Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

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Marie Brennan @swantower.bsky.social · 7h

<totters out onto porch>

<settles into rocker>

<thumps cane a few times>

Let's talk about what the process of submitting short fiction used to look like, shall we? And about what it looks like now.

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 7h

To me, it just seems like upping the potential for something legally actionable being spat out.

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Ben Franklin's World @bfworld.bsky.social · 9h

How do the everyday things we use connect us to unseen systems of labor and inequality?

Seth Rockman helps us explore that question through the material history of slavery.

🎧 Listen now: benfranklinsworld.com/422

#History #MaterialCulture #USHistory #Skystorians

Episode 422: Seth Rockman, Plantation Goods: How Northern Factories Fueled the Plantation Economy

Discover how hoes, shoes, and cloth linked New England factories to Southern slavery in early America with historian Seth Rockman.

benfranklinsworld.com

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Isaac X Isaac @isaacxisaac.bsky.social · 9h

#LGBTQWriteAThon
Alexander! A horrible little fopling burning to prove his honor and manhood, generally with questionably-called-for physical violence.

He's actually warm, intelligent, and charismatic, just also a bit… angery.

Sort of a deconstruction-and-reconstruction of the Hero/White Prince.

Collage of various sketches of a blond, blue-eyed white boy dressed in aristocratic garb of the early 1660s: black fur hat with huge feathers, cape, falling band, short blue doublet worn open with silver embroidery and gold buttons, blue petticoat breeches, ribboned high-heel shoes or boots with lacy lining, golden rapier, lace-lined gloves, fuzzy golden baldric, and huge quantities of silver and pink ribbon everywhere. In all the various doodles his expression is usually some variant of Angry.

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Ayo @darrylayo.bsky.social · 11h

male loneliness epidemic is a direct consequence of society allowing barbershop quartets to fall out of fashion

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 10h

It's a deeply frustrating misunderstanding. I get *how* they're reading "no authority to do that" as related to present-day "ICE can't do [thing it's doing], it's against the law," but that's not! what! anyone's! saying!

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 11h

People love it when someone they've outsourced morality to says, "It's okay to be mean about this. Knock yourselves out."

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E.M. Anderson | the author too hot for BlueSky @elizmanderson.com · 12h

and here's a static cover reveal post for people who want to skip the book trailer and/or hate videos! cover art by Lucy Rose

THE LORD OF THE WOOD releases in July 2026, from @hanoversquarepress.bsky.social! #author

preorder now: gatheringvolumes.com/item/44euZQq...

the cover of E.M. Anderson's The Lord of the Wood, framed in gold with gold flowers against a dark teal background around the edges. The cover is teal with a stag of flowers and foliage growing from a twisted tree with flowers growing around it and black ooze dripping from a branch overhead. the title "The Lord of the Wood" is in large white serif text to the left, with foliage growing through the letters closest to the tree, and the author "E.M. Anderson" is in all-caps yellow text at the bottom. the tagline, in smaller yellow text, reads, "Even a beastly woodland protector needs saving..."

"When lonely clockmaker Arthur Throckmorton loses his way in an enchanted forest, he meets the hero of his childhood bedtime stories: the Lord of the Wood. But instead of the mythical figure of his dreams, the Lord of the Wood is a grim man turning into a beast and losing power over a dying forest. If they can’t save the forest before he becomes a beast completely, Arthur will lose the man he's falling for—and never see his family again." Text is in a textbox against a murky image of a forest, with the cover of E.M. Anderson's The Lord of the Wood below the text, all against a dark teal background with gold curlicues in the corners.

The cover of E.M. Anderson's The Lord of the Wood on a dark teal background with golden leaves overhead, surrounded by yellow text reading: plant magic; sentient forest trying to oops! murder people; intensely homoerotic shaving scene; the one who heard the stories and the one who was in the stories; hopeless romantic who's clueless about his own sexuality; Beauty & the Beast inspired by not a retelling; dual-POV brother/sister; love interest turning slowly into a beast; wound-tending.

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 12h

It feels like a fever dream.

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Derbyshire Record Office @derbyshiredro.bsky.social · 19h

Our #ArchiveOfTheWeek is this example of gorgeous calligraphy. Benjamin Wilson was only 15 when he made this in 1736 and was largely self-taught. He later moved to London and became a painter, theatre manager and scientist!

#calligraphy #18thCentury

A sheet of paper, beautifully caligraphed, stating 'The Art of Writing in all the hands with variety of ornament… Benjamin Wilson, Leeds July ye 8th day Anno Domini 1736'. Around the text are drawings of animals including a squirrel, monkey, dog, snail, butterfly, birds and a dragon.

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Medievalist.net @medievalists.bsky.social · 14h

The Daily Life of a Medieval King www.medievalists.net/2025/07/medi... #medieval

The Daily Life of a Medieval King - Medievalists.net

Have you wondered what a medieval king did on a typical day? Thanks to Christine de Pizan, we have an account of what daily life was like for King Charles V of France.

www.medievalists.net

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Dr Elizabeth Norton @enortonhistory.bsky.social · 15h

I visited @bodleian.ox.ac.uk Treasured exhibition yesterday. This painting is a fascinating example of changing attitudes. When acquired by library it was a portrait of Thomas More. When xrayed in 1955 a 16thC woman found beneath and the decision was taken to remove More #treasured #bodleian

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Johnnie Jae @johnniejae.bsky.social · 16h

It may no longer be Indigenous Peoples' Day but this is when and where your support truly matters. We have several Native communities devastated by flooding, families have literally lost everything.

Link to community fundraiser for people impacted by this storm: alaskacf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/c...

A a teal flyer for the Western Alaska Disaster Relief with a QR code to donate. Text reads:

WESTERN ALASKA DISASTER RELIEF

Alaska's Western coastal communities are experiencing devastating impacts from Typhoon Halong, with families displaced and villages facing severe flooding and loss.

ONLINE FUNDRAISER:
Join us in supporting relief efforts. Scan the QR code to donate
online. All funds raised will go directly to
assisting communities.
QUYANA CAKNEQ - QUYANAQPAK - QAGAASAKUNG - TAIKUU
-
MAHSÌ CHO - GUNALCHÈESH - HÀW’AA - THANK YOU

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Will Wiles @willwiles.bsky.social · 17h

Performatively reading in the cafe, but wearing white gloves so I'm still venerating the Book As Object, with a t-shirt saying "I know archivists don't wear gloves" so people know the gloves are performative.

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Dr Meg Kobza @fancyhistorian.bsky.social · 18h

It's not Masquerade Monday, BUT! 'The Masquerade: A History of Extravagance and Intrigue' is now available for pre-order & you can get 25% off through Friday!

www.waterstones.com/book/the-mas...

If you think Bridgerton will be juicy, just wait til you get your hands on this 😏🤫 #18thc

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Kate Strasdin @katestrasdin.bsky.social · 1d

Muted shades in an #1840s ballgown recycled from 18th century silk brocade. The grey green silk sits quietly behind the brighter florals and foliage, fashioned into decorative bodice bows #KSUMuseum #FashionHistory 🗃️🪡

Side view of the top half of an 1840s ballgown of grey green silk with multi coloured floral pattern. The bodice is decorated with silk bows and flounces with a pointed waistline

Fabric detail of the 1840s silk brocade dress showing the grey green background an colourful floral motif

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Tiffany Baxter @ MCM Q-11 @tiffbaxter.bsky.social · 16h

🌟Hello #PortfolioDay 🌟
I'm Tiffany, an illustrator primarily working with the fantastical & historical especially in ttrpgs and books. I'm available for commercial & private work from mid Nov!
💌: [email protected] (no bsky DMs pls, I'm in the UK! 💀)
Portfolio: www.tiffanybaxter.com

A black and white ink illustration of a scowling early 19th century housekeeper holding a lamp stood within an open gothic arch doorway. The doors are elaborately carved with natural motifs such as the Green Man. The stone above has carvings of wolves.

An illustration of two lesbian ghosts dancing. The left hand ghost wears a 1760s silk sack gown, the right hand wears an early 1500s style gown with puffed sleeves and a short cape with feathered beret. They are both blue and translucent. They are in a heavily wooded and overgrown graveyard, a lone candle burning with a blue flame sits on top of a slab grave beneath them.The illustrated border shows as follows: On top, clasping carved stone hands emerging from yew branches with berries. To the sides: tin lanterns with candles burning, carved stone hourglasses & carved stone broken columns. Beneath: Vaults based upon the Circle of Lebanon at Highgate Cemetery flanked by trees.

An intimate scene at a party in 17th century France. Two vampire women gaze at each other, holding hands at a card table. They are radiant in pink, drops of blood on their lace. Around them other party goers in purple-blue, wearing half-masks, oblivious to the true nature of the women. Behind an intricate decorated mantlepiece in warm pale gold.

A square sticker of a silvery-blue medieval inspired unicorn curled up asleep. It's on a gold matte shine background with a red border decorated with curved white lines and dots. It rests on a backdrop of a Richard Dadd painting of fairies.

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 16h

Exactly!

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Deborah McDowell @dem8z.bsky.social · 1d

PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD!!

The University of Texas-Austin is beginning a process to eliminate the Black Studies, Latino Studies, and Gender Studies departments in the College of Liberal Arts. This is a grave threat to the educational liberty of students, faculty, staff, and the people of Texas. 1/

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Emily Brand @emilybrand.bsky.social · 19h

What a brilliant title! Courting Disaster by @thezhm.bsky.social 📚🌷

A fascinating, feminist dive into 18C literature – from Richardson to Austen – shedding light on ‘courtship’, consent, & the power of literature

📖 manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/9781526188854/
(TY @manchesterup.bsky.social 🤓)

Book cover for Zoe Mcgee's Courting Disaster, set in front of a row of 18th-century books, with a yellow flower at its feet

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Karin Wulf @kawulf.bsky.social · 17h

When people tell you that founders as enslavers was something we should see "in the context of their time." Great piece fr @katytelling.bsky.social abt a wealthy 18hc Virginian (and there were others) who thought Washington and co. risked their honor and more. ageofrevolutions.com/2025/10/13/a...

A Great Reputation Among Men: Race and Contested Masculinities in the Early American Republic

By Kathleen Telling In 1785, Robert Pleasants, a wealthy tobacco planter, abolitionist, and prominent member of Henrico County’s Quaker community, penned a letter to Virginia’s most famous son, Geo…

ageofrevolutions.com

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 17h

Likewise, the suggestion that people passing through Ellis Island might not have realized that the way their name was written (as given on the ship manifest) was not legally mandated going forward presupposes that *anyone* thought of names as legally mandated.

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StatsJew @statsjew.bsky.social · 18h

I was doing a digitization of immigration records. When someone applied for citizenship, they would collect all the previous paperwork and put it together. The names often changed from record to record; mostly what was needed was two witnesses attesting the truth of the document.

Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 1d

I think a lot of people don't quite grasp how little documentation of a legal identity anyone had before, like, the 1930s. No social security number, no green card, no driver's license. This made you reliant on your social network; OTOH nobody could force you to write your name a certain way.

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 18h

Consistency is expected today both because of and in favor of rigorously documented bureaucratic systems - the systems enable people in power to force you to be consistent, and all of us being consistent helps keep the bureaucracy working. (I'm not a libertarian, that's just how it is.)

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Cassidy Percoco @mimicofmodes.com · 18h

I saw the suggestion last night that maybe people would have had problems if their name on the manifest/Ellis Island books had been altered and they hadn't continued spelling it that way in application for citizenship later, but that's an assumption based on our current bureaucracy.

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