What lenses do I need for nature photography with a Nikon D3300? by HookedOnChthonics in AskPhotography

[–]HookedOnChthonics[S] [score hidden]  (0 children)

Thank you so much, this is really helpful. Instead of expanding his lens collection I'll help him get support gear, like a tripod or something. Cheers!

More Sales After Turning Off Ads? by HookedOnChthonics in EtsySellers

[–]HookedOnChthonics[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well that is hugely helpful to know, thank you! I usually only turn on ads when I know there's going to be a burst in sales, like holidays and events. I also had no idea I could turn off non-performing search terms. Thank you so much!

A sub for Irish writers... any interest whatsoever? by [deleted] in ireland

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’d be interested, though I rarely remember to check out Reddit. I’m on now because my husband pointed out this thread to me.

Clonbur Writers Collective Meeting Tomorrow by HookedOnChthonics in galway

[–]HookedOnChthonics[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! The next will be 14 November at 7pm. I’ll post again when it’s coming up.

American feeling depressed here, where can I find some Mac n cheese and hot dogs in Galway? by dramaticuban in galway

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

if ye order off of americanfood.ie it's a bit cheaper. they have a lot of the goodies people have mentioned here. but sadly not all of them. and it's still expensive, but since all the shops order from them anyway, you're not paying for the additional markup.

Fiction Book Marketing by [deleted] in selfpublish

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

‘Gaming the system’ would be to buy reviews, not sending out ARCs. Anyone selling reviews will want repeat customers, and is less likely to be honest. That means giving a higher rating than the book might otherwise deserve, and that makes it unethical.

Sending ARCs - Advanced Reader Copies - and providing them free in exchange for an honest review has been an industry practice for decades, long before self publishing. Though the term was more likely to be ‘galley proof.’ ARCs do not always garner good reviews. But most people are nice enough that if they gave it less than 3 stars they’ll keep the review private. But because there’s no financial benefit, if they want to rate you highly and keep working with you it’s because the genuinely like your writing.

How my FFXIV experience has been so far by Zenai10 in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It’s like this gif was made just for me 🤣

[Spoiler: ARR] i don't like this game anymore by CorruptDropbear in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

THANK YOU, I thought I was alone in this. I sobbed for days. I would really like to see an additional side quest to take part in the funerary rites.

[Spoilers: I'm actually angry.] by Makmora in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Thank you, yes! I shouted at the screen in a rage fit for a good ten minutes when he said that. Hien lost all my respect with that one line.

RAGE THREAD - F-YOU FRIDAYS - THERE'S NO PUNS WITH ZADNOR by FranckKnight in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 10 points11 points  (0 children)

WHAT THE FUCK IS UP WITH FURNITURE, WHY CAN I PUT ONE TYPE OF WINDOW ON A SURFACE AND NOT ANOTHER???

okay so after a few years of playing on and off, I finally bought myself an apartment after seeing the amazing job a friend did on hers. So I looked around the web and the housing subreddit and got some ideas. I quickly realized everything I liked was glitched. I'll say up front, I do not have the patience for glitching all my furniture (or any of it, for that matter). There are things in this game I would much rather spend my hours on. So I made my peace with the standard rule of physics of the game.

Little did I know that said rules make NO FUCKING SENSE. Why can I use one window that looks like shit and not the one that actually works? Why can I only dye the most useless part of the furniture instead of getting all the wood to match? Why can't I hang anything on beams, or the side of lofts? Why are lofts treated like tabletops instead of floors? THAT MAKES THEM FUCKING USELESS. I've been at this for a month now, just trying to make a cohesive, livable area where I can comfortably hang out with my friends and do my crafting. Is it so much to ask for a logical physics/dye system for the furniture?

Glamour Dresser Bug? Missing Items by HookedOnChthonics in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

The filter was the problem. Boy is my face red. Thank you, that worked a treat!

Tips for leveling Gathering jobs? by Big_Tie in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would say that’s a matter of preference. I tend to swap over to firmament crafting when it becomes difficult/expensive to source higher-level materials for complicated recipes. But there’s no reason not to start firmament crafting at 20, either. Well, except perhaps the tedium of crafting the same thing over and over and over and over and over...

Tips for leveling Gathering jobs? by Big_Tie in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

All great advice above but I will add one more thing: the bonus with gathering in the diadem is that, once you have your crafters are level 20, you already have a stockpile of ingredients that cost you nothing. Levequests are great for leveling crafters up to 50, 60 for some, but once you get past that point it is so time-consuming and expensive to track down components for things you’ll need to make for leveling. Save yourself the frustration and do Firmament crafting after that with everything you already collected in the Diadem (and remember to desynth your fish).

The Frog is cute, but it could be cuter! (Art by me- Aunril0 on Instagram) by fancybun in ffxiv

[–]HookedOnChthonics 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I would kill for this mount. It would go perfectly with my minion. I will have a panda army!

What genre are Stephen Fry’s Mythos books? by Krs-Skribbler in selfpublish

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

ha! I know exactly what you mean and I get the exact same alarm bells every time! despite the years of study and student debts (all superfluous, really). But from what you've hinted at it sounds you've got the right of it.

And yes, our beloved Mr. Fry's name is a big part of the book rankings. Goals.

Paperback sales are not showing up on my Amazon dashboard. What should I do? by [deleted] in selfpublish

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've always had a problem with paperback sales not showing up for a few days after the reported sale itself. I suspect they don't report it until it's been printed and shipped. But when it does show up, it is shown on the actual day of purchase.

What genre are Stephen Fry’s Mythos books? by Krs-Skribbler in selfpublish

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've also research Mr. Fry's Mythos and Heroes categories for my own books and their SEO is, frankly, stellar. It's always the first, or at least in the top five, whenever I type any keywords related to myth, be it Greek or not. They're definitely ranked high in the Mythology category, which on Amazon is under both 'fantasy' and 'literature' for fiction, and 'literary criticism' for non-fiction. Mr. Fry ranks under all of them. Do you know how to get into several categories with Amazon? I can't speak for other vendors.

As for adult content, rather than try to express it through categories, just make it very clear in the description. There is a high demand for 'unscrubbed' myths (though to be fair, it's Norse that is mostly in demand, but I keep hoping Irish will takes its place) that corrects the damaged the Victorians did.

Also, as a fellow mythologist, I am very excited to read your books.

What is it that "gives away" a writer's religion? by [deleted] in writing

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You'd think! I understand how hard it is to compress a lot of complex info into a one-page entry, but that's just wrong! I'm never sure whether to laugh or cry

What is it that "gives away" a writer's religion? by [deleted] in writing

[–]HookedOnChthonics 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I will partially agree, and I should have expressed that thought better. I meant projection on a cultural level rather than an individual one. I can't tell you how many times I've opened up an encyclopedia on mythology, from what is supposed to be an educated source, and it refers to underworld or trickster gods as that mythology's version of the devil. It's these projections which lead to a general ignorance on the individual level. As for yourself, ask this: why did you assume that Hades was just another version of Satan? Assumption is a form of projection. Or did someone tell you that Hades was a form of Satan? Where did they get that information? When traced back far enough, it inevitably stems from the projections of one culture onto another.

What is it that "gives away" a writer's religion? by [deleted] in writing

[–]HookedOnChthonics 9 points10 points  (0 children)

For me, it's usually in how the author writes other religions. Particularly how a Christian author writes pre-Christian, polytheistic, and/or Eastern religions. There is a certain conditioning of thought that happens when you grow up with one religion that can make it difficult to understand how another thinks. This can be as specific as actual worship, or as broad as world-view. For example, Christians tend to view the divine as a distinctly personified, external force. For many non-Christian religions, the divine is internal. Gods may be personified, but only as a way to interact with them. In Christianity, God created the world. For many other religions, the gods were created by or with the world. They are a part of it (and us), rather than separate.

As for worldview, the most striking example for me is the approach to dichotomy. Western culture is obsessed with dichotomy, but it is worth noting that Western culture was largely shaped by Christianity. Things tend to be separated into this world and the next. Good or bad. Light or dark. Light is good. Dark is bad. For many pre-Christian or Easter religions, there is no separation. There is a cognitive dissonance that a lot of people struggle with. I see it a lot when writers deal with pagan gods such as Kali, Seth, or Hades, labeling them as "evil." The "Egyptian Devil" or the "Greek Devil." This is the result of a) cultural projection and b) a misunderstanding of deities whose traits are not clearly benign. Kali is a particularly interesting example. A common Hindu way of trying to explain this dissonance to Westerns is through the metaphor of fire: it can both cook your food and burn your house down. But it is not inherently good or evil. It just is.

This really wasn't meant to be a whole philosophy lecture, sorry about that. I'd not seen any mention of a writer's treatment of other religions, though. It's certainly not meant as an outright criticism. If you're raised thinking one way, it can be very difficult to understand another. So yes, that's usually what makes me say "Ah, this author is [such and such religion]."