Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!

@takatalvi

Writer of queer fantasy romance with all the angst, no fade to black 😈 🏳️‍⚧️ 🏳️‍🌈 they/them. Autistic & other ND/MH stuff. Translator (Zh,Fi,Sv,Fr>En), library minion. Metalhead, trail runner.

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Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· 6d

Listening to a Bloodred Hourglass mix so of course every other song makes me think of #DarkDreams 😆 Especially this. Poor Kiran 😢 In lieu of flowers, I can send myself With the bloom of the flowers, you can send me away #amwriting #writesky #writingcommunity www.youtube.com/watch?v=tkj9...

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jun 5

May was crazy. No wonder I felt burnt out by the last week (why I took it easy and worked on fewer things (thanks, Stannis)). However, it did create a good habit, which should serve me well in June as I'm crushed under an enormous workload 😣 #amwriting #writingcommunity #writesky #GYWO

Monthly planning page in my Commit30 planner.
On the left side:
199 days to go / 8 months to go ~= 25 days/month
Monthly goal:
-25 days GYWO
-Writing and editing/publishing/marketing every day
-backup photos of Dark Dreams
Action steps:
-Dictate Dark Dreams and send to alpha readers
-Take backup photos
-Line edit ITN and post chapters
-Read comments on Nomads (checked off)
-Post on Patreon
This month I did/did not reach my goal. Why?
Overall I would rate my effort toward my goal (1-10)
Next steps:
On the right side:
(sticker: Let's do this)
Commit30 30-day challenge
(sticker: The best is yet to come!)
This month, I commit to:
-25 days of GYWO
-writing every day
-editing/publishing/marketing every day
-backup photos every day
31 circles, the last one hand-drawn, most colored in and checked off, many checked multiple times. Only 12, 17 and 27 are not colored or checked off.
YTD: 72
My reward:
7 days in a row: Cafe treat
GYWO: Vol. 2 of 300 Years of Longing
progress, 30 days at a time

Monthly calendar for May 2026, with the editing/publishing/marketing projects I worked on.
May 1: ITN, Nomads, Dark Dreams alphareader, Patreon, #queerwriterschat
May 2: Dark Dreams alpha/beta readers
May 3: ITN
May 4: Nomads, ITN
May 5: Nomads, ITN
May 6: Nomads, ITN
May 7: Nomads, ITN
May 8: Nomads
May 9: ITN, Nomads
May 10: Nomads
May 11: Dark Dreams alphareader, ITN
May 13: Nomads, Dark Dreams alphareader, ITN
May 14: Nomads, ITN
May 15: Nomads, Dark Dreams - sent Ch 1
May 16: Dark Dreams, ITN
May 18: Nomads, TWIDWT
May 19: ITN, Storm Rising, TWIDWT
May 20: ITN, Patreon, Posted ITN Ch 43
May 21: Storm Rising
May 22: TWIDWT
May 23: ITN, Dark Dreams
May 24: ITN
May 25: ITN
May 26: ITN
May 28: Dark Dreams alphareader
May 29: Dark Dreams - sent Ch 2
May 30: ITN
May 31: MWA showcase

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jun 4

His hand gently raised Sareb’s elbow, then he touched the center of Sareb’s back. “Try to draw your shoulder blades together and open your chest up. That way you use your back and not just your arms. And this hand should be touching your cheek… Perfect.” He hovered there for a moment, practically embracing Sareb, close enough that Sareb could feel his breath on his ear when he spoke, which tickled in a way that he felt throughout his whole body. “Now point it at the tree… And when you let go, just let go with your fingers, keep the rest of your body still, holding this position. Whenever you’re ready—let fly.”

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Apr 25

Coldbrew concentrate is not very photogenic. But yeah, it’s the first coldbrew concentrate of the year 🎉

A glass jar on a marble counter, filled with a dark liquid, with a small sticky that reads “9:20”

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Apr 20

I decided to make Mortemia's cover of "Take on me" the ending theme of #DarkDreams 😁 It's a good song for a [redacted] 😈 but also has a bit of anxiety or uncertainty, which is definitely a thing.. I don't like to wrap things up too neatly. 😈 Whole soundtrack: www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...

Screenshot of the end of my soundtrack:
The Halo Effect - Days of the Lost
Destinity - Light up Your Sky
Mortemia - Take on Me, feat. Marcela Bovio

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Feb 27

It’s nice to write something nice 😊 I only got as far as the morning, but that just means I get to write more nice stuff tmr 😊 And this snip maybe gives too much away, but who’s looking? 😄 #amwriting #DarkDreams #queerbooksky #amwritingromance #LGBTQ 🏳️‍🌈💘

After she was gone, Kiran re-emerged and helped Anders dress, his hands and his gaze on Anders's body different from the night before, or any previous time. It wasn't sexual, but a careful, caring touch that warmed the inside of Anders's chest rather than his groin. When he was done, Kiran leaned in, hands on Anders's shoulders, and pressed his forehead to Anders's, just for a moment. Then he stepped back, flushed and chuckling nervously at his daring. Anders smiled to let him know it was all right. Kiran could take physical liberties with him however he wanted, he wouldn't mind at all.

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Feb 8

😈 #amwriting #DarkDreams #amwritingromance #queerbooksky 🏳️‍🌈💘❤️‍🔥

“Kiran,” he whispered, angling his face so that the words would caress Kiran’s lips. “Thank you.”
Kiran murmured sleepily, and with that Anders settled. Kiran’s strong hands enfolding his own, Kiran’s forehead and lower legs warm against his—there was nowhere else he’d rather be, nothing else he needed.
He closed his eyes and reluctantly let himself begin the slide toward sleep. He didn’t want to miss a moment—

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jan 29

The three-way drama has become four-way drama?! 😲😆 I wonder if anything will actually happen with Rory. Kind of doubt it bc Kiran is so devoted to Anders, but we'll see??? #amwriting #DarkDreams #writesky #queerbooksky

"Come with me," Rory said brusquely, tugged on Kiran's sleeve.

Kiran shook his head slowly, as though dazed. "I'll stay with him.”

A momentary storm passed over Rory's face before he shuttered it. "Suit yourself. I'm needed elsewhere." And he stomped out (completely forgetting to pay his respects to Anders--not that Anders was in any state to insist.)

That left Anders alone with Kiran.

Some air seemed to have left the room with Rory, and the spark in his belly had

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jan 25

Rory seems like he may be important. sigh. Well at least he’s fun to write #amwriting #DarkDreams

him like a weighted blanket was restorative.

When he returned to his room, Ambha and Kiran were sitting at opposite ends of the couch with the appearance of having sat in comfortable silence for a bit after having talked a little bit earlier. The way that Kiran raised his head and almost looked at him with a shy almost-smile made his heart flutter, nearly made him forget his plans.

But—he had to. Heat mounted to his face; he stammered, "Um, where's Rory? I—I need his help with something.

Ambha looked from Kiran to Mahub to Anders, and Anders was terrified she would ask, "Why do you need him? Why Rory?" His heart hammered and his face burned at the thought of explaining—coming up with an explanation other than the real one.

And Kiran’s face had changed. The almost-smile gone, a quiet desolation in its

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jan 24

It's pretty dark, but I was hoping to make it dark, so it's perfect. A lot of other songs from the same album fit the book too- I listened to it so much in the early stages of writing 😀 #amwriting #DarkDreams

I have returned from down under
I've learned to breathe beneath the waters
Beneath the waters
I've returned to the light
Beyond the waves of madness
Around my neck a stone tied
Enduring crushing darkness
Starless void of ageless night
Visions that none can utter
Bound to the demons of the sea
Till I became the hunter
Dark dreams ever so far beneath

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jan 24

I am TERRIBLE at song lyrics and poetry (altho I like translating them for personal use, but not commercially). So I'm not gonna write sth new. But ages ago, when I wrote a different (sapphic) Little Mermaid retelling, I had to have the mermaid sing a song, so I wrote this: #QueerWritersChat

I have crossed the spears of stones
And climbed the mountain to the sky;
I have danced at the feet of the goddess
And woven my fate on the loom.

I am a daughter of Phorcys,
Once fish-tailed maid of the deep-
But I have a heart that's not covered in scales
A heart that longs for more than the sea.

You walk on the earth like on clouds,
And now I walk beside you in the sun-
The wind lifts our feet among the leaves,
And the stars draw close to see our joy.

You are a daughter of Cwytheros,
Woven into the fabric of the land-
But now our threads are at last united
And our steps are as free as the wind.

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jan 13

Here is a slightly boring, tiny bit spoilers snip that is pretty much the only one I can share without spoiling a lot more. Good thing here is this makes you think something went a certain way when it didn’t actually go that way 😈 #amwriting #DarkDreams #writesky #queerbooksky

At last he lay curled up on his bed, wrapped in the prized blue banyan, his head in Kiran's lap, who softly stroked his loose curls.

"I'm sleeping in your bed," Kiran had declared in a voice that brooked no argument. "And I defy anyone to question that after two threats to your life in the same night." Anders had only nodded, warmed again.

Ambha sat on the edge of the bed and leaned toward Anders. "Now I want to know exactly how this came about."

So Anders told her everything, from finding the man on the beach, to right before she had come around the corner with the pistol. Ambha listened with a gradually sharpening gaze, while Kiran sucked in his breath or tensed at some parts he hadn't heard before.

"I'm sorry," Anders finished. "I never would have brought him in, never would have kept him here, if I'd known how much trouble he would be."

Kiran cleared his throat.

"Oh. Right. You did try to warn me." Anders touched Kiran's hand. "I'm sorry I didn't listen.

And you, too." He shifted his attention to Ambha.

"You tried to advise me. If I had listened, we wouldn't be here now."

"No, but perhaps 'here' isn't so bad.“

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Jan 9

. #DarkDreams spans so many notebooks, it’s kind of crazy #amwriting #writesky #queerbooksky

Stack of five notebooks on a purple fleece blanket

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 17

Hey, maybe I should add this to my #DarkDreams soundtrack 😁 Haven’t added many Dark the Suns songs since usually I can’t tell what they’re saying 😅

The Dead End Lyrics

In this world silent rain falls All is cold You can't save me

The black wings of grief Are carrying me... Walk with me through the dark Towards the morning sun

No way out

I drown in fear

You can't save me

The black wings of grief

No where to hide In darkness so deep... Walk with me through the dark Towards the morning sun

In the end, morning came And hid these tears In the end, morning came And broke these chains

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 16

Not all their songs are hopeless tho 🥹❤️‍🩹 #amwriting #DarkDreams #melodicdeathmetal

The Sun Still In Me

Song by Bloodred Hourglass. 2023

Overview

Lyrics

:

Back in the midst of my hurricanes I lost the spirit, I lost the trace Another battle after battle goes on To find the battle worth fighting for Worked, still working on To bring the flow back, turn it on To find the sync from the quiet place To put our heartbeats back in phase

Gone is chase, all attract Believe in change when there's no turning back We don't chase, we attract To put our heartbeats back on track Feel what is meant to feel (be real) Breathe what is left to breathe (you'll heal) From these feelings like butterflies That sting like a bee

You're a natural salvation A medication for mind and soul Took a sip to know what that is Taste of kindness, makes fires lit (Goddamn) this feeling refuses to die But only wants me to die inside Because in the end all I know The sun does shine, yet all alone

Gone is chase, all attract Believe in change when there's no turning back We don't chase, we attract

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 16

It was getting too nice. I need to lean into the f***ed up side of it more.

Lyrics

The valentine in me, wants you to reign with me That little bite on me, wants you so dire with

In lieu of flowers, I can send myself

With the bloom of the flowers, you can send me away As above, so below

Devotion and hope keep me crawling back to you

Was it triggered right along when we were young?

I refused to see, but the light of the sun

Might've pulled a card from a pack that's full of broken hearts

Might've tried too hard, no

Did I ever let you know?

This fucked up mind in me, needs your sunlight within

In lieu of flowers, I can send myself

With the bloom of the flowers, you can send me away

As above, so below

Devotion and hope keep me crawling back to you

In lieu of flowers, I can send myself

With the bloom of the flowers, you can send me away

As above, so below

Never let go 'cause your world holds the bloom of me

Love as the death of me

Love has the death of me on hold

And in lieu of these flowers

If I, if I just let you go

I can send myself

With the bloom of the flowers, you can send me away

As above, so below devotion and hope

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 13

E-book problem solved 😁

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 3

My Spotify Wrapped is always a little weird cause I listen to so many of the auto generated mixes, it’s kinda like.. ok, these are just the songs that you fed to me. Songs I actually searched for like “Yours” by Dynazty are way down the list. Dynazty as my top band tho, yeah that checks out 😆

Your top songs

1 “No Rebirth” Fallen Sanctuary

2 “New Evil” Nocturna

3 “Already Dead” Dawn of Destiny

4 “End Of Days” Cryonic Temple

5 “Childhood” Dawn of Destiny, Chris Har...

Your top albums

(Images of album covers)

1 Terranova - Fallen Sanctuary

2 Deliverance - Cryonic Temple

3 The Frozen Throne - Kalidia

4 Crimson - Volturian

5 The Dark Delight - Dynazty

Dynazty is your top artist.
You spent 1,805 minutes with them, which makes you a top 0.3% global fan.

Your Top Songs 2025

No Rebirth

32 listens Fallen Sanctuary

New Evil

31 listens Nocturna

Already Dead

31 listens Dawn of Destiny

End Of Days

31 listens Cryonic Temple

Childhood

31 listens Dawn of Destiny, Chris H...

Broken Promises

30 listens Temperance

Under Attack

28 listens Cryonic Temple

Burn the Witch

28 listens Angel Nation

Terranova

26 listens Fallen Sanctuary

(Now playing:) The Last Hero - Omnium Gatherum

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 1

Now that the focus is on Kiran‘s mental health issues, I need this angsty music #amwriting #DarkDreams #gothicsymphonicmetal

Screenshot of Spotify app
3:57
Dawn of Destiny album cover
Daily mix 01
Dawn of Destiny, Nightwish, Victorian and more
About recommendations and the impact of promotion

3h 29m

Already Dead
Dawn of Destiny

My Walden
Nightwish

Broken
Volturian

Kintsugi
Moonlight Haze

(Now playing)
Already Dead
Dawn of Destiny

Home

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Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 1

Here’s a snip from today. Anders & Kiran are trying to do something, but it’s not going well because trauma 🙁 I was just jotting the scene down quickly, mainly to get the dialogue, which is why actions are just a present tense summary. #amwriting #DarkDreams #queerbooksky 🏳️‍🌈💘❤️‍🔥🖤

Kiran is able to get Anders's cravat off, but when it comes to his waistcoat buttons, his hands shake so much that he can't get them open.

Kiran covers his face in frustration. "No wonder you want someone else. I'm broken. I'm useless."

"You're not useless." Anders takes his hands and kisses each of the fingers, and his tremors subside a little.

"We don't have to do this if you don't want to."

"I do want to, it's just... hard."

Anders sits down on the bed because his legs are tired, and Kiran sits beside him.

"Why is it hard?"

Kiran draws in a loud breath, shoulders hunching up, and shakes his head, eyes squeezed shut.

"Is there something I can do to help?"

Kiran shrugs.

"What if we lie down in our clothes?"

Kiran lets out his breath in a loud, forced sigh, and his shoulders slump. "Go to bed with our clothes on?"

"It's not as if I haven't fallen asleep in my clothes multiple times lately."

They lie down, Kiran spoons Anders.

"I won't," he murmurs. "I promise, I won't hurt you."

"I know you won't." But it gives him a shiver that Kiran has to say those words, make that promise.

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Dec 1

YATTAAA!!! I actually finished #NovemberWriting before 8am this morning, but didn’t get a chance to post till now. 1144 words today, 50,444 words total! My graph is ridiculous, not a mountain at all, just spikes 😆 #amwriting #DarkDreams #writesky #writingcommunity

8:51
Pacemaker planner
November writing 2025
Novel writing
50,000 words over 30 days
11/1/2025 - 11/30/2025
50,444 words complete
100%
You did it!
1681 average daily words
30 longest streak
Nomads, and hopefully rewriting Dark Dreams
Pacemaker.press

8:51
Pacemaker planner
Nomads, and hopefully rewriting Dark Dreams
Daily work
My daily word count graph- which climbs steadily for the first few days, but then starts to go up and down wildly. The highest peak is over 4000 words near the middle of the month, and the lowest points are below 1k, in the 600-700 range.
Overall progress
Current state: 50,444 words

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 26

I’ve reached the end of November in last year’s draft of #DarkDreams 😲 Left is last year’s notebook, right is this year’s. A lot of Anders and Kiran’s interactions seem to revolve around getting dressed & undressed, which.. heh 😈 #amwriting #NovemberWriting #writesky #queerbooksky 🏳️‍🌈💘😈

Left side:
(Circled, highlighted: 62)

He wondered how much he should tell Ari himself, eventually decided to come at it from the opposite direction-to find out how much Ari knew. He dressed and went to Ari's rooms.

(Finds Ari looking at the paintings, which have been shuffled around)

(And with Astra, Since Astra seems to know "everything," he decides to be blunt and try to break through Astra's façade)

(Circled: 65)

Nov 30: (circled: 1039)

November total: (Circled: 51,029)

YATTTAAA!!

Right side:
the slightest touch set his nerves alight.

"Are you all right?" Kiran looked up at him with something more than concen in his face.

"Just fine," Anders lied. "Why, is there some reason I would not be all right?"

Kiran just shook his head and continued dressing him in silence.

Once he was dressed, Anders said, unable to meet Kiran's eye, "I'm going to see Ari. You can wait here."

He didn’t see how kiran responded, because he couldn't look at him, and Kiran didn't say anything.

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 21

I have kind of gotten into the headspace for Ch 2 now. Partly bc I realized I can spend the first half of the book playing with Anders & Kiran subtext 😈😈😈 It gets so heavy sometimes it’s practically main text. Oh well, that’s me 😁😁😇 #amwriting #DarkDreams #romance #LGBTQ #queerbooksky 🏳️‍🌈💘🤴🏼🧜🏻‍♂️👨🏽‍❤️‍👨🏽

work, fingers barely brushing Anders’s skin as he drew the silk stockings over his feet and lower legs. Then he held the breeches out for Anders to step into and pulled them up to his waist. Only then did Anders notice that Kiran’s usual stream of grousing had been replaced by silence.

"Out of complaints?" he said as he fastened the buttons of his breeches. His own voice souncled stilted and unnatural.

"Hm? No. Never." Kiran knelt to fasten the buttons and ties below his knees. The faintest shiver passed through Anders at the soft touch of Kiran's fingers on his calf, through the thin fabric of the stockings (silk?)

No untoward thoughts.

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 18

My actual overall progress graph isn’t too bad either, just a little bumpy 😆

Overall progress
Current state: 30,250 words
My overall progress word count graph, which roughly follows the S curve I described, although the part for last week is very uneven

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 18

My word count graph is all over the place 😫🤪 I did so well over the weekend but crashed again yesterday. It is really hard to make almost 3k words on #DarkDreams if I have to do anything other than writing. And Mondays suck to begin with 😣 #amwriting #NovemberWriting #writesky

Nomads, and hopefully rewriting Dark Dreams
Daily work
My daily word count graph, which has turned into a series of jagged spikes that do trend upward overall, until an extremely high peak in the 4000s on Nov. 16.
Overall progress
Current state: 30,250 words

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 15

I may or may not have written a 1200 word scene that doesn’t actually happen 😙😈😁 But it was fun and it helped me make a lot of words quickly! 😄 #amwriting #DarkDreams #NovemberWriting #writingcommunity

The last thing he remembered before he fell asleep was Kiran tenderly kissing his nose and saying, “I’ve got you, Your Highness.”

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 15

You know your minor characters are coming to life when you start thinking about what they’re doing/thinking/feeling after they leave the scene 😄 #amwriting #DarkDreams #NovemberWriting #writesky

(And poor Kiran goes back to his room and curls up thinking, what am I doing, I almost made a move on His Highness, what an idiot I am)

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 15

Hi! I'm Rauni (they/them). I finished drafting #Nomads on Monday, so now I'm working on rewriting my very dark, gay Little Mermaid retelling #DarkDreams. Rewriting a handwritten book is..interesting, and not recommended for making a lot of words during #NovemberWriting. #QueerWritersChat #amwriting

Two open notebooks next to each other, top to bottom; the pages visible are almost completely full of handwriting, the bottom notebook full of notes referencing the top notebook. A BIC pen, a blue highlighter, an orange Post-it pad with writing on it and the corner of a tablet keyboard are also in the frame, as well as some clutter

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 10

Oh yeah, and yesterday I was 300 words short when I thought I was done- so I had to charge ahead with the Castle Caran scene, wrote 2633 words & made the 2nd side peak on my #NovemberWriting mountain 😆 #amwriting #writesky #writingcommunity

Nomads, and hopefully rewriting Dark Dreams
Daily work
My word count graph, which is supposed to rise steadily until the middle of the month, then go down again; but now there are two spikes on the left (ascending) side
Overall progress
Current state: 11,486 words

Rauni Reivonen - swords and mages and gays, oh my!@takatalvi· Nov 10

The draft of #Nomads is DOOOONE! 29,967 words. Not all during #NovemberWriting. Includes some scenes that won't be used.* I can't give you the last line, cause it's spoilers, but here's a bit near the end that's suitably cryptic 😈 #amwriting #writesky #queerbooksky #fantasy #romance #LGBTQ 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️💘⚔️❤️‍🔥