John Watson's Eternal Coming Out
Jan. 3rd, 2014 02:24 pmI really want to make a super long and intelligent post under this header, but I don't think my brain can muster that much at the moment. So just a few observations about ( Spoilery things in Sherlock 3x01 )
Audiometa: Sherlock fic
Jun. 23rd, 2013 08:30 amWay back in the dawn of time, not long after season 2 of Sherlock ended, ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
exeterlinden started telling me about a fic she wanted to write. That fic has finally been finished and posted as This house and everything in it. It has been... quite the writing process! I feel really privileged to have been along from the very beginning, first as a sounding board and eventually as beta on the work-in-progress. Linden and I have talked so much about this fic. I have thought so much about this fic, because many of its themes have had a lot of personal significance for me.
Seriously! I can't convey how much I love this fic, and how much I think you should read it -- if you like long, angsty, non-sexual Sherlock/John fics that end perfectly (shhh, I'm not biased at all). Anyway.
We wanted to commemorate the end of the "SH" era (so many email threads! All inventively titled SH!) by recording a final conversation about "This house and everything in it" and sharing it with all of you. There's a lot of stuff going on the fic, though, so we chose to focus on some of the things that the two of us talked the most about -- asexuality, negotiating relationships and negotiating physical intimacy -- as well as some thoughts about the beta process itself. Just to say that there are definitely other important themes within the fic (polyamory among them) that we just didn't have time to touch on.
We hope you'll enjoy listening to two geeks talking about fanfic and ace!Sherlock and betaing!
The audio has been edited by me,calvinahobbes, (perhaps a little too briskly for the first 10 minutes, sorry), while exeterlinden has graciously provided a transscript of the talk.
( Streaming audio )
( Transscript )
Thank you for listening/reading. Comments are welcome.
exeterlinden started telling me about a fic she wanted to write. That fic has finally been finished and posted as This house and everything in it. It has been... quite the writing process! I feel really privileged to have been along from the very beginning, first as a sounding board and eventually as beta on the work-in-progress. Linden and I have talked so much about this fic. I have thought so much about this fic, because many of its themes have had a lot of personal significance for me. Seriously! I can't convey how much I love this fic, and how much I think you should read it -- if you like long, angsty, non-sexual Sherlock/John fics that end perfectly (shhh, I'm not biased at all). Anyway.
We wanted to commemorate the end of the "SH" era (so many email threads! All inventively titled SH!) by recording a final conversation about "This house and everything in it" and sharing it with all of you. There's a lot of stuff going on the fic, though, so we chose to focus on some of the things that the two of us talked the most about -- asexuality, negotiating relationships and negotiating physical intimacy -- as well as some thoughts about the beta process itself. Just to say that there are definitely other important themes within the fic (polyamory among them) that we just didn't have time to touch on.
We hope you'll enjoy listening to two geeks talking about fanfic and ace!Sherlock and betaing!
The audio has been edited by me,
calvinahobbes, (perhaps a little too briskly for the first 10 minutes, sorry), while exeterlinden has graciously provided a transscript of the talk.( Streaming audio )
( Transscript )
Thank you for listening/reading. Comments are welcome.
So I got to thinking about Joan's idle comment in my fic that Sherlock didn't mind the baby drool, and it occurred to me that I really believe that. Sherlock doesn't care about minor stuff like drool! If you want some of his he's quite happy to provide a sample!
Like, Sherlock's ep1 comment that he 'endures' the messy parts of sex to get the hormone kick seems to me to not fit in with his behavior in general. Sherlock is not shy! His experiments are so tactile and hands-on. He's so enthusiastic about everything. This guy has talked about penises, female orgasms, menstrual cycles, poo, and pee without ever batting an eye. I do like to think that some of that talk is just bravado, and that there is a core of insecurities somewhere behind it all, but I honestly don't think it's an insecurity about bodily functions. In my headcanon Sherlock is totally up for wet and messy.
And I don't know what people are doing with Ms Hudson in fanon, really? But there's just something about her general history of going for intellectual men and her seeming no-nonsense attitude towards relationships that makes me really believe in my heart of hearts that she and Sherlock have totally had sex. I don't think they've ever been close friends or in love, but I really think they're so compatible in a friendly, sexy way. I think Sherlock is really curious about people and that that translates into an openness around bodies. I think he's actually a really enthusiastic sex partner who doesn't get hung up over sex or gender presentation. There was also that ambiguous remark in the Super Bowl episode about a naked guy, which leads me to believe that although Sherlock may mostly form strong attachments to women (and canon would indicate that he does), it's entirely likely that he has also had sex with men.
Gosh, I can sort of see him eargerly trying out some consent play with some willing scenester, thinking he could use or twist his childhood school experience into something different and interesting, and then quite possibly tapping out because, no. And I can totally see Irene discovering this part of his past and knowing just how to use it to make it work for him. Because -- as much as Irene fucked him up and stabbed him in the back -- I do think that she taught him a lot of useful and interesting stuff about himself. And that stuff extends beyond basic grown-up emotion talk like the stuff we see in ep1, even beyond Sherlock's kinks (which I firmly believe he largely discovered with her), and is probably a lot closer to how we see him think of and talk about his school days when he's talking to Adam.
tl;dr Sherlock Holmes: Indiscriminate and Enthusiastic Sex Partner FTW!
[crossposted to tumblr]
Like, Sherlock's ep1 comment that he 'endures' the messy parts of sex to get the hormone kick seems to me to not fit in with his behavior in general. Sherlock is not shy! His experiments are so tactile and hands-on. He's so enthusiastic about everything. This guy has talked about penises, female orgasms, menstrual cycles, poo, and pee without ever batting an eye. I do like to think that some of that talk is just bravado, and that there is a core of insecurities somewhere behind it all, but I honestly don't think it's an insecurity about bodily functions. In my headcanon Sherlock is totally up for wet and messy.
And I don't know what people are doing with Ms Hudson in fanon, really? But there's just something about her general history of going for intellectual men and her seeming no-nonsense attitude towards relationships that makes me really believe in my heart of hearts that she and Sherlock have totally had sex. I don't think they've ever been close friends or in love, but I really think they're so compatible in a friendly, sexy way. I think Sherlock is really curious about people and that that translates into an openness around bodies. I think he's actually a really enthusiastic sex partner who doesn't get hung up over sex or gender presentation. There was also that ambiguous remark in the Super Bowl episode about a naked guy, which leads me to believe that although Sherlock may mostly form strong attachments to women (and canon would indicate that he does), it's entirely likely that he has also had sex with men.
Gosh, I can sort of see him eargerly trying out some consent play with some willing scenester, thinking he could use or twist his childhood school experience into something different and interesting, and then quite possibly tapping out because, no. And I can totally see Irene discovering this part of his past and knowing just how to use it to make it work for him. Because -- as much as Irene fucked him up and stabbed him in the back -- I do think that she taught him a lot of useful and interesting stuff about himself. And that stuff extends beyond basic grown-up emotion talk like the stuff we see in ep1, even beyond Sherlock's kinks (which I firmly believe he largely discovered with her), and is probably a lot closer to how we see him think of and talk about his school days when he's talking to Adam.
tl;dr Sherlock Holmes: Indiscriminate and Enthusiastic Sex Partner FTW!
[crossposted to tumblr]
Links: Kindle Worlds + Elementary
May. 24th, 2013 08:41 amI accidentally Captive Prince. WORST LIFE DECISION EVER! D: (Incidentally, the novels are only free online for another month. Anybody happen to have a pre-formated epub...? Someone's bound to have made one already, right? I won't actually have to do it myself?)
So, Fandom pretty much exploded at the news of Kindle Worlds, and it was indeed an excellent popcorn.gif time.morgandawn's link collection post Tis the End Times is by far the most comprehensive I've come across, and should keep you busy for at least a few hours (hah). But I also want to single out liviapenn's Two really good reasons why Kindle Worlds is bullshit because it explains what "20%-35% of the profit" really means in this context (hint: they do it with accounting), and I think it's super important to understand what Amazon is actually offering.
People are still thinking about Elementary! That is because my show is ~*dreamy*~ and the best show. I haven't had the brain to read these posts yet, but they look really good!
( Spoilers for Elementary finale. With quotes like last time )
So, Fandom pretty much exploded at the news of Kindle Worlds, and it was indeed an excellent popcorn.gif time.
morgandawn's link collection post Tis the End Times is by far the most comprehensive I've come across, and should keep you busy for at least a few hours (hah). But I also want to single out liviapenn's Two really good reasons why Kindle Worlds is bullshit because it explains what "20%-35% of the profit" really means in this context (hint: they do it with accounting), and I think it's super important to understand what Amazon is actually offering.People are still thinking about Elementary! That is because my show is ~*dreamy*~ and the best show. I haven't had the brain to read these posts yet, but they look really good!
( Spoilers for Elementary finale. With quotes like last time )
Girls With Slingshots #1591, urrgh, what are you doing? I keep finding the way Danielle Corsetto fails to articulate asexual romance as a ROMANTIC RELATIONSHIP really unsatisfying. Instead of letting Jamie say she and Erin have a romantic commitment, it feels to me like she's making it into a word game, where "girlfriend" is a word that "feels right" rather than THE ACTUAL DEFINITION FOR WHAT THEY ACTUALLY ARE TO EACH OTHER. IDK, maybe I'm just being super sensitive, but it seems to me like Jamie is implying that if there were a word for "romantic partner with whom I cuddle but don't fuck" she would be using that word instead. Instead of saying, y'know, SEX DOES NOT DEFINE WHETHER A RELATIONSHIP IS ROMANTIC OR NOT.
If you care about Vikings, you might be interested to know that![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lysimache posted a translation of the Lagertha-centric bits of Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum to tumblr. It is really interesting reading, and as an added bonus it quelled my urge to procrastinate on my thesis by reading the latin!
Dissimulation and the Detecting Eye: Female Masculinity in ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’ by Constance Crompton (Nineteenth-Century Gender Studies Vol. 7 Issue 3, 2011) is an academic paper about non-normative gender expression in Victorian England, using the ACD Sherlock Holmes story as a case study. It "shows that the masculine woman, whether cross-dressed or not, had the power to intervene in men’s homosocial relations." I didn't agree with all her claims and conclusions (cisgendered! you're using it wrong, Crompton!), but I was super intrigued and well entertained. (exeterlinden, I think you'll like it. kaz, you might want to steer clear!)
Doctor Who is coming back! On Saturday! I can't seem to keep myself from being sucked back in! Every! Single! Time! There is a new season trailer out: Series 7 Launch Trailer. And they made a webisode prequel again (I don't mind if that becomes a thing): The Bells of St. John prequel. Okay, I know this is totally pointless, but I'm gonna say it anyway! Ready? Don't screw it up, Moffat! (There's also a new mini with Jenny and Vastra! Demon's Run 2 Days Later yay!)
I completely missed out on the fact that The Hobbit Live Event was a thing that was going to happen, but then tumblr exploded, and anyway that is what the Internet is for! I've been pining so hard for a new video diary, but this was even better! I think the production was fairly smooth, and I really like that they took so much time and effort to make it. Dammit, PJ just really knows how to whet people's appetites by now! Anyway, I've put the video in a vault near you *hinthintnudgenudge* in case you're curious.
Speaking of behind the scenes footage from TH/LotR, I got my hands on the Costa Botes documentaries a while ago! Another thing I didn't know existed! They are independent footage from the production of LotR, one for each movie, and they contain CARTLOADS of stuff that you haven't seen in the DVD extras (I didn't think it was possible). I've still only watched the one for The Fellowship. I think my favorite part was getting a much closer look at how they did the scale work (on a practical level, and also with a lot more screen time for the doubles), which is something the DVD extras still played pretty close to the chest. And for that reason I probably wouldn't recommend them if you tend to feel that behind-the-scenes specials 'ruin the mystery' of the finished work. But if you just want to see even more footage of incredibly talented people geeking out, you should definitely check them out (see above re: curiosity).
If you care about Vikings, you might be interested to know that
lysimache posted a translation of the Lagertha-centric bits of Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum to tumblr. It is really interesting reading, and as an added bonus it quelled my urge to procrastinate on my thesis by reading the latin!Dissimulation and the Detecting Eye: Female Masculinity in ‘A Scandal in Bohemia’ by Constance Crompton (Nineteenth-Century Gender Studies Vol. 7 Issue 3, 2011) is an academic paper about non-normative gender expression in Victorian England, using the ACD Sherlock Holmes story as a case study. It "shows that the masculine woman, whether cross-dressed or not, had the power to intervene in men’s homosocial relations." I didn't agree with all her claims and conclusions (cisgendered! you're using it wrong, Crompton!), but I was super intrigued and well entertained. (
exeterlinden, I think you'll like it. kaz, you might want to steer clear!)Doctor Who is coming back! On Saturday! I can't seem to keep myself from being sucked back in! Every! Single! Time! There is a new season trailer out: Series 7 Launch Trailer. And they made a webisode prequel again (I don't mind if that becomes a thing): The Bells of St. John prequel. Okay, I know this is totally pointless, but I'm gonna say it anyway! Ready? Don't screw it up, Moffat! (There's also a new mini with Jenny and Vastra! Demon's Run 2 Days Later yay!)
I completely missed out on the fact that The Hobbit Live Event was a thing that was going to happen, but then tumblr exploded, and anyway that is what the Internet is for! I've been pining so hard for a new video diary, but this was even better! I think the production was fairly smooth, and I really like that they took so much time and effort to make it. Dammit, PJ just really knows how to whet people's appetites by now! Anyway, I've put the video in a vault near you *hinthintnudgenudge* in case you're curious.
Speaking of behind the scenes footage from TH/LotR, I got my hands on the Costa Botes documentaries a while ago! Another thing I didn't know existed! They are independent footage from the production of LotR, one for each movie, and they contain CARTLOADS of stuff that you haven't seen in the DVD extras (I didn't think it was possible). I've still only watched the one for The Fellowship. I think my favorite part was getting a much closer look at how they did the scale work (on a practical level, and also with a lot more screen time for the doubles), which is something the DVD extras still played pretty close to the chest. And for that reason I probably wouldn't recommend them if you tend to feel that behind-the-scenes specials 'ruin the mystery' of the finished work. But if you just want to see even more footage of incredibly talented people geeking out, you should definitely check them out (see above re: curiosity).
How My iPhone Ruined Fandom For Me
Mar. 11th, 2012 02:45 pm(Except Not Really)
I've started uni again, and that is the real reason I've been feeling out of touch -- and been actually out of touch -- for all of February. It isn't actually that my iPhone has ruined anything for me, but I think that it has definitely contributed to making my fannish experience feel more fragmented.
It's not necessarily that I'm complaining, like a lot of people seem to be right now. "We are always plugged in, never asleep, always 'on it' or feeling like we should be on it, never truly relaxing." There's a lot of that rhetoric flying around on national TV and radio right now. And it's not exactly like that for me. Because I don't have a work email constantly bleating, etc etc. Because Fandom is my good place, my fun place, my thoughtful place, my comfort place. But nonetheless, with my iPhone I am always plugged in, always obssesively up to date.
( Cut for length )
I've started uni again, and that is the real reason I've been feeling out of touch -- and been actually out of touch -- for all of February. It isn't actually that my iPhone has ruined anything for me, but I think that it has definitely contributed to making my fannish experience feel more fragmented.
It's not necessarily that I'm complaining, like a lot of people seem to be right now. "We are always plugged in, never asleep, always 'on it' or feeling like we should be on it, never truly relaxing." There's a lot of that rhetoric flying around on national TV and radio right now. And it's not exactly like that for me. Because I don't have a work email constantly bleating, etc etc. Because Fandom is my good place, my fun place, my thoughtful place, my comfort place. But nonetheless, with my iPhone I am always plugged in, always obssesively up to date.
( Cut for length )
[Building on a previous, locked post.]
Danes, does anyone have the books Textual Poachers, or Fans, Bloggers, and Gamers, and/or Theorizing Fandom by Henry Jenkins? And, would you be willing to lend me them for the duration of July? Alternatively, do you have other potentially useful books you would lend me?
While we are at it, do you know of specific texts/ books about "slash fiction" from a fannish/ feminist/ queer (-sympathetic) point of view? Specifically, I'd be interested to find any 'talk back' essays or articles, responding to specific evo-psych research. More generally, I'd also be interested in academic criticism of the theory of evolutionary psychology.
I am putting together a reading list. So far I have, available online:
Slash fiction and human mating psychology. by Don Symons. [WARNING: This article is rage-inducing. I want to print it just so I can write "NO!", "WRONG!!!", "LOL WUT" in red marker all over it.]
"Normal Female Interest in Men Bonking": Selections from The Terra Nostra Underground and Strange Bedfellows" by Henry Jenkins.
Essay: In Your Media Queering Your Characters bysophia_sol.
Fandom: What Can It Teach Social Workers About Social Networking? byamazonziti's mom (*g*).
but i just wanted a hamburger... bystultiloquentia (interestingly enough talks about fanfic 'hitting the lizard brain').
Sai Gaddam and Ogi Ogas: A Billion Wicked Thoughts byithiliana (linkspam).
"Let's get those Winchesters pregnant": Male pregnancy in "Supernatural" fan fiction by Berit Åström (TWC 4).
Annihilating love and heterosexuality without women: Romance, generic difference, and queer politics in "Supernatural" fan fiction by Monica Flegel, Jenny Roth (TWC 4).
"The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction by Catherine Tosenberger (TWC 1).
It's interesting to note that the three above TWC essays seem to focus on (incestuous) slash as queer play on heteronormativity. (Do you get the same impression? Have you read any of the essays?) I find it interesting in light of the claim of the Symons article that slash "is about a female fantasy of heterosexual sex acted out via ostensibly male bodies"; it seems like both theories consider slash as reflecting traditional ideals of monogamous (heterosexual) relationships. But while Symons considers this ideal a universal trait of "female mating psychology", my understanding is that fandom considers slash to be an exploration of queer/ alternative romance and/ or sex.
Which reminds me, does anyone have texts about slash readers' identification (or lack thereof) with slashed characters?facetofcathy's idea that penises in slash fic are stand-ins (heh) for clitorises comes to mind.
Any help/ thoughts/ links are greatly appreciated.
Danes, does anyone have the books Textual Poachers, or Fans, Bloggers, and Gamers, and/or Theorizing Fandom by Henry Jenkins? And, would you be willing to lend me them for the duration of July? Alternatively, do you have other potentially useful books you would lend me?
While we are at it, do you know of specific texts/ books about "slash fiction" from a fannish/ feminist/ queer (-sympathetic) point of view? Specifically, I'd be interested to find any 'talk back' essays or articles, responding to specific evo-psych research. More generally, I'd also be interested in academic criticism of the theory of evolutionary psychology.
I am putting together a reading list. So far I have, available online:
Slash fiction and human mating psychology. by Don Symons. [WARNING: This article is rage-inducing. I want to print it just so I can write "NO!", "WRONG!!!", "LOL WUT" in red marker all over it.]
"Normal Female Interest in Men Bonking": Selections from The Terra Nostra Underground and Strange Bedfellows" by Henry Jenkins.
Essay: In Your Media Queering Your Characters by
sophia_sol.Fandom: What Can It Teach Social Workers About Social Networking? by
amazonziti's mom (*g*).but i just wanted a hamburger... by
stultiloquentia (interestingly enough talks about fanfic 'hitting the lizard brain').Sai Gaddam and Ogi Ogas: A Billion Wicked Thoughts by
ithiliana (linkspam)."Let's get those Winchesters pregnant": Male pregnancy in "Supernatural" fan fiction by Berit Åström (TWC 4).
Annihilating love and heterosexuality without women: Romance, generic difference, and queer politics in "Supernatural" fan fiction by Monica Flegel, Jenny Roth (TWC 4).
"The epic love story of Sam and Dean": "Supernatural," queer readings, and the romance of incestuous fan fiction by Catherine Tosenberger (TWC 1).
It's interesting to note that the three above TWC essays seem to focus on (incestuous) slash as queer play on heteronormativity. (Do you get the same impression? Have you read any of the essays?) I find it interesting in light of the claim of the Symons article that slash "is about a female fantasy of heterosexual sex acted out via ostensibly male bodies"; it seems like both theories consider slash as reflecting traditional ideals of monogamous (heterosexual) relationships. But while Symons considers this ideal a universal trait of "female mating psychology", my understanding is that fandom considers slash to be an exploration of queer/ alternative romance and/ or sex.
Which reminds me, does anyone have texts about slash readers' identification (or lack thereof) with slashed characters?
facetofcathy's idea that penises in slash fic are stand-ins (heh) for clitorises comes to mind.Any help/ thoughts/ links are greatly appreciated.
As you can tell from the title, this is all about me, me, me.
At the moment my Delicious will attest to the fandoms I read in. They are Adam Lambert RPF, Inception (which is practically synonymous with Arthur/Eames), and Sherlock.
These past days I have been plodding my way through an Adam Lambert AU, which came highly recommended. I can't get into it! The writing is fine, the pacing and plot may not be entirely bulletproof, and I definitely am not crazy about how the author seems to equate sex with intimacy to such a degree that the characters don't even get to have post-coital snuggles or afterglow. But no matter; it's in no way a bad or horrible fic.
What gets me about this fic is that it's an AU. I don't care! I don't want Adam to be a master thief or a doctor or a tennis pro or a pharaonic love slave or even a high school student. It's entirely my own tastes here, nothing to do with the quality of the fics. I want Adam to be a rock star! And I want him to get it on with his tiny straight bassist or his tiny Idol BFF. I want to read about Adam On Tour, and Adam In His Expensive Mansion, and Adam Going Clubbing. I'm sorry! That's just how I roll; this crazy Hollywood/Superstar universe is the best one! I want Alternate Reality Adam Lambert, not AU. Yes, all my Barbies were rock singers and movie stars, why do you ask? But the truth is, I can't imagine Adam doing anything else and being happy -- I can imagine him not being famous and being happy, but I can't see why someone would split up Adam/Music -- that, after all, is the ultimate OTP.
In stark contrast hereto, I think that some of the Inception fics I've enjoyed the most were the AUs. Arthur is a firefighter! Or a librarian! Or an editor, and Eames is his crazy intelligent prize-winning author! So why is that? I ask myself. Well, I think it's really sadly simple: I was never crazy about the movie, and the truth is all the characters of Inception are cardboard cut-outs. As such, Arthur and Eames are reduced to the most common future!lovers trope, the "I Hate You, I Love You" classic. In fact, Arhur/Eames is entirely created by Fandom, which has managed in the tried and true method of the Hive Mind, to invent a whole new pairing with characteristics (and standard plot adversities) that are pretty consistent (if they aren't directly inverted) throughout the body of fic. These characters are made for AUs. Their characteristics do not depend on their surroundings, which means that Eames is Eames regardless of whether he is an accidental serial arsonist or an author -- he could in fact be both at the same time!
This is probably why Sheppard/McKay has also lent itself to such a metric ton of AUs, and why I have enjoyed them all. Rodney is pissy and abrasive and horribly insecure underneath it all (and deadly allergic to citrus!) in Iowa as well as Denver or L.A. And Sheppard is always slouchy and emotionally retarded and bad with authorities (even if he's a robot! or a turkey!). Furthermore, the SGA storyline really lent itself to plausible AUs and ARs, because so many things could have gone wrong even before the mission took off: I love how many SGA!AUs start with the basic premise that John never entered the service or that he left after the incident in Afghanistan (it's so easy to believe that if (fanon!)John had had just an ounce more insight he never would have become military).
Sherlock is young fandom still, and maybe also a fandom, which is much more tied to its basic premise: Sherlock is smart and discovers things and so becomes a detective. John is co-dependent and a pushover and thinks Sherlock is kind of amazing. I can imagine it would be difficult to make a rock star AU -- or a turkey AU -- (although it could be hilarious! oh god brain bleach!) while still adhering to that premise. I can, however, imagine many a Killer!Sherlock AU... I'll be curious to see how that pans out.
What are your thoughts? Do you like AUs in certain fandoms and not in others?
At the moment my Delicious will attest to the fandoms I read in. They are Adam Lambert RPF, Inception (which is practically synonymous with Arthur/Eames), and Sherlock.
These past days I have been plodding my way through an Adam Lambert AU, which came highly recommended. I can't get into it! The writing is fine, the pacing and plot may not be entirely bulletproof, and I definitely am not crazy about how the author seems to equate sex with intimacy to such a degree that the characters don't even get to have post-coital snuggles or afterglow. But no matter; it's in no way a bad or horrible fic.
What gets me about this fic is that it's an AU. I don't care! I don't want Adam to be a master thief or a doctor or a tennis pro or a pharaonic love slave or even a high school student. It's entirely my own tastes here, nothing to do with the quality of the fics. I want Adam to be a rock star! And I want him to get it on with his tiny straight bassist or his tiny Idol BFF. I want to read about Adam On Tour, and Adam In His Expensive Mansion, and Adam Going Clubbing. I'm sorry! That's just how I roll; this crazy Hollywood/Superstar universe is the best one! I want Alternate Reality Adam Lambert, not AU. Yes, all my Barbies were rock singers and movie stars, why do you ask? But the truth is, I can't imagine Adam doing anything else and being happy -- I can imagine him not being famous and being happy, but I can't see why someone would split up Adam/Music -- that, after all, is the ultimate OTP.
In stark contrast hereto, I think that some of the Inception fics I've enjoyed the most were the AUs. Arthur is a firefighter! Or a librarian! Or an editor, and Eames is his crazy intelligent prize-winning author! So why is that? I ask myself. Well, I think it's really sadly simple: I was never crazy about the movie, and the truth is all the characters of Inception are cardboard cut-outs. As such, Arthur and Eames are reduced to the most common future!lovers trope, the "I Hate You, I Love You" classic. In fact, Arhur/Eames is entirely created by Fandom, which has managed in the tried and true method of the Hive Mind, to invent a whole new pairing with characteristics (and standard plot adversities) that are pretty consistent (if they aren't directly inverted) throughout the body of fic. These characters are made for AUs. Their characteristics do not depend on their surroundings, which means that Eames is Eames regardless of whether he is an accidental serial arsonist or an author -- he could in fact be both at the same time!
This is probably why Sheppard/McKay has also lent itself to such a metric ton of AUs, and why I have enjoyed them all. Rodney is pissy and abrasive and horribly insecure underneath it all (and deadly allergic to citrus!) in Iowa as well as Denver or L.A. And Sheppard is always slouchy and emotionally retarded and bad with authorities (even if he's a robot! or a turkey!). Furthermore, the SGA storyline really lent itself to plausible AUs and ARs, because so many things could have gone wrong even before the mission took off: I love how many SGA!AUs start with the basic premise that John never entered the service or that he left after the incident in Afghanistan (it's so easy to believe that if (fanon!)John had had just an ounce more insight he never would have become military).
Sherlock is young fandom still, and maybe also a fandom, which is much more tied to its basic premise: Sherlock is smart and discovers things and so becomes a detective. John is co-dependent and a pushover and thinks Sherlock is kind of amazing. I can imagine it would be difficult to make a rock star AU -- or a turkey AU -- (although it could be hilarious! oh god brain bleach!) while still adhering to that premise. I can, however, imagine many a Killer!Sherlock AU... I'll be curious to see how that pans out.
What are your thoughts? Do you like AUs in certain fandoms and not in others?
I want long, plotty femslash! Where is the long, plotty, nc-17 rated femslash? That last part is vital. It has to exist! But I honestly haven't found any yet. I know we all complain about this, but the femslash remains elusive. And come on, we can't all be that straight or that bored at the thought of femslash that we just don't want to write it!
The issue is comlicated, obviously. We are fanficcers, and the truth is that there is despairingly little good source out there. Especially when you look at the amount of male slash possibilities. Frequently, we only get one really awesome (i.e. three-dimensional) woman on a show and no one to slash her with. Also, she's almost certain to be out-awesomed by some guy, who gets more screen time and is written with more color and thus becomes an easy target of our fangirl attention.
I've been thinking about what obvious femslash pairings I've come across that I would love to read fic about, and they are sadly very few.
I can't help but wonder why there doesn't seem to be any real interest for writing femslash. I know I have a lot of lesbian women on my reading list, several of which write slash and very few of which I know have written femslash. I know this probably taps into the larger meta discussion about why women don't write women, and I have absoloutely no answers or theories about it. I just wish we would.
I guess it's coming to that point where I have to stop bitching and moaning and just do it myself. I'm working on that. But in the mean time I'm putting it out there, in the hope that someone else has actually put a little time into writing some hot girl-on-girl action. Please? Anyone?
Or: comment and tell me which femslash pairings you would read fic about! Feel free to wax poetic!
The issue is comlicated, obviously. We are fanficcers, and the truth is that there is despairingly little good source out there. Especially when you look at the amount of male slash possibilities. Frequently, we only get one really awesome (i.e. three-dimensional) woman on a show and no one to slash her with. Also, she's almost certain to be out-awesomed by some guy, who gets more screen time and is written with more color and thus becomes an easy target of our fangirl attention.
I've been thinking about what obvious femslash pairings I've come across that I would love to read fic about, and they are sadly very few.
- Buffy/Faith (BtVS. They're the original! But they are also not my favorite. People have done it, with mixed results. The truth is, I think Faith could do better!)
- Kalinda/Diane (The Good Wife. Kalinda is awesome, and when she taught x to shoot a gun - whoa! I would totally ship that!)
- Gemma/Tara (Sons of Anarchy. Those two really hit it off in season 2. So what if Tara's with Gemma's son! They'd be smoking together!)
- Emily/JJ (Criminal Minds. It was there, especially in the beginning. Back when Emily's sexuality was still a bit of a mystery. Before JJ hooked up with Will? They're so sweet to each other. JJ thinks Em would make a great mom!)
- Bree/Susan (Desperate Housewives. I don't have a thing for redheads. Except when I do. I have frequently - during early seasons, when I still watched - remarked at the chemistry between these two.)
- Miranda/Andy (The Devil Wears Prada. An impressively active fandom, and probably the one I've read the most in. The fic have a tendency to fade-to-black, though, and the few sex scenes there are, are pretty bland)
I can't help but wonder why there doesn't seem to be any real interest for writing femslash. I know I have a lot of lesbian women on my reading list, several of which write slash and very few of which I know have written femslash. I know this probably taps into the larger meta discussion about why women don't write women, and I have absoloutely no answers or theories about it. I just wish we would.
I guess it's coming to that point where I have to stop bitching and moaning and just do it myself. I'm working on that. But in the mean time I'm putting it out there, in the hope that someone else has actually put a little time into writing some hot girl-on-girl action. Please? Anyone?
Or: comment and tell me which femslash pairings you would read fic about! Feel free to wax poetic!
The latest episode of Glee made me angry and sad and disappointed. And then it made me angry. And then it made me sad. And then it made me uncomfortable. And then it made angry. Really, it was a rollercoaster hour, and I checked my clock several times and could. not. believe. it wasn't over yet.
I think what makes me so sad and angry and especially disappointed is that Glee really has the potential to be great. All the attention it's getting would certainly imply that the premise holds. What's not holding up to even my casual level of viewing is the constantly present blatant chauvinism and sexism in almost every story line. Maybe I shouldn't be offended, since it seems everyone is getting characterized equally badly, but then again - they're not.
( Light spoilers for everything up to and including 114 )
In conclusion: GRRRAAARGHCALVINASMASH!
I think what makes me so sad and angry and especially disappointed is that Glee really has the potential to be great. All the attention it's getting would certainly imply that the premise holds. What's not holding up to even my casual level of viewing is the constantly present blatant chauvinism and sexism in almost every story line. Maybe I shouldn't be offended, since it seems everyone is getting characterized equally badly, but then again - they're not.
( Light spoilers for everything up to and including 114 )
In conclusion: GRRRAAARGHCALVINASMASH!
