I started writing an essay about Taylor Swift for today’s letter and just could not find it in myself to finish it. She’s annoying, what else is new? At least we’re getting a track called Florida featuring Florence Welch, which was made specifically for me.
I asked in the Substack chat recently if any subscribers would be interested in a Mall Goth book club and the answer was a resounding YES, and so, drunk with power, I am calling the club to order. As many of you who have followed me for a while know, I have a deep affection for gay historical romance, also known as “codpiece rippers.” I happened to have one sitting on my TBR (to be read) shelf and thus selected our first book: Solomon’s Crown by Natasha Siegel.
According to the publisher, “Two rival kings fall desperately in love—but the fate of medieval Europe hangs in the balance.” I’m already salivating. If you’re looking to purchase from a local bookstore, a few of my favorites are Greenlight and McNally Jackson in Brooklyn and Skylight in Los Angeles. If you don’t live in one of those cities, go to Barnes and Noble! I’m not saying I don’t buy books on Amazon because that would be a bald-faced lie, but I try to buy from not-Bezos whenever possible.
My reading speed is mercurial, and I’ve been in a bit of a book slump, but let’s aim for the end of the month. I’ll post weekly updates on my progress for anyone following along, and then I’ll aim for the actual discussion post to go live on February 29. Leading up to that, I’d love to hear in the comments if you’re reading! We’re gonna figure this out together, and it might be a little bumpy at first, but I’m excited to finally have people to talk about books with!
Speaking of reading, it recently broke that one of the most notorious Harry Potter fanfics is getting the Fifty Shades of Grey treatment. Author senlinyu’s epic work Manacled is being pulled offline by the end of 2024 to be reworked into an original novel. From my understanding, the fic is Dramione (Draco/Hermione) romance set in a post-apocalyptic world where Voldemort won the war and there’s some kind of Handmaid’s Tale forced breeding scenario.
While I was a die-hard Dramione shipper as a teenager, I have since seen the light and Drarry (Draco/Harry) is my Harry Potter OTP (one true pairing). (Yes, I feel stupid explaining fanfic terminology when I’m sure a lot of you know it, but it’s for the noobs!) I have resisted reading Manacled because it’s not the type of fanfic I usually go for, both tonally and lengthwise (it’s over 300,000 words, lol), but I’m intrigued now that it’s being pulled for publication and my friend and I made a deal that I would read it if she read a Drarry fic and possibly All the Young Dudes (don’t get me started). So I will be reading Manacled, although I have a feeling that every time Draco and Hermione even breathe on each other I’ll be screaming “THAT’S HARRY’S MAN GET AWAY FROM HIM!!!!!” It will likely take me a while to read, but if you’ve already read Manacled or are interested in doing so, maybe I’ll do a supplemental fanfic book club at some point…with a special guest, perhaps?
I know this is a lot of housekeeping and not much actual commentary, but think it’s worthwhile in the early stages of this newsletter to be a little freeform and let all of you know how my brain works as I figure out the best way to make this entertaining and sustainable. I’ve loved writing this letter just for the brief time it’s been live and I’m so grateful to be in a regular writing practice again. I promise there will be more of the content I originally intended to put out when I launched coming soon, especially interviews. Interviewing interesting people was my favorite part of being a journalist and I loved interviewing Mandy Lee for Mall Goth, so there will be more of that coming.
I will leave you with this: I have been microdosing THC! Or I guess I’ve just been eating very little bites of indica gummies purchased from the smoke shop near my apartment and have found that being a little stoned has been a HUGE help for my writing. When I’m stoned, I find myself less likely to stop and second guess myself, more creative, and willing to follow thoughts down whatever weird rabbit holes appear. Try it if you’re feeling in a creative rut.
A few leftovers:
Amazon’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith show is good! I’ve only watched one episode but Maya Erskine is great and Donald Glover’s titties are SITTING.
My back hurts! Should I start doing pilates?
I bought the Frankie Shop liner jacket in green and it might be my favorite purchase of the year so far. I already owned it in black but the green seems to fit me better in the arms and shoulders. Maybe they reworked the design? Definitely overpriced for what is a basic army surplus liner but I love it.
Summer Fridays lip oils…eh, they’re ok. I bought three shades and Rosewood Nights is my favorite.
The Makeup By Mario SuperSatin Lipstick is shockingly worth the hype. I have the shade Nolita, a mid-tone warm pink that I’m kind of obsessed with.
I made homemade lo mein based on Cassie’s recipe and it was SO FUCKING GOOD. Oyster sauce…I would die for you.
I’m going to start watching Survivor because I am obsessed with Parvati. Watch this space!
I would very much like to get you started on all the young dudes
I’m so jealous of Parvati for dating Mae Martin.. that’s my twink