759 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 18 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-07 04:40 pm

[ SECRET POST #6758 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6758 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 01 pages, 24 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
petra: Barbara Gordon smiling knowingly (Default)
petra ([personal profile] petra) wrote2025-07-06 02:01 pm

Prose & Poem - DCU, Discworld, Hitchhiker's Guide, Star Wars, Strangers in Paradise, Vorkosigan

I offered to write drabbles and poetry: that offer is still open. Request something and make my day!

Here's what I've made so far:

Strike a pose (100 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: DCU (Comics)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Relationships: Tim Drake/Dick Grayson, Tim Drake/Barbara Gordon/Dick Grayson
Characters: Tim Drake, Barbara Gordon, Dick Grayson
Additional Tags: Drabble, Video Cameras, Voyeurism
Summary:

Tim chooses his moment to best advantage.

*

External hearts are a disabling condition (100 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: DCU (Comics)
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Clark Kent & Bruce Wayne
Characters: Bruce Wayne, Clark Kent
Additional Tags: Psychic Wolves, Drabble
Summary:

Bruce's wolfsister and his duty to the League.

*

The movement of (astronomical) bodies (100 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Discworld - Terry Pratchett
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Carrot Ironfoundersson/Angua von Uberwald
Characters: Carrot Ironfoundersson, Angua von Uberwald
Additional Tags: Drabble, lycanthropy
Summary:

Carrot's favorite time of the month.

*

Interstellar Deliveroo (100 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Arthur Dent/Ford Prefect
Characters: Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect
Additional Tags: Drabble, Gig Economy
Summary:

Arthur gets a new job, and does as well at it as he does at everything else.

*

It's possible to be too beautiful (187 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Star Wars Prequel Trilogy
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Characters: Anakin Skywalker
Additional Tags: Bad Poetry, Sonnets, Adolescent Poetry, Shakespearean Sonnets
Summary:

Prompt: young Anakin's Very Bad But Heartfelt poetry (directed at your choice).

*

If wishes were horses (100 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Strangers in Paradise (Comics)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Casey Bullocks-Femur/Katina Choovanski/Francine Peters/David Qin
Characters: Katina Choovanski
Additional Tags: Drabble, Masturbation
Summary:

Katchoo fantasizes.

*

Exploring the collection (200 words) by Petra
Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: Vorkosigan Saga - Lois McMaster Bujold
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan/Alys Vorpatril
Characters: Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan, Alys Vorpatril
Additional Tags: Sex Toys, Double Drabble
Summary:

Alys shares her collection of specialized implements with Cordelia.

case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-06 02:09 pm

[ SECRET POST #6757 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6757 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 30 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.
petra: Cartoon of an overexcited airline steward with the text: You're always playing Yellow Car. (Cabin Pressure - Yellow Car)
petra ([personal profile] petra) wrote2025-07-06 01:43 pm

Fandom's foibles

Today's jumpscare: the second most common relationship for Arthur Dent is Khan Noonien Singh, because of bad casting and Sherlock obsession on the part of fandom.

I still haven't seen the real Khan movie, but its Robot Chicken opera version made more of an impression on me than the AOS version where they cast B--- C---, which I have never watched and never intend to see.
rionaleonhart: final fantasy versus xiii: a young woman at night, her back to you, the moon high above. (nor women neither)
Riona ([personal profile] rionaleonhart) wrote2025-07-06 01:01 pm

Our Problems Will Still Be There In The Morning.

I've finished Clair Obscur: Expedition 33!


Spoilers up to the end of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. )


Overall verdict: what a game! The concept is interesting, the scenery is gorgeous, the battle system is fun and the soundtrack is absolutely extraordinary. I don't think it's a perfect game, but I think it comes very close.
petra: Cartoon of Shakespeare saying, "Read my latest, it is god damn glorious." (Beaton - Shakespeare)
petra ([personal profile] petra) wrote2025-07-05 07:55 pm
Entry tags:

Ask me to write you something!

I am having a difficult brainweasel day, and would like to counteract that by making you some words. I am feeling poetic, with a side-order of "Drabbles are nice," so:

Comment with: Drabble or Poetry, Fandom(s) from the list of things I know, Character[/Character/etc.], Prompt (if any).

Feel free to publicize this.
AO3 News ([syndicated profile] ao3_news_feed) wrote2025-07-05 05:52 pm

June 2025 Newsletter, Volume 201

Banner of a paper airplane emerging from an envelope with the words 'OTW Newsletter: Organization for Transformative Works'

I. SPOTLIGHT ON FICTIONALLEY IMPORT

Open Doors has nearly finished importing FictionAlley, a Harry Potter archive. With approximately 29,000 works imported so far, it is Open Doors' largest import yet. You can check out all imported works at the FictionAlley collection. Unclaimed works are currently locked to logged-in AO3 users only, but per Open Doors' agreement with the FictionAlley archivist, they will be unlocked 30 days after the import is fully completed.

All FictionAlley creators should have received one or more emails with links to claim, orphan, delete their works, or prevent the import of any additional works of theirs in the future. If you were a creator and did not receive this email, please contact Open Doors for assistance. You can also contact Open Doors if you would like to prevent future imports of your Harry Potter works specifically.

Open Doors has two other Harry Potter archives currently in their queue: HarryPotterFanFiction.com and MuggleNet Fan Fiction. If your email address has changed since you were a member of either archive, or you would like Open Doors not to import your works, please contact Open Doors. Please refer to the import announcements for a full list of how Open Doors can assist you with either import.

II. ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN

Accessibility, Design & Technology (AD&T) coordinated with Board and Volunteers & Recruiting to formally decommission the Quality Assurance & Testing (QA&T) subcommittee—thank you to everyone who has served on QA&T over the years. Quality assurance and testing of AO3's code will continue under the oversight of AD&T's new QA Supervisor role. AD&T's latest releases have focused on various bug fixes, code clean-up, and monitoring improvements: check out the release notes. Also, Systems has installed some new Elasticsearch servers and repurposed the old ones as application servers! \o/

Open Doors announced the import of Absolution – The Inugrrrl Memorial, an InuYasha fanfiction memorial archive.

In May, Support received 3,177 tickets, while Policy & Abuse (PAC) received 3,763 tickets—a nearly 40% increase which is likely due to PAC's recent TOS spotlight series. PAC worked with Legal and Communications' News Post Moderation subcommittee to review over 1,700 comments across seven posts, with more than 400 comments receiving a reply. PAC will also be recruiting soon, so look out for the upcoming recruitment post!

In June, Tag Wrangling neared completion of phase two of three of their committee-wide guideline discussions on fandom metatags. They also launched a new procedure which streamlines creation of new "No Fandom" canonical tags, which are canonical tags not specific to any particular fandom. The committee plans to post announcements periodically detailing new tags, including one in a few weeks.

In May, Tag Wrangling handled over 610,000 tags, or over 1,200 tags per wrangling volunteer.

III. ELSEWHERE AT THE OTW

Fanlore's Annual Bingo was a huge success! \o/ 25 participants completed at least one bingo, and 16 got a total blackout. Thanks to everyone who took part!

In July, Fanlore is running a themed month—Fandom in Color—which celebrates characters of color, the contributions of fans of color, and more! Check out their social media (Bluesky and Tumblr) for page spotlights throughout the month.

Communications is now overseeing the OTW's Convention Outreach division, which was previously run by Development & Membership. If you have inquiries regarding OTW's convention presence, Communications can be reached through their contact form on the OTW website.

TWC is finalizing their upcoming general issue of Transformative Works and Cultures, volume 46, which will be published on September 15. They are still accepting submissions for their Latin American Fandoms special issue until January 1, 2026.

IV. THE 2025 ELECTION AND GOVERNANCE

Elections announced the 2025 Election candidates; this year's election is contested, with three candidates running for two open seats in this year's election. Their platforms are available on the Elections website. Communications has been coordinating public posts, while Translation is working on translating candidates' platforms.

2025's OTW Board Election will take place on August 15-18. OTW Members who plan to nominate a proxy should contact Elections by August 6. Specific dates for Q&A and Candidate Chats will be made available on the 2025 Election Timeline page.

Development & Membership has been checking membership for Board candidates and donors who want to vote in this year's election, while Finance has begun preparing for the 2024 audit.

Board uploaded minutes from the April 2025 Board public meeting to the OTW website. They also approved two new Finance Bookkeepers, held check-in meetings with Legal and the Paid Staff Transition Lead, and continued to work with the Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup. The Board Assistants Team's work also continues on several projects, including the Procurement Policy and Board Discord Server Guidelines revamp.

V. OUR VOLUNTEERS

Volunteers & Recruiting conducted recruitment for two committees—Tag Wrangling and Support—and two subcommittees—News Post Moderation and Internal Complaint and Conflict Resolution—this month.

From May 19 to June 22, Volunteers & Recruiting received 147 new requests and completed 139, leaving them with 53 open requests (including induction and removal tasks listed below).

As of June 22, 2025, the OTW has 944 volunteers. \o/

New Committee Chairs/Leads: 2 Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup Heads
New AD&T Volunteers: 1 QA Supervisor
New Communications Volunteers: 2 Convention Specialists and 3 TikTok Moderators
New Communications News Post Moderation Volunteers: Mossie, Vihi, and 1 other News Post Moderator
New Fanlore Volunteers: 90PercentHuman, Hobgirl, Sparrow, and 1 other Policy & Admin Volunteer
New Finance Volunteers: Scott and 1 other Bookkeeper
New Open Doors Volunteers: Bette, devinwolfi, Kelpie, korry, November_Clouds, Pat Zarzecka, scattered_coreopsis, Starlings and 6 other Import Assistants
New Organizational Culture Roadmap Workgroup Volunteers: 1 Goal Supervisor; megidola and 1 other Volunteer
New Support Volunteers: 2 Chair Assistants
New Translation Volunteers: 1 Volunteer Manager; Adri Jaimes, Lia404, ttom1323, and 5 other Translators
New User Response Translation Volunteers: Felipe and friki (Translators)

Departing Committee Chairs/Leads: Nary (Support) and 2 QA&T Leads
Departing AD&T QA&T Volunteers: runt and 1 other QA&T Testing Volunteer
Departing AO3 Documentation Volunteers: Leja, Evolcahra, and 1 other Editor
Departing Communications Volunteers: 1 TikTok Lead
Departing Development & Membership Volunteers: 1 Convention Specialist
Departing Fanlore Volunteers: 1 Policy & Admin Volunteer
Departing Open Doors Volunteers: 2 Import Assistants and 1 Technical Volunteer
Departing Policy & Abuse Volunteers: 1 Volunteer
Departing Support Volunteers: Sandra 002 (Volunteer)
Departing Tag Wrangling Volunteers: ladydragona (Supervisor); Daniailís, MFY11EP, Barbara Thomas, and 3 other Volunteers
Departing Translation Volunteers: 1 Volunteer Manager; Mirjam, DaisyJane, DanielUL, and 6 other Translators
Departing Volunteers & Recruiting Volunteers: 1 Volunteer

For more information about our committees and their regular activities, you can refer to the committee pages on our website.


The Organization for Transformative Works is the non-profit parent organization of multiple projects including Archive of Our Own, Fanlore, Open Doors, Transformative Works and Cultures, and OTW Legal Advocacy. We are a fan-run, entirely donor-supported organization staffed by volunteers. Find out more about us on our website.

case: (Default)
Case ([personal profile] case) wrote in [community profile] fandomsecrets2025-07-05 02:08 pm

[ SECRET POST #6756 ]


⌈ Secret Post #6756 ⌋

Warning: Some secrets are NOT worksafe and may contain SPOILERS.


01.


More! )


Notes:

Secrets Left to Post: 02 pages, 37 secrets from Secret Submission Post #965.
Secrets Not Posted: [ 0 - broken links ], [ 0 - not!secrets ], [ 0 - not!fandom ], [ 0 - too big ], [ 0 - repeat ].
Current Secret Submissions Post: here.
Suggestions, comments, and concerns should go here.