I love songs about places, especially when the artist has a deep connection to the place. I have a playlist for this, but there are not many women artists on it at this point. I have a few, like Baltimore by Nina Simone, California by Chappell Roan, and Li Beirut by Fairuz. But I'd like to add more. Open to all genres except edm or similar (I like edm, just not for this playlist lol). Open to all languages.
This gentleness we learn (from what we can't heal) by birbsborbs aka me
6.7k, 2/2 complete, Rated T, no archive warnings apply. A two-chapter character study focusing on one scene, the first from Shane's POV and the second from Ilya's POV.
>“You are worrying too much,” Ilya said.
>“Easy for you to say,” Shane muttered, unable to hold it back. “Your mom hasn’t been texting all week with stressful details about this damn camp.”
>“No,” Ilya said. “She has not.”
>Another vibration from his phone, ‘Mom’ appearing on the screen, and then—Your mom hasn’t been texting all week.
>“Ilya,” Shane breathed. He pushed his laptop away and stood from the chair, approaching Ilya cautiously. “Ilya, I shouldn’t have said that.”
Or,
A reparative rewrite of the canon scene in The Long Game, in which Ilya and Shane navigate a hard conversation because grief sometimes feels like a trap door they can’t help but fall into. They lean on each other to get through. Title borrowed from Bronwen Wallace’s beautiful and devastating poem, "What It Comes to Mean”
This word is slipping away from me. Examples below:
He said to smile.
David said to smile.
The Canadian said to smile.
The shorter man said to smile
What is it called when you use phrasing like "The Canadian" or "The shorter man" ? I am trying to give someone feedback on their writing, and they overdo it with this sometimes.
I’m sorry if this has been discussed before—I couldn’t find it when I searched the sub.
I am very fond of birds (username checks out, etc etc), so I have always enjoyed the loon of it all, but I also had the realization just now that kingfishers (the name of the bar in GC and CG) are also birds. I went back to RM, and Troy also takes Harris to The Lovebird Getaway. I’ve only read HR, RM, and TLG, so I haven’t read GC, CG, or TG just yet, but I guess I’m wondering what you think the kingfisher bird might symbolize in the context of the bar, and what birds more generally might represent across the series? What do lovebirds symbolize in the context of a getaway for Harris/Troy, but also for their relationship?
And on a slightly sillier note, if a loon is the bird for hollanov, and lovebirds for Harris/Troy, what bird do you think might fit for the other couples? Do you think kingfisher suits Skip or Eric/Kyle, or both or neither?
!!!!
EDIT: For some reason, some of my spoiler tags are not working. PLEASE DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE SPOILED FOR HR AND TLG BOOKS!
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My thoughts on HR and TLG: I don't have page numbers because ebook, but I will include chapter numbers for any quotations. I would also like to preface this by saying it is meta--I am not assigning any prior intention to RR, although any and/or all of this might be. It's all just for fun. >!In the campfire scene in Chapter 24, Ilya hears the loon call, and it feels threatening--it's a wolf, a pack of wolves. It's something that scares him and makes him feel vulnerable: "He couldn't conceal the terror in his voice." But Shane is there, and he says it's not a wolf, it's a bird. It's not something that he needs to be afraid of, both because of what it is (a bird) but also because Shane is there and can make the noise back and tease him away from his fear. Later on, in Chapter 25, when they say "I love you" to each other, Ilya is also afraid: "Ilya's eyes were so wide and so scared." It is Shane responding to Ilya that chases his fear away, and it's no longer agony for either of them. Shane "speak[ing] bird" takes on a different tone in this reading.!<
It's pretty clear that the loon represents their relationship and love in TLG because of the tattoo--something that Ilya carries with him, tattooed on his arm. In Chapter 23, when Shane sees the instagram post with the loon (and the other posts), he is hoping that Ilya still loves him and that he will call or text or something like that. Shane cries. If you will allow me to go galaxy brain a little bit, I can imagine Ilya's instagram post of the loon tattoo as a type of loon call to Shane that Shane hasn't responded to, and in the context of their relationship, Shane is now having to call back (speak bird) and hope Ilya is still there.
This is pretty important because earlier in the book, during Ilya's dream of his mother, he hears a bird chirping. He is waiting for Shane to come to meet his mother, but we know he never comes. Here is the text from Chapter 2:
>"No," Ilya said. "Wait. He will be here."
>An annoying bird started chirping loudly nearby, and Ilya gripped his mother's hand more tightly. "Just...wait. Don't go."
>Everything dissolved. The bird turned into Ilya's alarm, and Ilya found himself in Shane's bed in Montreal.
Of course, the chirping is an alarm, and an alarm is an alarm, but also, the chirping emphasizes Shane's absence and Ilya's mom pulling away. The bird chirping could be read as something that Ilya relates to his isolation and depression. His mom and Shane are sources of both comfort and sadness because he is always being pulled away from both and always left asking them not to go.
There is another moment in TLG with the loon tattoo where there is an odd juxtaposition. In Chapter 5, during and after the Fabian date, Ilya silently begs Shane to kiss him or make some kind of public acknowledgment. He says "I'm dying" in his mind. Just a few lines later, in Shane's POV, Shane is super aroused by Ilya and the performance. Here is the text, italics in the original:
>But, fuck, Ilya looked hot tonight. That tight pink T-shirt was just barely holding itself together, stretched tight across Ilya's muscular chest and shoulders. That fucking loon tattoo staring Shane in the face, practically a brand on Ilya's skin.
>Mine, Shane thought. The world doesn't need to know, because I know.
>He wondered if Ilya was as horny as he was at that moment. He kept glancing at Shane sideways, so probably.
The contrast between Ilya's desperate, lonely mindset and Shane's aroused one is hinged on the presence of the tattoo. Ilya's call to Shane is in italics, and Shane's call to Ilya is in italics, but they miss each other, and the tattoo is in the middle. I think the presence of the tattoo, alongside this silent miscommunication, is another way of telling us that they are calling to each other in ways neither of them can understand right now--speaking bird is not enough.
Going back to the instagram post, Shane realizes that Ilya's instagram is full of "little references that only Shane would understand." This is the moment when things really start to shift, when Shane really starts to understand what Ilya has been silently and not-silently begging him to hear. He can speak bird again. I know there are other IG posts, like the one of the rings, but that is not the thread I'm pulling haha.
And this is probably too galaxy brained, but the plane situation in Chapter 24 could also be read as a bird thing, if you really wanted to carry the thread through: "But the plane was on fire, and Ilya didn't have time to think. He wrote what was in his terrified heart..." Planes and birds are not the same, but Ilya's fear calls back to his fear in HR at the campfire scene, when "he couldn't conceal the terror in his voice." Ilya's fear is wrapped up in Shane, in their miscommunication, in the 'wolves' at the cottage and the fire he couldn't bear to look at in the plane. And he prays, and he tells Shane he loves him, and he speaks as he falls. I don't have a conclusion for what this means, really, but it's just something that feels so beautiful to me, and I woke up thinking about it. So here you go.
Birds seem to come up in relation to places: the bar, the cottage, the getaway. They also seem connected, at least in some cases, to the emotional connections made between the characters. Thanks for reading my brain dump--I would love to talk about this more with y'all. For people who have read all the books, I would love to know if birds show up in other ways.
I’m having kind of a rough brain day, and I’m going to do some things to try to improve my mood and take my mind off things, and I was wondering if anyone has any fics that just brought a smile to their face, made them feel gooey or comforted or at peace or hopeful. Some crack is okay, but I prefer nothing about them on stan Twitter for today (toxic internet things). I don’t really have a lot of preferences, except it absolutely cannot have anything to do with tennis (iykyk).
Off to clean for a bit and drink a coffee, but thank you in advance 🩷💜💙
Calling all disaster lovers, plane crash fans, wilderness survival enjoyers, and anyone who is fond of Hollanov in Situations TM!!! The concept is a Hatchet!AU, where the CCM photoshoot goes wrong and they are forced to survive in the wilderness all alone. No archive warnings apply. Summary below.
When Shane reluctantly agreed to kick off his MLH career with a photoshoot, he imagined, somewhat vaguely, a hockey uniform and some dramatic lighting on the rink. Shoot a few pucks. Pose intensely. That kind of thing.
The marketing agency, apparently, had other ideas.
A plane flight gone wrong, a desperate crash landing, and suddenly hockey’s two brightest young stars find themselves stranded in the heart of the Canadian wilderness. With no way home and no rescue coming, they only have one hope for survival -- each other.
One of my favorite tropes is when one or both of hollanov have a rookie billet with them. I like that it can have friendly/found family dynamics or parental dynamics, depending on your preference. The post title is a play on the AO3 tag “Accidental Child Acquisition.” Here are some recs from me ☺️🙂↕️
if it wasn’t for that meddling kid by ARustySpork Rated T, CCNTUAW, 139k, Complete with an ongoing sequel. The rookie is an OC named Pava, he lives with Ilya in Boston instead of Ilya moving to Ottawa. The dynamics are more friends/found family, not really parental, and this is one of the go-to recommendations for this trope.
Now look at what we have put you through by Kzzak Rated M, CCNTUAW, 37k, WIP. The rookie is an OC named Nathan (nickname Harry) who is new to the Ottawa Centaurs. The dynamics are still developing in the story, but the tags suggest it is paternal/parental. Please read the tags closely before you read because this fic is based on the investigative reporting of Rick Westhead in his book We Breed Lions that looks critically at hockey culture in Canada, specifically at the peer pressure, hazing, and sexual assault that is perpetrated and normalized in the junior league.
Growing Outward by quietonthelake Rated E, CCNTUAW, 136k, WIP. The rookie is our dear Luca Haas who lives with Ilya. The dynamics are in my opinion very found family, but maybe there are shades of parental, I can’t really remember. I love Luca, and I think this fic develops his character in interesting ways.
The Next Shift by Spookyprincess Rated E, NAWA, 33k, WIP. The rookie is an OC named Charlie who billets with hollanov in Ottawa after they have retired. This fic is very parental because the rookie is a literal child playing for a junior team in Ottawa. Features Ilya coaching U11s and Mites, and Shane going full Mr. Real Estate.
Honorable Mention: your presence has gone through me (like needle through a thread) by GatheringBlue Rated T, NAWA, 103k, WIP. The rookie is our very dear beloved Ilya Rozanov who is acquired as a rookie by an OC billet family Nikolai and Sophie Petrov and their daughters. Dynamics are very parental. They love him a lot!
I know there are others that take up this trope in some way, shape, or form, and please share them in the comments. I know there are some good fics with the Ottawa rookies, and I also am vaguely aware of a fic with a rookie named Luke, but I haven’t read it, so if someone knows that one, please share it lol.
I am writing a fic and need a small amount of assistance with word choice in Russian, and maybe a few cultural/idiom questions. Not looking for large amounts of translation or grammar assistance. Literally just 5-10 isolated words. I will explain the concept more in DMs if you are willing/interested.
If you are willing to help, please DM me. I am willing to beta read in return. I have extensive professional editing experience, am proficient with editing multilingual writing in English, have insights into English idioms (primarily US American), and give constructive feedback on writing for a living. Also happy to just chat about ideas. Thanks so much regardless 💜💚💞
I'm reheating for the first time in several months, and it's been a really nice experience to get back to it rather than just talk about it on reddit, lol. So here I am, back on reddit! I was watching the credits, and I noticed that JT is credited as the director of the CCM commercial. The lighting is so dim for the crew shots of that scene, but I can still tell that it's him. I was trying to identify the voice for the All Stars Presser because I also think this sounds a little bit like JT.
In the credits, there are the two Man in the Crease broadcasters, the journalist who interviews Ilya about his 40-50 goal season, and two unnamed Canadian analysts (Jay Farrar and Noah Labranche), but I'm not sure if it's two analysts refer to the two disembodied voices that ask questions in the presser. Does anyone know? If I had to guess, I would say it's probably Noah Labranche, but there's a worm in my ear that says it sounds like JT lmao.
MisplacedMetaphor has placed their fics in a private collection, meaning they are no longer viewable at AO3. I've included their announcement which they posted to their Xitter account, which can be found at this link: https://x.com/MisplacedMeta4/status/2057515566886211895 You can also view it on their Instagram story here: https://www.instagram.com/misplacedmetaphor__
This is, in my opinion, another very unfortunate example of bullying and harassment that can happen in fandom spaces. I want to shout out the mods of this sub for their dedication to Writers Come First and Don't Like Don't Read.
If MisplacedMetaphor comes across this post, please know that I value your work, I'm so upset people are reading and discussing your work in bad faith, and I'm so sorry people are treating you like this. Your statement brings up so many important reminders, especially that writers are people and hobbyists and that depiction does not equal endorsement. Thank you for the messiness, the imperfections, and the complexities of the characters you have created. I hope you are safe and surrounded by supportive people.
E, NAWA, 113k WIP. Carrion Comfort updated! In this fic, Shane and Ilya are on their way to the Sochi Olympics when their flight goes down. It features BAMF Shane Hollander’s wilderness survival knowledge, Ilya’s protectiveness and perceptive nature, and really interesting/compelling team dynamics. There are NPC deaths and graphic descriptions of the plane crash and injuries, but no MCD. Summary below.
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Flight 771 shouldn't have been any different than any of the hundreds of other flights that Shane has taken over the course of his career, aside from the fact that it was taking him towards his lifelong dream—towards the Olympics.
It shouldn't have been any different.
BEND OVER, STAY DOWN.
BEND OVER, STAY DOWN.
BEND OVER, STAY DOWN.
It is.
And no one to make eye contact with across the terminal in queer lighting…just me and my disappointing chicken pesto panini. This show follows me everywhere.
