Hello,
How’s your week been? It’s been a busy week for me. Friday morning I hopped on a 12-hour bus trip to Jogja. We arrived in the middle of the night. I say we made too many stops and the bus was moving more slowly than expected. By the time you’re reading this, I will be in Solo already.
The production house I’m working for is finally releasing its movie, so we’re in these two cities to promote it. I personally still don’t want to explicitly call people to the cinema, so it’s your choice whether you want to see it or not. We had a gala premiere last Tuesday and it was a sea of people. Protokol kesehatan, apa itu?
Even during the trip it was almost not practical for physical distancing. We were cooped up together for 12 hours and the rest area was just as crowded. I spent the whole trip listening to Taylor Swift’s discography from the very beginning in celebration of Red (Taylor’s Version). I got to 1989 before I became too tired to stay awake. In the morning, I went for hotel breakfast and it sunk on me how we touched the same food all over the place, and I’m not sure people watch their hands as much as I do. I can’t believe we lived—still living—like this.
Anyway, last week I told you there would be no memoir today. I’ve always planned to take a short break every four weeks. As Hannah Gadsby once recommended, I should not put all my trauma eggs in one show. I gotta budget that shit. So this week I’m going to recommend some stuff for you to enjoy.
Last Sunday I released a new novella, Katastrofe Mala, at Kumparan+. I’ve been so busy I didn’t even have the time to announce it properly. I just tweeted it once and let Kumparan+ do the rest.
It’s a one woman’s story about getting rid of her loneliness without examining further why she feels that way. It will be updated once a week. And yes, the protagonist will get more and more unhinged with each episode. Subscribe to Kumparan+ to read it every week!
Our sale for Magical Tales of Gandaloka is still going on. This is your chance to collect all of the books before they’re sold out. We won’t be reprinting it. I mean, look at that discounted price. You simply must get it now, really. Order your copies here!
If you don’t feel like reading, I’m recommending The Magicians at Amazon Prime. They host two out of five seasons. It’s one of my favorite series ever. It’s based on Lev Grossman’s book of the same name, but the show has taken many creative liberties, the show and the book are practically different stories. I like the show much better.
Think of an American university of magic. Of course these kids are going to misuse magic for parties, sex, and getting high. It is so good and has wonderful writing performed by a wonderful ensemble of casts. I find the series sooo refreshing for the genre. They actually explored a bunch of magic systems in an urban and modern setting with a strong streak of advocating for social justice. I simply love it.
If a series is too much of a time commitment, then I recommend Tom Hanks’s Finch on Apple TV+. In this story, Finch creates a robot for the sole purpose of taking care of his dog when Finch passes away from too much sun radiation in a post-apocalyptic world. If you like Wall-E, you should like this heartwarming story between a robot and its creator as well. And oh, they even credit the dog as a cast. 😆
Lastly, if you’d rather listen to music, then I recommend Taylor Swift’s Red (Taylor’s Version). A ten minute version of All Too Well is just a musical waiting to happen. The short movie should be out right now as I’m writing this. This whole album has been inspiring me. If Taylor dares to write songs about her exes, why shouldn’t I be just as brave?
Alright. Those are a lot of links I gave you. Enjoy your week ahead! Stay safe everyone. I’ll see you next Sunday.