Happy New Year 2022!

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I realize I haven’t written any new blog posts in a while though I’ve been giving small updates over Instagram and Facebook. The year 2021 will probably be a “lost year” in terms of New Trials, because I didn’t make the significant writing progress that I thought I would in the past year. While there are other factors involved, the pandemic in large has sort of sapped a lot of joy in life for many, and I think I too was running on autopilot survival mode in the past year. Meaning, I was (barely) functioning through daily life, but a large part of creativity has been sapped away. For me, writing New Trials is a joyous, fulfilling experience, and I was not able to channel that self amid all the chaos across the globe. There is also the other part, as you all probably figured, New Trials is in its final stretch and the next section is the finale, and as a writer who has been working on this story since 1999, I want it to be able to provide this mega fanfiction the ending it deserves, and also to meet the expectations of readers who stuck by this long and have been so supportive and patient. And it’s also my personal desire to have no regrets when this story ends (when it ends). I also broke a leg and have been in recuperation mode for the past several weeks, another reflective period of time. I’ve come to realize I’m definitely not the best type of person to adjust to a once in a lifetime respiratory virus pandemic, but it might also have to do with my line of work.

I did manage to fulfill my bucket list of having chibi Sakura and Syaoran dolls through purchasing Good Smile Company Nendoroids and modifying them to become Obitsuroids. The first Nendos I got was 918 Nendoroid Sakura Kinomoto: Tomoeda Junior High Uniform Ver. and Nendoroid 763 Syaoran Li. I might have gotten some more since. I was never a figure person and was a doll person since I was a child. As a kid, I used to draw personalized paper dolls with friends and dress them up in self-designed outfits (yes, I was such a Tomoyo). I always wanted a Cardcaptor Sakura ball-jointed doll but always thought it would be too much work to customize and take up too much space. But I love how tiny and cute Obitsuroids are. They took quite a bit of time to collect, as they are out of stock and I got mine new from the secondhand market. I at first didn’t get the appeal of Nendoroids, but oh what a slippery slope when you realize how adorable they are. My Sakura and Syaoran Nendos are currently my mascots and give me renewed inspiration toward CCS, and I’ve been sharing photos on my Instagram account. The thing is, I think even bigger than my loss of writing inspiration, because I actually have been writing throughout the pandemic, is a loss of artistic inspiration. So having a photography outlet is sort of a nice diversion and hopefully a step toward getting artistic inspiration again.

Because the NT/CCS community is so diverse and spread across the world, I spent a lot of time thinking of all the readers and people I’ve been able to communicate with over the years, and still am in reach with to this day. I am grateful to have this community, and amid such trying times (no pun on New Trials), I appreciate more what we have, which is a venue where we can share like hobbies, interests and creativity. Cardcaptor Sakura going strong after all these years, with merchandise retaining popularity even now, shows its universal appeal (one which I think has not been quite replicated in the mahou shoujo/ magical girl category to date). It’s hard to find a series that resonates so hard because I think the fast-past nature of anime and media in general these days targets things that are more sensational and triggering. Hence a lot of shounen hero type stories, a lot more isekai and big franchise anime and so few good shoujo series with quality animation.  

On a brighter note, have you watched Disney’s Encanto—best Disney movie in years IMO coming from a complete Disney traditionalist. It’s like one of three movies I’ve watched in the past year. The songs are also so spot on, and I can relate to all three sisters. I think the pandemic has been a soul-searching time for many. For some people, it’s appreciating family and loved ones, others finding that time to cultivate an unexplored hobby or a neglected craft. For some, it has been changing jobs, moving, or giving back to community. For me, writing has always been that unwavering constant in my life, which I was reminded of even stronger during the past year. So, in the long run, I may be able to look back on this time as maybe a “lost year” for New Trials but not one for me in my journey as a writer.

I hope all of you good health and better tidings for 2022, the Year of the Black Tiger!

Music Spotlight: Andrew Garfield's “30/90” from the movie "tick, tick…BOOM!"

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Along with a lack of artistic inspiration also came a lack of appealing new music to listen to. I've been listening to Joe Hisaishi and piano instrumental collections all year round pretty much, my go to writing playlist. The exceptions were Hamilton and "tick, tick…BOOM!" If you can't tell, I've been on a Lin-Manuel Miranda roll the past half year. If Les Miserables is my favorite musical of all time, Rent is my favorite modern rock musical in a different way. The pandemic's impact on Broadway and the performing arts has been devastating, but I hope in turn people's appreciation and support for artists continue to grow because there is nothing that can quite replace that live performance thrill. As a Rent fan, I've always been haunted by Jonathan Larson's story and thought a movie about him wouldn't do him justice but was very pleasantly surprised by Miranda's directorial debut "tick, tick…BOOM!" Andrew Garfield was amazing as Larson, and a great singer to boot. I've been trying to convince everyone to watch the film and nobody watched it. As I mentioned, it's one of three movies I've watched this year so I don't have a lot to compare to, but it hit all the right notes for any fan of Rent for a Broadway-deprived person.