I suppose, to wrap it all up, I don't like forms which are provided with as little effort as possible, or forms which reveal every little secret about the character before I even get to know them.
What are your thoughts on roleplay forms? Is there something I didn't cover here? If so, don't be afraid to tell me in the comments below!
Top 3 Recommendations:
1. Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
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I was wondering for a while whether I should include this one, as it's not really a new discovery I found and is a book I have known about for some time. However, even though it has received it's own movie and has a decently large fanbase, I didn't see any harm in talking about it any more.
Cornelia Funke has a unique and beautiful writing style which differentiates her books from any other authors. The amount of detail and world-building she is able to easily seem into her pages gives J.K. Rowling a run for her money, and throughout the book I found myself connecting with each of the character's, even the antagonist's. In Inkheart she takes a concept most people would probably love to participate in; that is, the entrance of characters into books and the possibility of taking things out of them as well. The main characters, Mo and Meg, are both Silvertongues who possess the ability to bring words to life, which causes a lot of trouble as a storybook villain who exited his world now seeks to take over ours, and has even captured Meg's mother and father.
Each chapter ends perfectly as well, with just enough information that it doesn't seem like a cliffhanger, but too much suspense to put the book down and get back to doing your chores. Re-reading it for the third time last week, I found myself in that age-old predicament where you know you have other obligations, but the pages call out to you in an entirely enticing manner which barely any can say they have escaped from.
This is why I recommend Inkheart, to lovers of fantasy and books in general.
2. John Michael Talbot's Album The Birth of Jesus
In this Christmas season, many of you are probably getting sick and tired of all the same old Christmas carols being played over and over again on the radio stations, malls, and retail stores you visit. Winter Wonderland and Jingle Bells are all well and good, but when you hear them being rehashed continuously, the songs start to lose their sparkle. However, this album is full of songs you will certainly never hear on a radio, and thus retain their magnanimous glory.
Now obviously, this won't be for everyone. The name alone reveals it contains highly religious songs, and for those who aren't Christian, it may just grate on your ears. Nevertheless, I still recommend it, as it flawlessly blends the symphony of a choir with the deep voice of John Michael Talbot to produce tunes that seem to float through the air almost hauntingly. Whenever I hear it's first song on our old family CD player, I am instantly transfixed in awe of the magnificence of each hymn, so I'm slightly curious whether anyone else will be struck by the music within it in a similar manner.
3. Kimi no Na Wa, or Your Name
For anyone who pays attention to anime, or just animation in general, mention of this movie has probably been inescapable. And this is for good reason, as the film is so amazing that I am having trouble trying to describe it.
The main synopsis is that two people, a boy and a girl, mysteriously begin to switch bodies after the fall of a comet, and while they pretend to be the other in this strange situation, they begin to fall in love only for the boy to realize that the girl may be harder to find then he had originally assumed.
Now, before you be like my immature friend and think that's pretty trans (looking at you, Dan) this is not just your typical slice-of-life movie featuring a romance. I don't want to spoil the main conflict, but one of the main characters almost dies twice and a city may or may not be wiped out. I'll let you piece together the rest of the events by researching it yourself or actually WATCHING IT.
All of the film is beautifully animated as well, so if anime in general disinterests you and you hate romance, you can always just go online and look up aesthetic images from different scenes in the show.
