Flustered Duck
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Flustered Duck
@flusteredduck.bsky.social
220 followers 150 following 1.5K posts
Poetry fan, avid reader, provides editing and self-publishing services as well as transcription, based in Albany, Western Australia.
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This painting by Helen Allingham (1848-1926) is our writing prompt this week. Why has this man paused to look back? Why he is carrying a scythe? #writingprompts #writinglife #writingtips #helenallingham #artworks
A man carrying a scythe in one hand and holding a dark jacket over his shoulder with the other hand has paused on a dirt track and is looking back over a stand of shadowy trees to the horizon where a sun/moon is rising/setting. He is wearing a soft black hat, a long-sleeved white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a red sash, light brown trousers and sturdy light brown boots. The track seems to be passing through a field of cut grass/grain. Image by Helen Allingham (1848-1926) from Wikimedia Commons.
December 7, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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"The Curse of the Cole Women" by Marielle Thompson is a gothic fantasy featuring a family of three women struggling against a generational curse. #bookrecommendations #tbrlist #mariellethompson #thecurseofthecolewomen #gothic #fantasy
Book cover.
December 6, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Jumble Publishing and Editing (jumblepublishing.com) can manage your self-publishing and editing so you can stop and glory in the sunset.
Image: Louis Rémy Mignot (1831–1870) #jumblepublishing #publishing #selfpublishing #editing #louisrémymignot #artworks
An almost photographic painting of a sunset over a flat landscape with two tall trees with long trunks marked by broken branches and spreading crowns together in the foreground on the left. The focus is on the light illuminating the clouds almost covering the blinding sinking sun. The colours are the darkening reds, magentas, golds and purples of sunset. There are no buildings visible but the ground seems grassy with occasional rocks and there are rolling hills in the background. Image by Louis Rémy Mignot (1831–1870) from Wikimedia Commons.
December 5, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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One of the many odd facts related to lions in medieval thought were that they slept with their eyes open so this lion from the Lutterell Psalter (c1325-1340) may not be as awake as it seems. #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #lions #lion
A very wide-awake looking lion staring out of the page while lying down with its body facing towards the right. It has pale spots on its tawny brown coat, very long claws and fringed legs. Its very long ruff looks like a beard and it has upright hair curling up into a tuft on the top of its head. It seems to have human-shaped ears with and a goatee. It has a long tail which ends in a loose tuft. It seems to be smiling and looks rather silly. Image from British Library, Additional MS 42130 (The Lutterell Psalter), folio 25r.
December 4, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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According to medieval thought, lion cubs were born dead and were brought to life on the third day by either the lioness breathing in their faces or the lion roaring over them. This image is from the end of the 13th century. #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #lions #lion
A very brown lioness with a long red tongue is facing towards the left and two dead-looking brown cubs. She is either licking or breathing on them. The cubs are under a stylised two-leaved green tree and the animals are shown against a blue background in a red frame. The lioness appears to have a small ruff on the back of her neck and teats on her paler underside. Her tail appears to have two end tufts which have twisted to form a fork. She has prominent claws and looks more like a wolf than a lion. Image from Bibliothèque Nationale de France, lat. 2843E (Physiologus), folio 64v.
December 3, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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This lion from a c1350 French "De proprietatibus rerum" has a long sweeping tail suitable for clearing a trail in line with the medieval myth that lions erased their own trails. #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #lions #lion
A sheepish-looking lion with brown highlights/patches over its predominantly yellow colour in a half-seated position with an extravagantly long tail which starts off thin towards the body and becomes a wide broom-like swathe trailing off the page towards the end. Part of the left-handed side of the face appears to be missing. Its thick ruff is mainly straight and wild and it has rounded ears. Image from Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève, Ms. 1029 (Livre des propriétés des choses), folio 253r.
December 2, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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This week's medieval beast is the lion. The lion was considered the king of beasts in medieval thought and as such was usually the first beast described in bestiaries. This image is from a 1460 version of "Liber Floridus". #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #lions #lion
A tawny-coloured lion is facing to the right on a manuscript page. It has an oddly flat face with large eyes and has a long curly mane that trails down its forelegs and over its back. It has a very long tufted tail curving between its back legs and folding over her nearer back leg. It has large paws with long claws. Its round ears look like an extra curl in its mane and its whiskers look like a moustache. There is a much smaller animal seated under its chin looking up at its with a pointed snout and a smile. The text says this is probably a pig. Image from Koninklijke Bibliotheek, KB, 72 A 23 (Liber Floridus), folio 44r.
December 1, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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A portrait by Georges de La Tour (1593-1652) for today's writing prompt. The title says the instrument is a hurdy-gurdy so why is this gentleman playing it? And how does it work? What sort of sound is it making? #writingprompts #writinglife #writingtips #artworks #georgesdelatour
An elderly gentleman with a receding hairline and silver hair covering his ears and curling above his collar is playing a wooden shield-like hurdy-gurdy on his lap. He has a bushy beard. One hand is resting on the bottom part of the instrument while his other hand is grasping a strap holding the instrument against his body. He is wearing a drab-coloured cloak, a small white ruff and brown trousers. There appear to be ribbons tied to the lower left corner of the instrument. He is shown side-on in profile and has ruddy skin while his hands seem gnarled with age. It is hard to tell whether the ingrained dirt shown on his visible skin is a deliberate part of the painting or a sign of the painting's age. Image by Georges de La Tour (1593-1652) from Wikimedia Commons.
November 30, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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"A Different Type of Poison" by Liz Alterman is a slow-burn thriller featuring an author invited to her home town to discuss her latest book who finds herself living a different thriller… #bookrecommendations #tbrlist #lizalterman #adifferenttypeofpoison #thriller #mystery
Book cover.
November 29, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Let Jumble Publishing and Editing (jumblepublishing.com) help you with your editing and self-publishing.
Image: Antonio Ermolao Paoletti (1834–1912) #jumblepublishing #publishing #selfpublishing #editing #antonioermolaopaoletti #artworks
A young boy is straining to draw water at a public well with a smiling woman watching him as she leans of the well's edge. The boy is dressed in a brown jacket with a white shirt and blue trousers with dirty knees as well as a black hat, red socks and brown shoes. His face is red with exertion and he is totally focused on the rope he is pulling. The woman is wearing a brown and red striped gown and a red scarf/shawl over her shoulders. She has dark curly hair and has one hand on her hip and her other elbow is propped on a dark stone fountain-style well. Image by Antonio Ermolao Paoletti (1834-1912) from Wikimedia Commons.
November 28, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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If a reminder is ever needed that not all medieval illustrators were masters of their art, a glance at this 13th century pard will be highly salutary. At least it is definitely spotted! #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #pard #pards
A very crude line drawing of a seemingly male quadruped with what seems to be curly paws. One paw is shown upraised and the animal has a thin but long and forked tail held over its back. Its coat is shown covered with brown spots and a lattice of green stripes. It is looking at the viewer with red-centred purple ringed eyes and with a wide very red mouth which may be showing a tongue blep. It has rounded upright ears and what looks like a shock of upstanding hair. It looks incredibly derpy. It appears to be shown in a background of trees but the perspective (or lack of) makes it looks like it is standing over them. It looks like an animal drawn by a very young child. Image from Universitätsbibliothek Tübingen, Mc 365 (Bestiary), folio 1r.
November 27, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Medieval pards were said to be extremely swift and able to kill their prey with a single pounce. This c1170 pard from an English bestiary appears to be pouncing while sticking out its tongue. #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #pard #pards
An outlined drawing on a mansucript page of an almost cat-like beast pouncing to the right. It has a ruff which appears to extend down its chest and has an even semi-circle of spots crossing its forehead and running under its jaw. It has a rather blunted face with a distinctly almond-shaped eye and slightly pointed ears. Its tail ends in a large tuft and is shown curved over its back. It is sticking out a very long and rather thick tongue. Image from British Library, Additional MS 11283, folio 2r.
November 26, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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The medieval pard was described as being spotted so this illustration from an English bestiary (c1225-1250) showing a distinctly unspotted pard should be rare.
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In a plain double frame of red and blue, a brown quadruped with a five-layered ruff, is moving towards the right. It has odd paws which look like unscaly bird feet and has a very smooth unspotted coat. It has a long tail in an S-shaped curve above its back with the top curve looking like a knife blade. It has a flat face with a broad nose, a tufted beard and what looks like hair combed back on the top of its head. It appears to be looking at the viewer with a Wallace-style toothy smile. Image from Bodleian Library, MS. Bodley 764, folio 9v.
November 25, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Our medieval beast this week is the pard which is one of the parents of leopards. This oddly-coloured pard is a French c1350 version of "De proprietatibus rerum". #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #pard #pards
A grey/silver-coloured quadruped with blue circles over its coat. It is facing left. It has pointed ears and a pointed snout and a long thin straight tail. It seems to have a small ruff. It has a rounded forehead which seems to overhang its eyes and makes it look like it is frowning. The image is slightly blurring as it has been much enlarged. Image from Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève, Ms. 1029 (Livre des propriétés des choses), folio 256r.
November 24, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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A painting by Edward Mitchell Bannister (1828-1901) is our writing prompt this week. What is this bearded chap up to? #writingprompts #writinglife #writingtips #edwardmitchellbannister #artworks
Against a cloudy, darkening sky, a heavily bearded man is pushing a wooden wheelbarrow full of sheaves of grass with a dark jacket thrown on top. The man is wearing dark trousers with rolled up trouser legs and a long-sleeved brown shirt with its sleeves rolled up to expose his forearms. It is unclear if he is wearing a cap or simply has messy brown hair. He seems to be going uphill and there are people working below him on the hill. Image by Edward Mitchell Bannister (1828-1901) from Wikimedia Commons.
November 23, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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"Turns of Fate" by Anne Bishop is the first in a new fantasy series. It features a young detective investigating crimes on the Isle of Wyrd where words have power and intentions matter. #bookrecommendations #tbrlist #annebishop #turnsoffate #fantasy
Book cover.
November 22, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Let Jumble Publishing and Editing (jumblepublishing.com) give you a hand up with your editing and self-publishing.
Image: Arthur John Elsley (1860-1952) #jumblepublishing #publishing #selfpublishing #editing #arthurjohnelsley #artworks
A bearded man on a horse with a little girl already seated in front of him is leaning down and offering his hand to a small boy standing on a rock as he tries to climb up onto the horse's back. The horse is a bright bay with a white blaze on its face and a black mane and seems to be a plough horse as it is wearing a heavy duty neck harness but no saddle. It has white feathers over its hooves. A farm dog of the collie type is standing in front of the horse, panting and wagging its tail. The bearded man is in a jacket and breeches with a soft hat. Both children appear much better dressed. The girl is in a sort pink dress and bonnet with white socks and white shoes. The boy is in a Peter Pan-collared blouse with tan breeches, brown socks and brown shoes. The landscape is very green and rural. The horse is standing beside a stream. Image by Arthur John Elsley (1860-1952) from Wikimedia Commons.
November 21, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Medieval bats were said to hang in groups like grapes in high places and if one bat fell, all the bats fell. This pair of bats is from the Worksop Beastiary (c1185). #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #bat #bats
In a green rectangular frame on a manuscript page, against a red and gilt background, two smiling blue-grey bats with outspread wings are hanging out together. Their wings look like elaborate tentacled cloaks and appear to be ribbed. Both bats' hindpaws extend outside of the wings but their long tails are tucked within the bottom point of the wings. Neither bat appears to have any sort of arm and the wings appear to attach somewhere behind their bodies. The bat on the right appears to have small fangs while the one on the left has a teddy bear face. Image from Morgan Library, MS M.81 (The Worksop Bestiary), folio 54v.
November 20, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Medieval bats were thought to have medicinal uses. Their blood was supposed to be able to regrow hair, except when applied to eyelids when it was said to guarantee that hair would never grow there.
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A splayed out black bat with outstpread leaf-shaped black wings with long curving points. The wings are ribbed and the bat's fringed limbs appear to be holding the wings outspread. The bat appears to have breasts with nipples and a rotund belly. Its pointed face has a long bone-like line down the middle with nostrils/tusks at the base. It has pointed ears. It appears to be looking to one side and has a sheepish expression. Image from British Library, Additional MS 42130 (The Lutterell Psalter), folio 164r.
November 19, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Medieval bats were described as similar to mice, including having the same sort of squeak. Some illustrators seemed to take that very literally as in this image from a 15th century Italian herbal. #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #bat #bats
A torpedo-shaped black quadruped with a mouse-like head and an upright spiky fin-style wing is facing towards the left on a manuscript page. It has no tail and four short legs ending in rounded paws. It appears to be smiling. Image from British Library, Sloane MS 4016, folio 102r.
November 18, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Our medieval beast this week is the bat. Medieval bats were considered to be birds with teeth that gave birth to live young which they fed with milk. This particular bat is from the Aberdeen Bestiary (c1200). #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #bat #bats
In an elaborate red and blue frame decorated with a white trellis, against a gilt background, a hairy brown-bodied creature with a very round head is show splayed against its outspread black membranous wings. Its upper arms form the frame of the wings with three long finger-like pointed extensions of bone. Its clawed feet appear to be supporting further parts of the wings and it seems to have a bony tail of bone holding out the bottom point where the wings join. It appears to have round ears and a smiling mouth full of teeth. Its very round lighter brown eyes appear to be looking sideways and it have a very derpy expression. Image from Aberdeen University Library, Univ. Lib. MS 24 (Aberdeen Bestiary), folio 51v.
November 17, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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A painting by Joaquin Sorolla (1863-1923) is the writing prompt for today. Where is this woman and does it mean anything that she is dabbling in the pool? #writingprompts #writinglife #writingtips #joaquinsorolla #artworks
A woman with dark hair in an updo, clad in a sleeveless white dress with a ribbon crossed over the bodice, is sitting on the rim of a dark-watered pool dabbling her feet in the water. Her dress is pulled up to bare her legs and her reflection is visible in the water. The background behind her is vague but seems to be of a garden and some sort of stucco covered structure to her side. The woman seems to be smiling as she looks down at the water. Image by Joaquin Sorolla (1863-1923) from Wikimedia Commons.
November 16, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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"To Kill a Queen" by Amie McNee is a historical fiction/fantasy featuring the heir of a criminal syndicate trying to catch a would-be assassin of Elizabeth I and secure their own future. #bookrecommendations #tbrlist #tokillaqueen #amiemcnee #mystery #historicalfiction #fantasy
Book cover.
November 15, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Let Jumble Publishing and Editing (jumblepublishing.com) give you a helping hand with your editing and self-publishing.
Image: Théodore Ralli (1852–1909) #jumblepublishing #publishing #selfpublishing #editing #théodoreralli #artworks
A young woman is helping an older woman leaning on a walking stick down a hill in a dry landscape with tall thin pointed trees in the background and a large building at the top of the hill. Another figure is present on the path closer to the building. The older woman is in dark clothing with a paler sleeveless coat and is focused on the path. The younger woman has a yellow scarf over her hair and is dressed in pale-coloured clothing and is watching the woman she is helping. Image by Théodore Ralli (1852–1909) from Wikimedia Commons.
November 14, 2025 at 2:00 AM
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Our final medieval cicada is remarkable for actually looking like a cicada even to the fine hairs on the legs. It is from an early manuscript of 'L'Acerba etas' by Cecco d'Ascoli (1257-1327). #medievalmanuscripts #medievalbeasts #beasts #cicada #cicadas
A detailed drawing of a cicada seen from the top on an age-spotted manuscript page. Except for the fact that two of the insect's six legs are sprouting from the insect's head, it is surprisingly accurate. The six jointed legs have fine hairs. The head and thorax are clearly differentiated and the head has round side eyes and two antennae. It has veined wings folded over its thorax. It is drawn in shades of brown and soft red. Image from Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Plut.40.52 (L'Acerba etas), folio 38r.
November 13, 2025 at 2:00 AM