Valkyrie

That's actually babble, but I would imagine it has the same origin.

I used the Google survey form so the results would be hidden. I want the reveal to be a surprise to everyone.

Happy Holidays! Whether you celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanza, Festivus, or something else, I wish you the best the holiday season has to offer! A large part of the US will be facing a pretty nasty winter storm this weekend, my area included, so fingers crossed everyone can still celebrate as planned. Thank you to all who have voted in the anthology theme selection poll so far. The poll will remain open until midnight EST on 12/27/22, so there's still time to vote if you haven't done so. I won't give any clues as to which one is currently in the lead, but will say it's a pretty close race! If you are unable to access the Google form, please send me a PM with your choice between: Too Soon, A Second Glance, Leap of Faith, Hidden, and Star Crossed, and I will record your vote on your behalf. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1BVqr8MUJjM1T21Ylro18ITkQ9R0_Kjvs5aImfpfzUr8/edit I will reveal the winning theme next Thursday, 12/29/22, so stay tuned!

I did 95% of my shopping online and only bought a few things in brick and mortar stores. I ship a lot of my presents, so it's really nice to save on shipping and have them sent directly to the recipient. I'll join you. Just don't complain about cold feet

Well you haven't open your presents yet...

Sorry about that! I will look into better options for future surveys. I don't want anyone excluded. I see that Mancunian has offered to vote on your behalf. Anyone who cannot access the form can feel free to message me as well, and I can enter the vote on your behalf.

It's the holiday season and it's a merry time for some and not so great time for others. Here are two prompts to reflect both moods. PT Prompt #97 You are gifted a magic snow globe. What happens when you shake it? PT Prompt #98 You are spending the holidays alone. Describe your day and any celebration or lack thereof.

So you can't see the survey when you click on the link? I thought anyone could vote, regardless of if they have a Google account or not.

The anthology selection committee did a great job with suggesting themes and then narrowing them down to a top five for the GA membership to vote on. It was difficult selecting our favorites, but we have five great themes to choose from. One of these will be our theme for the 2023 anthology! I'd like to extend a huge thank you to @Aditus@kbois @Mrsgnomie @northie @raven1 and @CassieQ for their input and discussion regarding next year's theme. You guys are awesome! Voting will remain open until midnight EST December 27th. On December 29th, I will reveal the winning theme. Please visit the following link and select your favorite of the five themes. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1BVqr8MUJjM1T21Ylro18ITkQ9R0_Kjvs5aImfpfzUr8/edit

Thank you! Oatmeal chocolate chip are one of my all-time favorites. My mom used to call them "cowboy cookies". I'm sorry for your loss.

They've assimilated nicely

Anyone who's watched Dead Poets Society is familiar with the phrase carpe diem. Even if you haven't watched this iconic Robin Williams movie, Myr featured this phrase as one of his Words of the Day last week. Carpe diem was also the theme for the Summer 2009 Anthology. So seize the day and reacquaint yourself with the stories from this past anthology. https://gayauthors.org/stories/browse/category/22-2009-summer-carpe-diem/

Whew... this was an intense chapter! Gideon makes a lot more sense now, and I'm really curious to find out the meaning of the ornamentation. I'm not surprised Kavan followed him, and it's a good thing he did. It's also a good thing that Caspian and Konstantin and the rest were on hand for the aftermath. So it seems Caspian knows more about Kavan than he's let on. And now Kavan's shadow dancer gift has been revealed. I think the oily-tasting blood was Konstantin's, but I could be wrong. All I know is that I want the next chapter now 😁

I like both of these! Maybe I can come up with something for one of them.

Thank you to all who volunteered to serve on the anthology theme selection committee! I had six people volunteer, so all six will be included on the committee. I have contacted these individuals, and we will begin the process of selecting and narrowing down themes for the GA membership at large to vote on. This process will take place over the next two weeks, December 1-14, and on December 15th I will open up voting to the GA membership to ultimately decide the theme for the 2023 anthology. Voting will remain open for two weeks and will close on December 28th. Look for the winning theme announcement on December 29th. I'm looking forward to seeing what the committee comes up with!

Who else read this as craptacular? 😬😝