#harry potter fandom newsletter

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Tuesday, August 27 - Wednesday, August 28

Patient 1: Can't hear it. What's the frequency? Empty. All spilled out. Dawn: Please. Y-you see me, right? Look at me. Patient 2: Can't stop it! Dawn: You know what I am, don't you? You all know! Patient 1: Can't hear it, can't hear it, can't hear it Dawn: Tell me! Patient 1: Can't hear it, can't hear it ... Dawn: What am I? Orlando: The key.

~~Buffy Season 5 Episode #91: "Blood Ties"~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Clean-up (Ensemble, T) by badly_knitted

Lost (Buffy/Spike, T) by RisalSoran

Jealous (Buffy/Giles, T) by The_Crazy_Knight

But It Hurts? (Buffy/Spike, E) by Spikelover4ever

Something New (Buffy/Spike, E) by Spikelover4ever

Sweet Torture (Giles/OC, E) by atommadly

[Chaptered Fiction]

I Just Wanted to Be Yours (Can I Be Yours?) Ch. 1 - 11/11 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Faith, M) by thisyearsgrrl

Blood of Kings Ch. 1-2/? (Ensemble, T, Young Royals xover) by LadyInBlackandWhite

Thaumogenesis Ch. 1 (Angel/Cordelia, T) by thepunkmuppet

Aegis Ch. 14 (Xander, T, multiple xovers) by dogbertcarroll, Narsil

Free to a Good Home CH. 1-5/5 (COMPLETE) (Buffy/Spike, M) by though_you_try

Vegas Mishap Ch. 22 (Buffy, T, MCU xover) by mmooch

In the Company of Witches and Slayers: Ch. 145 (Willow/Tara, E) by VladimirHarkonnen (TheLightdancer)

Laid Ch. 4/5 (Buffy/Spike, E) by HollyDB

Midnight At The Lost & Found CH. 3/4 (Buffy/Giles, E) by The_Crazy_Knight

Down With the Sickness CH. 6 (Multiple Pairings, E) by fatalfae

Can't Salvage This Ch. 4 (Buffy/Spike, M) by fatalfae

Don't Swerve Ch. 6/10 (Buffy/Faith, E) by thisyearsgrrl

Situation Normal - All Faithed Up Ch. 5 (Buffy/Faith, M) by QuillBard

Rise Ch. 16/33 (Buffy/Spike, E) by CheekyKitten

hit rewind Ch. 73 (Buffy/Spike, M) by untiljanuary

Eliza: The Vampire Child Ch. 6 (Buffy, Spike/Drusilla, OC, T) by Puella Pulchra

The Vampire's Daughter CH. 26 (Spike, OC, T) by Puella Pulchra

Into the Initiative Ch. 3 (Buffy/Spike, T) by heckate

Against All Odds, Chapter 12 (Buffy/Spike, E) by CheekyKitten

Linchpin, Chapter 2 (Buffy/Spike, ) by

Into his mind, Chapter 1 (Buffy/Spike, G) by rossshin

The Neighbor's Point of View, Chapter 125 (Buffy/Spike, G) by the_big_bad

Morning Stretches, Chapter 8 (Buffy/Spike, E) by CheekyKitten

I Can Show You Lies, Chapter 5 (Buffy/Spike, E) by tragic

Birds of a Feather, Chapter 4 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Maxine Eden

The Degradation of Duality [Series Part 2], Chapter 46 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Ragini

I Do!, Chapter 37 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Dusty

The Watcher, Chapter 27 (Buffy/Spike, E) by In Mortal

It’s a Secret Ch. 3 (Xander, T, Harry Potter xover) by MsSunshine

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork:Punk Spunk (Spike, NSFW) by ChefsKissXO

Artwork:”Once More With Feeling” animation () by anparna

Manip:Collage #99 (Buffy) by thedecadentraven

[Reviews & Recaps]

PODCAST: ATS 222 - There's No Place Like Plrtz Glrb by Another Buffy Podcast

PODCAST: Episode 71: Hush by Gym Was Cancelled: A Buffy Podcast

[Community Announcements]

Tuesday Prompts: Exploration by comment_fic

[Fandom Discussions]

At the end of season 12, do Buffy and Spike end up together? by Multiple Authors

just finished the show for the first time by badmoonrisingg

Why did Sunnydale go from a very small town in season 1 to a not so small town by season 7? by jdpm1991

Could the monks have picked a stupider way to hide the key? by utopian-fir

TW | Seeing Red / How It Trickled Down by NotSoPoisonIvyy

there’s something about the way the scoobies allow spike to partially integrate with them in buffy’s absence by nicollekidman

Vampire Willow by MermaidDaphne

Sounds of the Slayer Website by McCrumbler

What is the best line from each of these Big Bads/Major villains? by Flyestgit

When did the writers decide this for Angel? by Tsole96

Was the First Evil really the first evil? by MonsterTournament

Which character evolved the most during the show ? by sKullsHavezzz

Were Vampire Willow and Xander the Spike and Dru of the Wishverse? by AndrewHeard

Cowboy vampires question from bad eggs by Tsole96

Rename an episode of Buffy to a clickbait YouTube title by SafiraAshai

SFX Buffy Special Edition Portfolio from 2003 by bluepushkin

SFX Buffy Special Edition 2003 Actor Profiles by bluepushkin

Looking for an older fanfic by Smooth-Mulberry9695

What if the subtext between Faith and Buffy was more than subtext? How would that affect season 3? by Flyestgit

Mysterious Buffy VHS??? by ladymadelyn

first time watch, season 7 by juicygrl99

When Angel was Angelus by UpvotesForAnimals

Vampire Weaknesses by Precious_Bee

Something dumb has been bothering me by Trick-Flight-8749

Buffy's Driving Ability by Leebles84

First time watch, season 2 by txn120

Riley Saved Faith. by Muhabba

So was Cordelia and Angel a slap to the face for whom? by foreseethefuture

Angel by One_Waxed_Wookiee

What was the point of her character? Was there any behind the scenes explanation for Olivia Williams sudden introduction or depart? by DebiesDisguise

Watching Xander getting assaulted hit so close to home by Good-Strategy2250

Something Blue Discovery by Randy_Giles1880

whats everyone's thought about glory and buffy by brian5mbv

Dark Willow's comments to others by redskinsguy

buffering on empty places by SafiraAshai

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

[dranna]

Navigation:

my commissions open !

You can subscribe to my newsletter ! My carrd with all my links and infos <3

I started writing too! You can find me on AO3

~ Writing requests: open ~

Materlist and art links below

Main links to organise my drawings:

Snapedom -> snart / medusa x hades au / snucius content / severus throughout history 

sketches and doodles

Lotr -> lotr art / the hobbit art / elrond 📚

Good Omens -> go art

OFMD -> ofmd art

Taskmaster -> taskmaster

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My Fics:

I write for Good Omens, Ken (Barbie 2023) and Snapedom. (for now hehe)

Will write: praise kink, dom/sub, neck fetish, horror, gory, blood kink, dom/sub, gentle dom

I won't write: underage, , noncon, incest, full on intercourse, sub reader, everyting pregnancy related, other things that make me uncomfortable

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Good Omens

1. Crowley & Aziraphale:

Blossoming Love through the Ages

> 2500BC> Prologue / Chapter 1

Your sweet selfishness (hurt/comfort, feeling of worthlessness, none (?))

Aziraphale's Return (angst/hurt/comfort, happy ending)

Longing (hurt/no comfort, heartbreak)

The Fallen Star (sad with happy ending, emotional hurt/comfort, fallen Crowley)

2. Furfur & reader

The Deer fell in love (romantic fluff, gender neutral reader )

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Taskmaster - Taskhusbands

The Keeper of Words and Writer of Lights (nothing but fluff)

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Severus Snape

Dungeon Bat struggling through Harry Potter

> Philosophers' Stone> Chapter 1

1. Snape & Reader

I Treasure both Swans and Dungeon Bats (poem)

Tragicomedy (poem)

You are a beautiful piece of art

My last letter

2. Snape & Lucius:

Comfort in the Dark

3. Drabbles, Headcanons and character studies

What’s the point?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ken (Barbie 2023)

Movie Night with Ken (fluff, tiny tiny angst, hurt/comfort, feeling excluded, sobbing, gender neutral reader)

Doubt (fluff, angst, emotional hurt/comfort, sobbing, gender neutral reader)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our Flag Means Death

1. Ed & Stede:

Sinking (very short, sad with happy ending, fluff, merman Stede)

2. Izzy Hands:

A Suprisingly Beautiful Voice (fluff, emotional hurt/comfort, overwhelmed Izzy, spoilers for ofmd s2e6)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wish

Be Careful what you Wish for - a rewrite (ongoing)

Prologue /

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

my sideblog where I reblog everything so I won't spam this main, say hi there🫶-> @high-sea-husbands

I'm organising the fandoms and fan fictions there with tags

I'm also moving this: hiss hiss hiss  fanart appreciation tag to my sideblog

@sillyvampireboi my sidelong where I post my vampire/poto/hannibal/Renfield etc related artworks

@drannastudieslanguages is my languages study blog :D

[laiqualaurelote]

(this is a bit belated but I have been In The Countryside all weekend with next to no Internet - anyway! I was a guest reccer for @thereccenter last week. I've been the beneficiary of many kind recs in this newsletter and wanted to pass it on, so I made a list of my favourite heist AUs. I am thrilled it has appeared in the same edition as Michelle Yeoh's Oscar win.)

Laiqualaurelote adores AUs and crossovers, often incredibly niche ones. She is the author of the Ted Lasso heist AU “they will see us waving from such great heists” and can be found on Tumblr here.

Someone once described heist fic to me as the Little Black Dress of AUs—it’ll go with anything, provided you can pull it off. The joy of the heist AU lies in how it deploys its tropes—it’s delightful to see an ensemble you love cast in the archetypes of the heist crew: the Mastermind, the Grifter, the Hacker, the Hitter, the Thief, the Driver, the Forger, the Person Who Blows Stuff Up, etc. (All the better if this unfolds in a Recruitment Montage.) Most heist AUs riff off Ocean’s Eleven and/or Leverage, but the good ones are especially ingenious in how they adapt the cons to fit the fandom and manage to keep the reader guessing till the final sleight of hand. Heist heist baby!

(General content warning for criminality)

“Rose’s Eleven” by leupagus (@leupagus). 50K words, rated Explicit. Fandom: Schitt’s Creek; Ships: Patrick Brewer/David Rose, Ted Mullens/Alexis Rose Backstory: Schitt’s Creek is a show about a wealthy family losing all their money and being forced to relocate to a small town they once bought as a joke. (I have never actually seen it, which is how good this AU is.) In this fic, David Rose, released on parole, assembles a team to rob the Met Gala as vengeance against the man who got him sent to prison, Sebastien Raine—who seems to be dating David’s ex-husband Patrick. Rec: This AU appears at first to be your standard Ocean’s Eleven dynamic combined with an Ocean’s Eight plot, but there’s a lot more going on. I was bowled over by the complexity of the heist, with its double-crosses and triple-crosses. Love the criminals who are also working mothers. Content warnings: N/A

“The Kansas City Shuffle Job” by arboreal_overlords (@peri-hellion). 45K words, rated Teen. Fandom: The Magnus Archives; Ships: Jonathan Sims/Martin Blackwood/Tim Stoker, Basira Hussain/Alice “Daisy” Tonner Backstory: The Magnus Archives is a horror podcast in which fear entities manifest in the world through human avatars, who are granted eldritch powers. In this Leverage-based AU, the characters still have their avatar powers, only they use them for crime. Jon, who left the Magnus Institute after his assistant Sasha was murdered in a conspiracy involving his boss, is hired to lead a heist team comprising hitter Daisy, hacker Melanie and thief Tim. When they are double-crossed, they have to bring on board the best con man in England, Martin. Rec: Wonderful reimagining of the Magnus universe as a criminal underworld, with an intricately plotted heist and character studies carefully woven into the cons. “Let’s go steal an Institute!” Content warnings: Canonical character death, some canon-typical suicidal ideation

“Three Card Monte” by enjambament (@enjambament). 14K words, rated Teen. Fandom: Harry Potter; Ships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin, Caradoc Dearborn/Fabian Prewett, Lily Evans/James Potter Backstory: In this non-wizarding Marauders AU, Sirius gets out of prison and looks up Remus with a plan to rob the casino at Hotel Voldemort and steal...a piano. Rec: A clever, compact Oceans-esque heist with fun twists on canon, from grizzled hacker Mad-Eye Moody to young thief Tonks, still learning to grift on the job. Content warnings: Mention of past abusive relationship

“The Casterly Rock Job” by Netgirl_Y2K (@netgirl-y2k). 3.2K words, rated Teen. Fandom: Game of Thrones; Ship: Yara Greyjoy/Daenerys Targaryen Backstory: Daenerys’ plan to steal the Lannisters’ dirty little secrets for their business rival Olenna Tyrell involves enlisting Arya’s burglary skills, Margaery’s knack for seduction and Yara’s speedboat driving. Rec: Love an all-women heist crew! Criminal mastermind Dany has a delightful swagger, seen through the eyes of hard-bitten mobster’s daughter Yara.  Content warnings: N/A

“i don’t need a parachute (if i’ve got you)” by thewestwinged (@aberfaeth). 6K words, rated Teen. Fandom: The Locked Tomb; Ship: Gen, Camilla Hect & Palamedes Sextus Backstory: Thief Camilla teams up with the hacker known as The Warden to one-up his mother, the legendary grifter Juno Zeta, Who Met God And Convinced Him She Was One Of His Angels And Then, Ostensibly, Stole A Lot Of Money From Him. Rec: Spot-on voices for Camilla “hides a taser in a fake gun” Hect and Palamedes “uploads erotica onto Elon Musk’s website” Sextus. I would watch an entire series of Cam & Pal Commit Crimes. Content warnings: N/A

“Provenance” by rageprufrock (@rageprufrock). 20K words, rated Teen. Fandom: Inception; Ships: Arthur/Eames, Dominic Cobb/Mallorie Miles Backstory: Inception is technically canonically about a heist, but in this AU there is no dream technology and it’s about art theft instead. The theft of a Raphael painting from the National Gallery reunites Interpol agent Dom, insurance company representative Arthur, and the painting’s owner Eames, who may or may not have stolen it himself. Rec: Brilliant, funny, unusual in that it follows neither the Ocean’s Eleven nor Leverage moulds but strikes out on its own. The long-suffering hapless POV of Dom Cobb, usually a hugely unedifying character, is priceless. Content warnings: N/A

[queerwolfsstuff]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

Thanks for the tag @eyesofatragedy67

1. How many works do you have on A03?

121 so far, that number will increase within the next couple of months.

2. What's your total word count?

3,439,494

Holy shit, and that's not including the word count of unpublished works or the original novel I'm currently editing!

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Actively: Supernatural; Good Omens; Our Flag Means Death; Red, White, and Royal Blue, (MAYBE DEAD BOY DETECTIVES BACK OFF)

Past: South Park; High School Musical; Beauty and the Beast; Harry Potter; Blades of Glory; and Glee.

4. Top 5 fics by kudos:

Top 5 in general (this includes co-written fics):

In a Mirror, Darkly (written with @anyreiart) - 3,068

Red, White, and Royal Blue Balls - 2,365

Playing with Fire (written with @anyreiart) - 1,748

That Wasn’t Supposed to Fucking Happen! (written with @anyrei) - 1,387

The Heart of Ophelia (written with @anyreiart) - 1,357

Top 5 Solo Fics:

Red, White, and Royal Blue Balls - 2,365

La Rose Cachée - 1,146

Twenty After Four - 390

You Know I’m No Good - 326

And Walk Yourself to the Laundromat - 318

5. Do you respond to comments?

UGH, not as much as I should, and I used to be really good about responding to all comments, but presently my inbox on Ao3 has 4402 “unread” comments and I just… I can’t, it’s too overwhelming at this point with working two jobs. But I read and genuinely appreciate every single comment, even if I can’t reply to every single one!

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Ah. That’s a toss up between Nothing’s Gonna Change My World and Through the Rift Series. In my opinion, the former, but I’m sure Any would beg to differ.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Oooh, fun! Ummmm. Most of them have happy endings (both literally and figuratively). I guess the “happiest” ending goes to the crack fic I wrote for Any’s birthday seven years ago. Crack in the Fourth Wall

8. Do you get hate on fics?

Oh, you betcha. The first time we got a shitty comment on a joint fic, Any said, “We’ve made it!” Thankfully, when a certain newsletter was dismantled, the anti-destiel harassment died down. I/We still get the occasional “concrit” comment from readers who think it’s an okay thing to give unsolicited writing advice, and I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Constructive criticism cannot exist in already posted fanfiction world, you aren’t being constructive or critiquing, you’re literally filing a complaint, leaving a bad review. So either embrace the fact you’re a shitty 1-star Yelp review Karen, or stop leaving concrit.

9. Do you write smut?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

10. Craziest crossover?

I actually don’t write crossovers, but keep your eyes peeled! I recently participated in the CasDean Reverse Crossover Bang, and in a little over a week, I’ll be posting my Harry Potter crossover fic featuring art by the amazing @rezal-art!

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not technically, or in a way that could be proven, but a very popular fic very much felt like a rip off of one of mine and Any’s fics, one that a well known author (a friend of the author of aforementioned rip off) made it a point to tell potential readers to not read the ending of because said author didn’t like the polyamory of it all.

Even funnier, that same author shortly after wrote their own poly fic. So, I guess personal preferences used to justify telling people to not read someone’s fic can sometimes beget a change of heart if it gets you more comments/readers.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Yes! Any and I have had a couple of our fics translated into Chinese, Russian, and Spanish! And we are here for anyone who wishes to translate any of our fics, just let us know and send us a link, and we will include it in the notes!

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. At this point, I prefer to not write alone. Any needs to stop allowing it to happen.

14. All-time favorite ship?

Okay, so… technically, it’s Destiel. It’s the only pairing that survived the end of its series. Dean Winchester and Castiel are my two favorite archetypes of characters and their specific dynamic transcends canon bad endings and any type of universe.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

I don’t have any! The last time I posted a WIP, it took me a couple years to finish, so I promised myself I would only post completed fics from now on.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Comedic scenarios and dialogue. I like the funnies and the speakings.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

DESCRIPTIONS. I fucking hate it, okay? Why can’t you all just know what’s in my damn head? I also have a toxic, codependent relationship with commas and sentence fragments.

18. Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

A little mixed. So, barring it being like… Latin, or a more archaic language that you use an unreliable online translator for or a language you speak, I believe for believable dialogue, you should have a friend or someone who can confirm/verify that the language is written correctly, otherwise, I vote you write, “they spoke in x language,” and interpret in the narrative. And no writing an accent in dialogue for characters where English is a second language phonetically! Like, authentic structure of a sentence, rhythm, or word choice is fine, but let’s not be offensive folks.

19. First fandom you ever wrote in?

Harry Potter over twenty years ago now. I’m an old.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

Oooh, that’s fun. Ummmm. For co-written, it’s a toss up between Five Dimensions, or Dean’s Crusade: A Dance with Self Discovery with @anyreiart or Heaven on htraE with @eyesofatragedy67 and for solo it’s a toss up between I Wish for This and La Rose Cachée

Tag time! @anyreiart @punk-is-notdead and whoever else wants to do this!

[theaawalker]

SAY HELLO TO YOUR NEXT YA READ...

GENRES: Fiction / Fantasy / Philosophy RATING: Young Adult (13-19) SUBGENRES: Coming-of-age, adventure, found family, action, royalty, mythology FOR FANS OF: Narnia, Lord of the Rings, X-Men: First Class, Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, & Rise of the Guardians

The Guardians of Camoria, or GOC, is the name of my upcoming, original YA series. The story follows Duke Guarder, life-force wielder, prince, and prophesied savior of Camoria (meaning 'all in existence'). On his sixteenth, he is called upon by the goddess that chose him. Duke is whisked from his safe kingdom and travels infinite realms to find 7 Guardians, who must aid him in stopping an ancient evil, known as The Creature, from ending Camoria. Can Duke convince the 7 less fortunate, vastly different, elementally-powered strangers that their world is worth saving? The Guardians of Camoria features 7 installments with genres of fiction, fantasy, and philosophy.

Volume 1 is to be released between 2026-2030. 🏛🌻📜

WANNA JOIN THE FANDOM? Guardians of Camoria Server Instagram Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the.aa.walker Newsletter Sign-up

PROPERTY OF A.A. WALKER, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ©️

Legal representation: https://www.khlawfirm.com/html/atlanta-copyright-litigation-attorney-lawyer-atlanta-georgia.html

Source: guardiansofcamoria.com

[dhr-ao3]

Comforting Friends

Comforting Friends https://ift.tt/N1J6uhW by Power_Of_Anime_Girl_23 Hermione stared at the newsletter of what happened to her parents on her birthday. Luna walked up to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. They stood in silence until Luna spoke. "Remember you’re not alone, Hermione. We understand your pain and you know you can come to me, Harry or Neville anytime,” she murmured. Words: 1000, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: F/M, Multi Characters: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Severus Snape, Minerva McGonagall, Filius Flitwick, Draco Malfoy, Marietta Edgecombe Relationships: Tracey Davis/Daphne Greengrass/Harry Potter, Hannah Abbott/Susan Bones/Neville Longbottom, Hermione Granger & Neville Longbottom & Luna Lovegood & Harry Potter, Luna Lovegood/Theodore Nott, Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger & Minerva McGonagall, Neville Longbottom & Minerva McGonagall, Harry Potter & Severus Snape, Filius Flitwick & Luna Lovegood Additional Tags: Mentioned Daphne Greengrass, Mentioned Tracey Davis/Daphne Greengrass/Harry Potter, Mentioned Hannah Abbott/Susan Bones/Neville Longbottom, Minor Luna Lovegood/Theodore Nott, Minor Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy, Hermione Granger & Luna Lovegood Friendship, Luna Lovegood & Harry Potter Friendship, Neville Longbottom & Luna Lovegood Friendship, Hermione Granger & Luna Lovegood & Harry Potter & Neville Longbottom, Supportive Minerva McGonagall, Polyamory, Good Severus Snape, Good Teacher Severus Snape, Protective Filius Flitwick, Slytherin Harry Potter, Ravenclaw Luna Lovegood, Gryffindor Neville Longbottom, Gryffindor Hermione Granger, Talking about loss of parents, Halloween, Sad Hermione Granger, Slight Marietta Edgecombe Bashing, Dolores Umbridge Bashing, Book 5: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Mentioned Tracey Davis - Freeform, Mentioned Cedric Diggory, Mentioned Susan Bones - Freeform, Mentioned Hannah Abbott - Freeform, Mentioned Pansy Parkinson, Mentioned Millicent Bulstrode, Mentioned Pomona Sprout - Freeform, Mentioned Sybil Trelawney, Mentioned Septima Vector, Mentioned Aurora Sinistra, Mentioned Albus Dumbledore, Mentioned Dolores Umbridge, Cedric Diggory Lives, Light Angst via AO3 works tagged 'Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy' https://ift.tt/RqKeDLl August 23, 2023 at 06:06PM

[the-fandom-newsletter]

Fandom Newsletter #2

Today is Friday, October 5th of 2018 and welcome back to another Fandom Newsletter! You’re provider for all things fandom! 

Writers: Atlas, Blackpurrl, Fyne, YoursTruly 

Editors: Fyne and YoursTruly 

“Good, better, best. Never let it rest. ‘Til your good is better and your better is best.”

- St. Jerome

Let’s get started! 

First to YoursTruly with the Hannibal, Horror, Tim Burton, and Marvel fandoms-

Hannibal: Thomas Harris, author of the Hannibal Lecter books, is releasing a new book on May 21st of 2019! The book will not feature Hannibal or any of the characters from that series. This new book will be the first book he’s published in over a decade, his last book being Hannibal Rising which was published in 2006. The book’s cover and title have not yet been released, but it can still be pre-ordered on Amazon and other sources. 

Horror: Horror fans are awaiting the next installment in The Conjuring series. The next movie is set to be released next year, the title being The Crooked Man, a character from The Conjuring 2. 

Tim Burton: Tim Burton fans are ecstatic about Freeform’s 13 Nights of Halloween being changed to 31 Nights of Halloween! During this time period, Freeform plays many popular Halloween movies, including The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Corpse Bride. 

Marvel: Marvel fans are debating the quality of the upcoming movie Venom. It seems there’s a clean split: You either love it or you hate it. A lot of controversy is spreading over one particular scene which won’t be spoiled here, but many people who have already seen it say it’s amazing and accurate to the comics. The movie is not part of the MCU and exists outside of the Spider-Man universe, setting it up for the perfect Venom solo movie. The movie hits theaters this Saturday. I personally think it will be an incredible movie, what about you? 

Next to Blackpurrl with the Harry Potter, World News, and Animation fandoms-

Animation: New clips are out for Vivziepop’s Hazbin Hotel!

Harry Potter: The newest movie, The Crimes of Grindelwald, is set for release on November 6th this year. Just one month to go!

World News: Spiked Reports on Sexual Harassment in France. Follow the link to read more.

Now to Fyne with the Supernatural, Sherlock, YouTube, and Spooptober fandoms- 

Supernatural - The wardrobe on Supernatural has become a trademark for so many of the show’s favorite characters. Early on, things like Dean’s leather jacket took on a life of its own, playing an essential part of the Winchester storyline. Dean inherited it from John, turning his staple style into a sentiment of how much he idolized his dad. For the first five seasons, the brown leather jacket (which we first see in the pilot episode) was almost thought of as Dean’s superhero attire. Then, in season 6, without even an explanation, the jacket was just gone. Where did it go? Well As it turns out, there was a very real reason for this vanishing act. When the cast was in Los Angeles for a photo shoot, their wardrobe was flown over from Vancouver. In the process, a few items were stolen. Among them was Dean’s iconic jacket, which was worn in so many memorable scenes. Who stole it? To this day we do not know. Since then, Dean’s look has undergone a few subtle changes. At first, there was somewhat of a “normal life”-looking coat that appeared at the beginning of season 6. Thankfully, that fad didn’t last long. Eventually, it changed over into an evolving selection military-style jackets, each perfectly-suited for his character. It’s now hard to imagine Dean without his current signature style.

Sherlock - Did you know Matt Smith auditioned to play Watson? Yes our beloved less down to earth Doctor was almost our very down to earth John Watson. He may be best known for playing a less down-to-Earth Doctor, but before he got the keys to the TARDIS, Matt Smith auditioned for the role of Dr. Watson. Although he can do less eccentric than the role he's best known for, Smith himself admits he'd probably have been a little too skewed to work as Sherlock's foil. Why Smith didn't get the role is kinda obvious when you think about it. Before Doctor Who he had only a handful of TV credits to his name, with his only big screen role. Martin Freeman may not have been the blockbuster leading man he is now, but he was at the very least recognisable to a British audience thanks to The Office.

YouTube - Art YouTubers are currently confusing fans as, unlike last year, the ones participating in inktober aren’t making daily videos. We can’t help but wonder if this is because of the ad-pocolypse and shrinking revenue, or if it is because they simply don’t feel up to it. What are your thoughts?

Spooptober - It is officially Spooptober! Expect creepy fun facts, stories, and tidbits throughout the month of October! This weeks fun fact is - did you know that the average high school student prefers Halloween over Valentines day? Who woulda thunk?

Lastly to Atlas with the Voltron, Movies, And Celebrities fandoms-

Voltron: An interview with Josh Keaton was posted on YouTube. In the interview, he was asked about what he thought about the show ending. He replied, “All of us really love the show. We’re sad to see it go. As for me, I don’t think I’m ready to stop being Shiro.”

Movies: So, um. Live action Teen Titans anyone? No?

Celebrities: Lin-Manuel Miranda is going to play a small role in Mary Poppins Returns.

Now to your weekly movie review by YoursTruly- 

Movie review- Spider-Man 3

I’ve seen this movie many times before, and it’s my favorite in the Spider-Man franchise. The movie has a great plot and is throughly entertaining in general. The movie features Toby Maguire, who many people consider to be the best Spider-Man. 

Now to Blackpurrl with the weekly trivia fact- 

Trivia: A cricket's ears are on its front legs, just below the knees and they have four acoustic inputs. The openings in the crickets exoskeleton that act as ears, lead into chambers inside the legs, which connect to either side of the cricket, allowing sound to pass completely through the cricket.

And back to Atlas with the weekly book review- 

Book Review: Cornelia Funke’s Inkheart is a modern day/not-so modern fantasy that will leave the reader on the edge of their seat. With a fantastic plot line and lovable characters, this book is hard to put down!

The comic at the end of the newsletter is brought to you by our very talented Blackpurrl. It’s titled “Atlas Initiation”. That’s all for this week, we’ll see you next week with another Fandom Newsletter! 

Signing off, 

Atlas, Blackpurrl, Fyne, YoursTruly 

[gallavichthings]

This week’s interviewee might be new to the fandom, but she’s not new to fanfiction! Also: have I just found our lucky charm? Hm...

Please send all the love to Heather aka @whaticameherefor​, author of  Hollywood, Lineup, and Dude, where’s my car?, among others. 

GT: What can you tell us about yourself?

H: Hmm, well. I'm a mom to two crazy babies, doing the stay at home thing. But I freelance as a marketing consultant since that was the field I worked in before I had kids. I've been in and out of various fandoms ever since I was a kid, all with different levels of interest, but Gallavich has been the deepest I've ever gotten and I have no regrets about that lol. I'm originally from NJ, but I've bounced up and down the east coast (with a brief stint in London a few times since that's where I met my husband) and I don't think we're quite settled for good just yet.

GT: Do you remember when you started reading fics?

H: It's been years! Back when the internet was new there were these things called zines. Basically like graphics and fics and stuff in a email newsletter. It was I guess what is called bandom now, for as certain boyband, but it was mostly reader insert/Mary Sue kinda stuff which I guess is something all 11 year olds love lol. I read a lot of fic and wrote a little too but that was in the long long ago lol. When I was older I read a lot of Mighty Ducks (the movies), Harry Potter, LoTR, took a break and then rediscovered fic with Bughead/Riverdale, which was the fandom I was in just before Gallavich. TLDR: it's been a while!

GT: I know someone is organizing a Gallavich zine, actually! [@odietamo-gallavichzine]

And is Gallavich the first fandom you write for? What made you decide to write for them?

H: I have seen it! I’m debating participating but I’m super busy and don’t want to overcommit myself. I’m definitely looking forward to it though!

They’re actually the second couple I’ve written for. Like I said, Bughead brought me back to fandom and after reading fic for a while, I wrote a whole bunch of one shots for them. As for Gallavich, I once again read fics solidly for a long time (and watched the show/their scenes a ridiculous amount of times) before I felt comfortable with writing them. They have such distinct voices and characterization and parts of their story are so sensitive and important to so many people, I always want to honor that in whatever I write — whether it’s a silly meet cute or a longer fic or whatever it is. And I decided to write for them because I was craving a different kind of s6/7 fix it/ divergent fic than I was finding. I’ve talked about it before but I just find a lot of them too biased and vengeful and that didn’t feel true to their relationship. It was the longest thing I ever wrote, to this day it still is lol, which I find funny because some people are out here writing chapters the length of fics I write lol. But I wanted to get Ian back to Mickey of his own accord and Mickey out of prison legally so he could be free and they could stand a chance at a life together. And now I can’t stop thinking of story ideas for them!

GT: What pov do you normally use?

H: I think I actually use both of them pretty evenly. For “longer” stuff I have this annoying need to be in both of their heads lol. I can’t not know what they’re thinking! Even in most of my one shots, I tend to go back and forth; only a few of them stick to a single POV, published or not. Boring answer probably lol.

GT: No, not at all, it's all interesting! Do you find one of them easier to write than the other?

H: I wouldn’t say he’s easier, but I think because Ian is a lot harder for people to understand and get right, I think I have something to offer when it comes to his POV that I enjoy writing. Mickey’s fun to write because he’s really external and a character but Ian’s really internal and I love introspection so it’s fun to explore his head lol

GT: What's the best part of writing them?

H: Superficially, I love writing their banter. But I also really love writing about their love. They have such a deep, rich history between them and I love exploring that.

GT: And what's the most difficult thing?

H: Finding the balance between wanting them to just fucking talk and also staying true to the fact that they historically suck at communicating lol

GT: Lol so true

Walk us through your writing process. What do you do when you decide to write something? Where do you get your ideas?

H: I’d say 95% of my ideas are from music lol. Sometimes it’s the story of the song itself or just a lyric or even the vibe of it, just a lot of inspiration from music. When I get an idea, I write everything down in a document — relevant lyrics, dialogue, plot points, etc just so everything is out of my head and on paper, so I don’t forget 😂 If I’m not actively working on something, I go back and add to it when I get ideas until I can focus on it. Bigger fics I outline and break down into chapters, smaller stuff I’ll just word vomit everything out lol. I need music when I write. If it’s inspired by a particular song, I start with that one, and kinda let Spotify do it’s thing. I write and edit sections until they’re where I want them to be before I can move on, I don’t really do a “first draft” at least of a whole chapter. I also don’t really write chronologically. I’ll have the end and sometimes the more exciting bits or the part that inspired the whole fic already done before anything that comes before it, then I add transitions so it makes sense, sometimes whole new scenes will pop up, and then if I must…smut. It’s always last 😂 After I reread/edit/ add on to a one shot or a chapter 50 times it’s off to my beta! Simple!

GT: Simple, she says, as if she's just described something simple lol

What kind of fics do you write most often?

H: I guess a mix. I have some AUs and a few canon compliant fill ins and then the one divergent fic published. I do have a lot more AU/divergent/adjacent ideas in my folder than compliant though so I guess I'd lean that way lol. I don't do anything to the extreme I guess in terms of angst or fluff or smut, although I suppose that's subjective. I'd say my sweet spot is flangst -- fluffy angst. I have some "heavier" stuff planned and I'm working on a WIP that's a bit smuttier than I'd normally do as a challenge to myself. Jack of all trades, master of none or just well-rounded? You decide! lol

GT: Flangst! lol

Tell me a bit about the fics you're working on right now.

H: I’ve got two active WIPs right now — a vampire AU and a Little Mermaid AU that’s sooo close to being done. Other than that, I’m mostly a one shot kinda girl so I have a bunch I’m committed to getting out there. I’m almost done with a bodyguard AU I started for a friend last November and halfway done with a soulmate AU. Other than that, so many one shots outlined and started: s1 missing scene, s3 divergent/amnesia AU, s4 missing scene, s7 divergent getting back together fic, s10 divergent engagement fic, an enemies to lovers F1 driver AU, and a meet in prison AU. I have exactly one multi chapter I have on deck and it’s an accidental roommate fic, but there’s some more to it, kinda fun with some ups and downs. It’ll be tropey, cuz I love those kinds of fics and I write what I want to see in the world 😂

GT: We love a tropey fic. Speaking of, what are your favorite tropes when reading?

H: I love (best) friends to lovers, roommates, supernatural/fantasy, royalty, fake dating, forbidden love, celebrities, mutual pining!!!, h/c, enemies to lovers… probably easier to list ones I don’t like 😂

GT: Alright, go ahead then. What don't you like?

H: Haha I walked right into that one, didn’t I? So, the only one I’m really not into is pregnancy (yes, including mpreg) just because I hated being pregnant, so that’s the last thing I want to read about lol. There are other ones I’m not a huge fan of but anything in the hands of the right author, I’d take a chance on.

(Also, so embarrassed I forgot two of my favorite tropes in my list above — soulmate and ABO! Shame on me 😔)

GT: Hahah, fair enough!

What are some of your favorite fics and writers?

H: Oh boy, this is such a tough question because I could just sit here all day and rec stuff and I do that all the time already lol My absolute favorite fic is The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Ian Gallagher. I can't tell you how many times I've read it because I've lost track and if I could it would be an embarrassing number of times lol. I'd definitely say @goodkwuestion is one of my favorite writers. Lost in Translation is a fluffy fave and I am loving ORFNSP right now too. Promised Land is one of my favorite fics despite it being a perpetual WIP (we do not say abandoned we do NOT) and anomalously another favorite writer. Ian Gallagher And All of His Mistakes is another favorite fic. Everybody Talks is the perfect best friends to lovers AU. Anything by @damnnmilkovich especially CCC and AWIWP. eighty-four by kissteethstainred, Twenty-One series by jaxington, Erasure by @grumblesandmumbles, Is There Somewhere by andchaos and pretty much anything by them too, Love is A Ballfield by and_i_take_it, literally anything and everything by @palepinkgoat​, Two of Your Earth Minutes and really everything by @the-rat-wins​, It's Not The Waking It's The Rising by dodgerbear... I need to stop at some point I think lol. But I've done some lists before with fave fics here: https://gallavichficfinds.tumblr.com/post/613538604425379840/can-you-recommend-fics-for-people-who-are-new-to and authors here: https://whaticameherefor.tumblr.com/post/653717980123922432/do-you-have-any-favorite-fic-authors-for. I feel really lucky that there were so many beautiful fics waiting for me when I got into Gallavich. I love all the fandom classics and the older authors, but it's so exciting we have amazingly talented authors still here or coming back or discovering them now and contributing. I just love reading fic!

GT: Some wonderful gems in there! Including two of my all time favorites, Lost in Translation and Is there somewhere. ❤️

What about your own fics, which one are you the proudest of?

H: Right? I reread LIT whenever I need a quick angst palette cleanser (along with the alien Ian verse.)

I think I’m going to go with Sideways. It was my first multi chapter attempt and my first Gallavich fic. I usually stick to one shots but I just had to fix canon and the story just kinda kept growing. It was everything I wanted to see in a post s6 divergent fic so I’m really happy it resonates with other people too.

GT: I know we all like getting comments, but what kind of comments get you the most excited?

H: The ones that can lead to a conversation. The comments section of fics is where I’ve met so many lovely people, so anything that starts a dialogue about the fic or the show is really great to get.

GT: Do you leave comments as well?

H: I do! Big proponent of commenting. As I said, many friendships started in the comments section and oftentimes it it’s me leaving essays on other people’s stuff that leads to them lol. I also really like to encourage new authors or if something doesn’t seem to be getting the kudos it deserves, I try to give extra love. I love WIPs too, so I try to keep up and comment so authors stay motivated.

GT: That's so important!

H: I agree, and I always like to engage on Tumblr too if they’re here. Whether that’s DMs or asks or whatever. If everyone tries to keep the community alive, the fandom will stay strong!

GT: How did you start watching Shameless?

H: So, I actually saw prison endgame gifs on tumblr from some of my Bughead mutuals around when it first happened. It’s really funny how many people ship both couples. But anyway, I remember seeing the gifs of 9x06 and there were a few that paralleled the 7x10 reunion too and I was just gone on them from that moment. The way they were looking at each other simply ruined my life. I watched all their scenes (a lot) and went down the fanvid rabbit hole before I started reading some fics that were recommended to me. So, I went in fully shipping them already by the time I started watching the actual show. It was on a hiatus mid season so I was all caught up and watched the back half live. I was totally fine with entering a dead fandom, cuz it kinda was at the time, but then Noel’s announcement happened and suddenly the fandom was alive again lol

GT: I wholeheartedly agree!! The fandom died out a lot after season 5 (I wonder why), and I myself stopped watching the show, but I never stopped reblogging people's works and hosting events because to me fandom is not about the show itself, but the friends you've made. I'm so very thankful for all the friends I've made in this and other fandoms and I wanted to continue helping out.

I first saw them on gifs here on Tumblr as well, but that was season 3 lol. Several years ago.

Wow, talk about timing! Maybe you were our lucky charm lol.

What was your first impression of the fandom, being so new to it?

H: I’ll take that title! 😂 I mean, it was definitely kinda dead lol. I tried to follow all the authors I’d been reading but there wasn’t a lot going on. I was okay with it, because I was in love and there was almost a decade worth of fic to read, which is really what it’s all about for me. But yeah, total turnaround after the social media hack — that was an awesome day btw — and it’s completely different nowadays.

I distinctly remember the very few fics that were being updated at the time and active authors and it’s wild thinking about how many WIPs and authors are writing now.

GT: I lived through that cycle several times lol. The fandom got a lot smaller after season 5, then there was a brief revival after Mickey appeared on season 7, again after episode 9x06, and then finally again after they both got back for season 10. I expect it to get smaller again eventually, of course, as all fandoms do, now that the show is over, but I know there will always be people who are just starting watching it. And there's so much fan content now that it's impossible to keep up, which is far from a bad thing, of course.

Do you have a favorite episode of Shameless?

H: If I have to pick a favorite it would be 7x10 Ride or Die because it was just a perfect little episode. Well, not perfect but as a stand-alone episode it perfectly used their history and chemistry and potential and really proved that they loved each other no matter what happened (and would happen.)

GT: Oh, that's a different one! I don't think I've seen anyone pick this one before. What about a favorite scene?

H: Really?! It feels like it’s a fan favorite, can’t believe no one’s said it before! Well, I’ll go for a scene in a different episode so I’ll say the original dugouts date. It’s just so obvious how head over heels they are for each other. Young love 💜

GT: Hm, not that I remember. I mean, the docks scene, definitely, but the whole episode I don't think so. Or maybe my memory is just failing me.

What's your favorite scene from this episode?

H: Bleachers reunion! Like I said, the way they looked at each other after not seeing each other for over a year… the chemistry is just off the charts! And then Mickey says my favorite line: “You’re under my skin.” Goosebumps, every damn time.

GT: That line was fire!!

If you could go back and change one thing in canon, what would it be?

H: I mean… 3x666 for sure. I don’t think I need to elaborate on that answer lol

GT: Well, that one is definitely a popular answer. It was so terrible.

Fun fact, it was the first episode that I got to watch right after airing. 

H: Omg how are you still here if that was the first impression you got!

GT: Lol right? I mean, I binged all the show up to that point in three days, finished on Sunday afternoon, then on Sunday night watched that one. It was a roller-coaster for sure.

What are you thoughts on the ending?

H: Honestly? I was just happy it was over lol I’m pretty vocal about my distaste for the writing the past few years, so I was ready for the end. I didn’t mind the open ending for Ian and Mickey because it was kinda the end of an era for them, living at the house. It was the start of a brand new chapter that was full of possibilities and they absolutely deserve a soft epilogue now. But for everyone else? Come on, give the characters some closure! Give them a direction! So many open ended storylines and aimless characters is not what you want after 11 seasons.

GT: I couldn't agree more.

How do you headcanon their future?

H: You know, I don’t really have anything solid or fancy I guess for them. I think they stay in their apartment for the rest of their lease, maybe another year cuz moving sucks. Then they find a little house closer to home. Maybe expand the business. Branch off with extra side hustles. In like, 5-10 years once they’re a little more settled and financially comfortable, they work on getting a kid, maybe a second one a few years later. A dog at some point too. But no matter what life throws at them, they stay best friends and lovers and soulmates and make everyone they meet jealous of their love 💜

GT: I love that

Alright, that was it from me. Is there anything you'd like to add?

H: I don’t think so… thanks! This was fun!

GT: Ok, so leave a message for your readers, please.

H: Thank you to everyone who’s ever read anything I’ve written. Thanks for commenting and sharing and putting a smile on my face with every single kudos. I hope you guys love what I’ve got coming up, I can’t wait to share them with you 💜

[lilydalexf]

Old School X is a project interviewing X-Files fanfic authors who were posting fic during the original run of the show. New interviews are posted every Tuesday.

Interview with Jenna Tooms

Jenna Tooms has 37 stories at Gossamer, plus you can find X-Files stories and more by her at AO3 (as misslucyjane). I've recced some of my favorites of her fics here before, including the MSR Christmas story An Acceptable Level of Happiness and the historical AU Katherine of Ireland. Big thanks to Jenna for doing this interview.

Does it surprise you that people are still interested in reading your X-Files fanfics and others that were posted during the original run of the show (1993-2002)?

Yes, definitely. I had no idea there was still an active X-Files fandom.

What do you think of when you think about your X-Files fandom experience? What did you take away from it?

For the most part, it was pretty good. I made a lot of great friends that I'm still in contact with, and I think I learned a lot (by trial and error) about how to behave online.  Writing fanfic with a built-in audience did a lot for my confidence as a writer.

Social media didn't really exist during the show's original run. How were you most involved with the X-Files online (atxc, message board, email mailing list, etc.)?

Message boards at first, then mostly email mailing lists.

What did you take away from your experience with X-Files fic or with the fandom in general?

Writing fic made me a better writer. Fandom has introduced to a lot of amazing people.

But there were some bad feelings, mostly the vitriol directed at Doggett and Reyes, towards the end of the series that ruined the rest of it for me. I've kind of held back from getting super-involved in fandom since.

What was it that got you hooked on the X-Files as a show?

I've always liked things like ghost stories and cryptozoology, so that drew me in at first. I think my first episode was The Host in summer reruns, as I was working Friday nights at the time and only learned about it from my dorm mates. We lived together again in an off-campus apartment a year or two later, and by then XF was on Sunday nights so that was our standing Sunday night appointment TV.

I feel old.

What got you involved with X-Files fanfic?

I knew what fanfic was, more or less, and had been writing since Star Wars: A New Hope was originally released. When I first wanted to get involved in XF fandom I went looking for other fans, and found the OBSSE (Order of the Blessed Saint Scully the Enigmatic) newsletter, which had fanfic recs. I can't remember what story it was specifically but I'm pretty sure it was by MustangSally.

What is your relationship like now to X-Files fandom?

Like an ex whose good times were very, very good, but whose bad times were horrid.

Were you involved with any fandoms after the X-Files? If so, what was it like compared to X-Files?

I've been involved, to various degrees, in Harry Potter, Supernatural, Doctor Who/Torchwood, MCU, and Sherlock fandoms, and dabbled in a few smaller ones.

I've also playing in a multi-fandom role-play game since 2004, that introduced me to some great fandoms and some amazing people. The game is kind of a fandom in itself, and is the only thing I've been as intensely involved in as X-Files.

Who are some of your favorite fictional characters? Why?

Dana Scully, Steve Rogers, Sherlock Holmes (any incarnation), Deadpool, Sansa Stark, Aang, Groot, Peter Parker, Wonder Woman. Yes, I am looking at my Funko Pops :).

I tend to like characters who are trying to do good in the world, or who stay strong in the face of adversity. I have no explanation for Deadpool except that he's Deadpool.

Do you ever still watch The X-Files or think about Mulder and Scully?

No, not really. I haven't watched the new series or any of the movies since the first one. I think of Mulder and Scully fondly, but I don't feel the need to revisit them.

Do you ever still read X-Files fic? Fic in another fandom?

X-Files, no. If I come along something promising in a fandom I'm interested in like the MCU or Sherlock, or if something is recommended by someone whose taste I trust or written by an author I ready like, then I'll read it.

Do you have any favorite X-Files fanfic stories or authors?

I really liked bugs, Rachel Anton, David Hearne, Plausible Deniability, Penumbra, Terma99, and OneMillionStars, I think their pen name was? [Lilydale note: I think this is Onemillionandnine.] Some stories I liked are "Condemned to Repeat It" [Lilydale note: by Branwell], "Cherry Ripe" by Rachel Anton [Lilydale note: co-written with Laura Blaurosen], "Cadenza" (part 1, part 2) by Terma99, and "Twelve Inches" by Federal Dust. There were more but all my saved files were lost several computers ago. 

[Lilydale note: try as I might, I could not find “Twelve Inches” online, not even a mention of it. However, I have a copy saved from 2003 (!!). It’s a season 8 story with the summary “In trying to understand his own feelings about women and relationships, Doggett inadvertently helps Scully understand Mulder.”]. 

What is your favorite of your own fics, X-Files and/or otherwise?

Favorite X-Files fic is Draw Down the Moon, a Scully/Doggett post-canon AU.

Favorite in general is Apocalyptic Love Songs, a Supernatural Dean/Castial fic I wrote for a Big Bang challenge. I'd had the idea for a modern-day Grail quest for a long time -- originally as an XF fic, in fact -- but could never figure out how to do it until Supernatural came along.

(Because of the actions of some unscrupulous persons, all my fic on AO3 is locked to members.)

Do you think you'll ever write another X-Files story? Or dust off and post an oldie that for whatever reason never made it online?

No, I don't see that happening.

Do you still write fic now? Or other creative work?

I write a little fanfic now and then, mostly for Yuletide or other challenges that catch my eye.

I have been writing and publishing original work since 2007 with a small publisher that is now shut down. I'm now publishing independently.

Where do you get ideas for stories?

It's hard to say. Sometimes I hear a line or two of dialogue in my head and want to see where the conversation goes. Sometimes I just have a random thought of "What if..." and have to find the answer to that question.

What's the story behind your pen name?

I get bored of names easily so I've changed it a few times. I currently write fic as Misslucyjane, which is a nickname my mother calls me.

Do your friends and family know about your fic and, if so, what have been their reactions?

They knew I write it, they don't know the content. I'm okay with that.

Is there a place online (tumblr, twitter, AO3, etc.) where people can find you and/or your stories now?

Fanfic is at misslucyjane.me (though I haven't updated it in ages) and Archive of Our Own (as misslucyjane). Original fiction, largely M/M romance, is posted or linked at jennalynnbrown.com. I hang out on Twitter as @misslucyjane.

(Posted by Lilydale on September 22, 2020)

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Sunday, September 15th

Faith: Let’s have another go at it. See who ends on top.

~~This Year's Girl~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

First Stage by veronyxk84 (Spike, Dawn, PG-13)

Sugar Water by thisyearsgrrl (Buffy/Faith, Explicit)

Smoke & Ashes by Grundy (Hunger Games crossover, Spike & Effie Trinket, T)

Swallowed Whole by SomeKindOfADeviant (Spike/Angelus, M)

Now I’m ready to close my eyes by Anewhope303 (Buffy/Faith, Explicit)

I Might Be On To Something by Skyson (Buffy/Giles, M)

the leather jacket by sapphistically (Spike/reader, not rated)

First Stage by VeroNyxK84 (Spike, Dawn, anthology rated PG-13)

[Chaptered Fiction]

After Old Friends Leave - Chapter 1-3 (COMPLETE!) by eevol76vamp (Angel, Angel Investigations, Anne Steele, Gunn & Rondell, Angel/Nina, Angel/Spike, not rated)

Buffy Summers’s Baby - Chapter 1-8 by Zetared (Buffy/Angel/Spike, M)

All's Fair in Love and Loss - Chapter 1-2 by Scar_Eve (Buffy & Giles, T)

Because the Night, Ch. 9 by CheekyKitten (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Lost in Desolation, Ch. 8 by Melme1325 (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Love Letters You Never Sent Me, Ch. 2 by Spikelover4ever (Buffy/Spike, R)

Out of Time: 1942, Ch. 59 by Jonayla (Harry Potter crossover, Buffy/Tom Riddle, FR18)

Blood of Kings, Ch. 4 by Taskmaster (Young Royals crossover, Buffy, Scoobies, FR18)

The Key To The Future, Ch. 2 by LoneFrog (Dawn, FR15)

Happily Ever After, Ch. 1 by Dusty (Buffy/Spike, R)

What Happens at Willow Creek, Ch. 1 by Alyot (Buffy/Spike, R)

Perfect Clarity, Ch. 29 by VeroNyxK84 (Buffy/Spike, R)

[Images, Audio & Video]

Gifs: Spike, Oz, Buffy, Willow, Cordelia Tara, Faith (worksafe)

Buffy/Spike manips by spyder-baby (probably worksafe, some nudity)

Vidlet: buffy hits hard but let's be honest, spike loves it by Tiktok user bloody_awful (Buffy/Spike)

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[rahirah]

via Barb's Place MAYOR: Open your present. There. That look on your face is my reward. [The present is a knife with an intricate design.] FAITH: This is a thing of beauty, boss. MAYOR: Well, it cost a pretty penny. So, you just take good care of it. And you be careful not to put somebody's eye out with that thing, until I tell you to. FAITH: Any particular eyes in mind?

~~Choices (Season 3)~~

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comments

[fanhackers]

This is a stunningly good and extensive compilation of fannish meta on the subject of ageism in fandom. We thought we'd chime in with a bit of scholarship around fandom and age. "Access to fanfiction in the post–Star Trek, pre-Internet era was rather limited. Since most fanfiction was distributed through self-published newsletters and zines—and one could usually only acquire such things in the context of attending conventions—the fanfiction reading audience was limited mostly to adults, who were far more likely to possess the necessary mobility and financial resources. (The fanfiction writing audience, however, was in theory considerably larger, with fans lacking access to more formal methods of fannish distribution penning what Fanlore calls “drawerfic,” stories intended only for the eyes of the writer or a small group of friends.) Since those with access to circulating fanfiction were primarily adults, there was no perceived need to consider young people as a distinct potential audience. Moreover, much (though not all) fanfiction featured erotic content—material that, as Eric L. Tribunella remarks, “epitomize[s] what it means to say a text is ‘for adults’”." - Tosenberger, C. (2014). Mature poets steal: Children’s literature and the unpublishability of fanfiction. Children’s Literature Association Quarterly, 39(1), 4–27. https://doi.org/10.1353/chq.2014.0010 Shaming older fans, saying they should grow out of their passions, is of course nothing new. Have a look at Camile Bacon-Smith's analysis of Mary Sue (and why we hate her) to see that people outside fandom, especially those who've sought to control women (and queer people of all genders), have been using this argument for decades. All that's new is that this argument has now been taken up by people within the fannish community. Some of this can probably be traced to the culture clash between older and younger fans when younger fans finally got access to fannish communities through the internet. More from Tosenberger: "However, the mainstreaming of Internet technology in the late 1990s radically altered the fannish landscape, not only in terms of the day-to-day functioning of fandom, but of its demographics as well. Media fans tended, as a group, to be “early adopters of digital technologies” (Jenkins, Fans 138) and had begun migrating onto the Net in the mid- ’80s, but while this new medium was faster, the actual participatory fannish community didn’t change much until access to this technology became widespread—fortuitously concomitant with the runaway success of the Potter series. Suddenly, the ability not just to read, but to write and distribute transformational fanworks was available to anyone with an Internet connection. And that “anyone” included children and teenagers, who were often more Net-savvy than their parents. (...) And not only were Potter fans younger, they were also less experienced in traditional fandom cultural norms. As Harry Potter became the primary “threshold fandom” of the Internet era, there was a great deal of friction in the early years between older media fans, whose behavior codes and expectations were formed in the time of zines, and newer so-called “feral” fans, who had never experienced the mentoring and initiation into fandom that was practically a requirement in the pre-Internet era." And if you're interested in older fans' actual lived experiences of fandom, here's a great paper by Line Nybro Petersen (2017): "'The Florals': Female Fans over 50 in the Sherlock Fandom." In "Sherlock Holmes Fandom, Sherlockiana, and the Great Game," edited by Betsy Rosenblatt and Roberta Pearson, special issue, Transformative Works and Cultures, no. 23. From Petersen: "Fandom is closely tied to being passionate, being enthusiastic, being excited. It is a space for feeling better and happier. I am interested in how these fans negotiate the passion that they experience through their devotion to the Sherlock series in relation to their perceptions about age. Being a fan of Sherlock wittingly or unwillingly becomes both a feminist and anti-agist endeavor because insisting on being passionate about a TV series and its actors as a 50-year-old is sometimes met with skepticism and wonder. One fan in particular is very clear about her feminist standpoint with regards to her own fan practice and the way in which passionate women are often regarded in a societal context: "Ageism is the cause, but also the idea that being fanatically obsessed with a subject equals being a loser is also in the mix. I have asked male friends over the age of 50 if they get the same treatment in their fandoms (football, Marvel, Doctor Who) and they report that they don't"."

[eevong]

Fandom

7How does fandom really works these days? And also what is fandom?

Fandom is when a person is passionate with definite TV Show, film, celeb, book series, group, genre, etc. In digital space and also social space fandom has become the most targeted consumer group. New language and also culture has been taught to the marketers in order to help the business growth due the sudden explosive growth in the fandom communities (Netzer 2016).

Based on my past experienced and also based on my friend’s experience, following and being in a fandom it might cost people to spend a lot of coin when they are really “addicted” to that idol or idol group. According to Tiffany (2017), she is madly obsessing with Jack Gyllenhaal and she had spent a lot of money just to buy ticket to watch his off-Broadway play Sunday in the Park with George during a one-weekend benefit concert reading at City Centre. As for me, I used to be a Sone which is Girls Generation Fans name, and every time they come back with new album, I will go crazy and wish I could purchase their album. There is this once, I had save up just to purchase their I Got A Boy album. I had save up for around 3 months when I know they are doing a comeback so I could at least support one album from them. But as for my friend, she is an Army, not just a normal Army but a crazy Army (BTS fans club). Whenever BTS came out with new album she will buy she had bought 7 BTS album, and its normally the premium type which cost a lot.Other than that, paying for their concert ticket will cost quite an amount of money too. For Instance, the cheapest price for a Kpop concert is around RM300++, imagine getting the premium seats. But sometimes fangirls or fanboys doesn’t really care about the price point when they could see their favorite idol in a reachable distance.

These days fan had also involve in fan activism. For instance, Harry Potter Alliance (HPA) is a group of harry potter fan whereby they are involve in social activism to run social justice not only in the USA but globally based on ideas and values of the movie. Basically, climate changes awareness and also campaign that are related, lawmaker is being contacted whenever there is discrimination or unjust bills are being showed, the community is there to help them. This community act as Dumbledore’s Army, and trying their best to go against systematic and institutionalised racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, and more(Caicedo 2017). and with this they have helped the public to voice out whenever the public needs them.

All in all, involving in fandom could be good sometimes and bad whenever someone could not interpret it properly.

Referencing....

Caicedo, M 2017, The harry potter alliance is using fandom as a basis for real-world activism and resistance, Bustle Digital Group, viewed 9 May 2019, <https://www.bustle.com/p/the-harry-potter-alliance-is-using-fandom-as-a-basis-for-real-world-activism-resistance-78727>. 

Netzer, J 2016, The fandom phenomenon: winning over today's super fans, Spredfast, viewed 9 May 2019, <https://www.spredfast.com/social-marketing-blog/fandom-phenomenon-winning-over-todays-super-fans>.

Tiffany, K 2017, I love you, Jake Gyllenhaal, Vox Media, viewed 9 May 2019, <https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/3/16576850/jake-gyllenhaal-newsletter-fandom-fans-essay>.

[elizabethminkel]

Hi, I'm a new victim of Black Sails, just finished my first round, and it seems to me you were talking about a fic you're writing. I don't wish to traumatize you in case you dropped it or something, but if it is a thing that exists, would you be so kind and tell me where to find it? There are not very many fics in this fandom, and I feel that yours would be just perfect for my tastes. Thanks!

NO; I SHOULD NEVER MENTION I AM WRITING FANFICTION PUBLICLY; I AM VERY SORRY!!!!! 

Here is what happened: last summer and fall, while in the depths of Black Sails Hell ™ (which, for the record, is an awesome place to be and I kind of miss it), I began research to draft this big pre- and post-series fic. This led me deep into the weeds of British domestic politics, specifically the Whiggish side of things, circa 1690-1710, see my resulting deep and abiding interest John Vanbrugh and the Kit-Cat Club, and my very enthusiastic anticipation for an adaptation, any adaptation, of The Favourite, about Queen Anne and Sarah Churchill.

Meanwhile, I was faced with something I’d never before experienced in my many years reading fic: a fandom with a relatively small body of fanfiction. It’s not Yuletide-level small, but hey, I’m coming from Harry Potter fandom here! There’s something sort of paradoxical about my relationship with fanfiction fandoms, when I write fic but don’t post it—I’m still thinking about what I’m writing as in conversation with both the source text and with the other texts in the fandom, even if it’s not a literal, out-loud conversation. (I also feel this is broadly true of most writing, but it’s not often something writers articulate.) 

I put down my Black Sails fic a while back, around the same time I stopped reading fic in the fandom—there was a lot there that just Wasn’t For Me, partly because of interpretations of characters that didn’t jibe with my own, no judgement there, and partly because I found myself getting stuck on ahistoricisms (I really didn’t want to be that guy, but…it was distracting for me personally….again, no judgement!! Just a preference).

So….that’s the end of that sad tale. I’m planning a second rewatch at some point soon, maybe the spirit will recapture me and I won’t be endlessly distracted by John Vanbrugh. I am genuinely very flattered by the probably undeserved praise that you would have liked my story had I published it. :-))) In case you didn’t see the list I did with the brilliant @pamphilia last fall, there are some really wonderful fics in this fandom:

https://tinyletter.com/elizabethandgav/letters/the-rec-center-90

She also had a rec in a more recent newsletter, a new James/Thomas/Miranda fic that she loved and I’m pretty sure I will love as well, based on the way she describes it: 

https://tinyletter.com/elizabethandgav/letters/the-rec-center-141

[fansplaining]

Transcript: Episode 72: Alternate Universes

(episode | show notes)

[Intro music: Awel by Stefsax]

Flourish Klink: Hi, Elizabeth!

Elizabeth Minkel: Hi, Flourish!

FK: And welcome to Fansplaining, the podcast by, for, and about fandom!

ELM:: This is Episode 72, "Alternate Universes."

FK: I'm excited about this because we have both been falling down an alternate universe rabbit hole, and we are inviting Morgan Leigh Davies to come and fall down that rabbit hole with us this time.

ELM: OK, first, Morgan. She is the cohost of Overinvested with Gavia Baker-Whitelaw, and she is a critic and a fanfiction writer, author of at least one very popular high school AU.

FK: True.

ELM:: So that's point one, and I'm very excited to talk to her about this. Point two, you've been falling down an AU rabbit hole? I didn't know this.

FK: It's mostly been you but you dragged me with you.

ELM: Oh! [laughs] I'm so proud!

FK: For people who haven't followed along Elizabeth ran into X-Men: First Class like a freight train.

ELM: No no no! It was last month, in the beginning of March, I had to fly first across the Atlantic and then across the country within 48 hours of each other. And I always try to do some work on the plane, but on the second one I was just like, fuck it, I'm watching as many movies as possible.

FK: Reasonable!

ELM: So I watched Finding Dory. Made me cry. Frozen, made me cry. Lego Batman movie. [FK laughs] Did not make me cry, but I enjoyed. So at this point I was telling my friend this and she was like "were the parental controls on? And did everyone around you think that you had a problem?" And then I watched X-Men: Days of Future Past, which I had not seen and I had only ever seen First Class also on a plane and only half-watched it and barely remembered it.

FK: And then it hit you like a freight train and then you fell down a rabbit hole and in the rabbit hole in addition to the rabbit was also a lot of AUs and then you dragged me down too.

ELM: You know, yes. [laughs]

FK: And so now...

ELM:: There is a disproportionate number of AUs in the X-Men. It's like the new franchise. Right? There is some acknowledgement of the 2000s movies, but it's a separate premise. And it seems to be a fairly dormant fandom, a stagnant fandom, because most of this was done 6-7 years ago. Right?

FK: Right. X-men is sort of fragmented into, I feel like it's people who care about the comics and the 2000s movies; there's a small number of people who care a LOT about Wolverine...I mean, they're not a small number, but anyway.

ELM: Yeah, a lot of people seem to care about him! But then yeah, there's a separate...it seems like kind of a separate fandom from people who are into X-Men as a concept. Or teens. It's not really about teens. Anyway, so for context, I think people know this who listen to this, I am not historically...have not really been an AU person. I love canon-divergent AUs. Right? Love them. But...

FK: You're all about them.

ELM: I think when I took our Tropes Survey, I think I said "no" to most of the AUs. And it was like, if you can really sell me on it, I would read a... I don't know. Actor AU, or a...whatever. I'm trying to think of some examples of ones on the list.

FK: Yeah, but you were not like, Oh yeah. AUs. I love 'em.

ELM: No, in fact I said I do not love them! I dislike them. Right?

FK: Yeah!

ELM: And I still feel this way for a bunch of the fandoms I've been in! I just, no. So when I initially looked at this I was like, oh, that's disappointing that they're all AUs. But then I started reading some of them. There are so many good stories! I really don't understand it! I'm so confused! Because I have read tons of AUs in the past. Just cause I dislike them, it's not like I dislike them sight unseen, you know? I'll be like, agh, this has nothing to do with the characters! Or, this is trivializing everything that was important about the original stories! Or whatever. And I don't feel this way at all right now, and it's very confusing to me.

FK: I hope that we can clear up some of that confusion. I...

ELM: You've been reading the stories I sent you!

FK: Yeah, and also because you've been having this crisis [ELM: laughs] I've been thinking more, because I have also written some extremely canon-divergent AUs, like I had this big project of incredibly canon-divergent Harry Potter, which is so far that it's almost not even a canon-divergent AU, right? Literally everything is different from the moment of Harry's birth, so...what happens at that point?

ELM: That's a canon divergent AU!

FK: It still is, but it's definitely very far away. And I've been thinking about all the other AUs I've liked, [silly voice] The AUs I've loved and left [ELM laughs] you know. So I'm really excited to talk about this. I don't think, until recently I don't think that I ever really thought of this as such a divisive or...I don't know. We've talked about AUs a bunch in the past but I've always taken it from the perspective of "yeah those jerks outside of fandom dissing coffeeshop AUs!" Whereas now I'm like "do they have a different role in fandom than other kinds of fic? Let's think about this!" So. Let's think about this!

ELM: Great, OK. So I'm excited to talk to Morgan. Who, by the way, also...Morgan has been my guide through X-Men AU.

FK: Like she's the Virgil to your Dante?

ELM: That's the most accurate and true.

FK: [laughing] Does this...I'm not Beatrice or something in this metaphor, am I? I can't be Beatrice! That's not how this works!

ELM: No, you're coming too! Sorry, you're comin' down. I don't know what to tell you.

FK: OK.

ELM: Yeah.

FK: Well, shall we call Morgan and enter the underworld?

ELM: Let's do it. Let's call Virgil.

[Interstitial music is by Jahzzar]

FK: OK! I think it's time to welcome Morgan to the podcast! Hello Morgan!

Morgan Leigh Davies: Hello!

ELM! Thank you for coming on. I'm really excited about this.

MLD: Very happy to be here!

ELM: OK before we talk about the most important topic ever, the alternate universe fanfiction, you should introduce yourself first, just so people know who you are.

MLD: My name is Morgan Leigh Davies, I am a writer and podcaster, I cohost a podcast Overinvested about pop culture with Gavia Baker Whitelaw, with whom Elizabeth also does a sort of fandom newsletter every week. So that is why I am here. To talk about fanfiction.

FK: In order to close this circle, Morgan, you realize that you and I have to have a project together and then...

ELM: It's true.

MLD: To truly incestuously make this happen. People frequently will tweet at me about The Rec Center, which is your newsletter...

FK: Happens to me all the time also!

MLD: I don't do this! But thank you! [laughing]

ELM: Do people also think that the Rec Center is a project of your podcast? Cause people...

MLD: No.

ELM: People think that it is, which makes more sense with us because it's about fandom. The podcast is as well, right. But they'll be like "on the Fansplaining newsletter..." and I'll be like "No!"

MLD: No, I don't think so, I think they just get confused because I think in their heads Gav and I are, like, two extensions of one person because they listen to the podcast and so we're very intimately connected in their brains.

FK: See, whereas I feel like people think that Gav and I are the same person somehow even though she's literally been on the podcast with me and Elizabeth and we're nothing alike, but...

ELM: It's fine, it's fine. I hope this is setting the record straight for everyone.

FK: Alright alright already. AUs though. I'm really excited to hear what you have to say about them, because I think you're the one among us three who's actually written a significant AU story in addition to reading them copiously.

MLD: I have, I did, I wrote one called "Middletown" in the Captain America: Winter Soldier fandom four years ago. Which is terrifying. And it was I think it's safe to say very popular, and it was an interesting experience because I wrote it because I hate high school AUs and it was a high school AU. And so I suspect it was a slightly different exercise than when most people set out to do this, although perhaps I'm wrong? But it was kind of like an anti, sort of anti-AU AU writing experience. Although I think a lot of my fanfiction writing, which I haven't been doing recently, tends to be kind of reacting against things in fandom as opposed to embracing them. I suppose I'm a contrarian. [all laugh]

ELM: OK wait. I also hate high school AUs. Flourish, I don't know how you feel about them.

FK: Mostly not great.

ELM: I'm curious to know Morgan why you hated them and what was the subversion happening, and I don't want this to sound like you wrote a fancy subversive one and all the other ones are garbage. I think that...

FK: I feel certain that there are things to like about high school AUs!

ELM: Something about the trope just doesn't work for me.

MLD: I mean I have not read all of them. I'm sure there are other good ones out there. The ones that I have read in the past, not in many years, some of them I enjoyed, many of them I did not. The one I wrote sprang out of conversations I was having at the time with gyzym, Kady Morrison, who I was working on something with then and we kind of just were having this ridiculous chat conversation about "what if all the Captain America characters were in this ridiculous high school?" but she also is not a huge fan of high school AUs, as I recall it, from those conversations, and the thing that always really bothered me about them was that the characters never acted like they were actual teenagers, and then at the end of the story everything was really great and the romance was resolved and it was perfect.

Whereas most people do not wind up married to their high school girlfriend or boyfriend. That's not how it works.

ELM: I don't know if you've read Harry Potter but I thought that's what happens actually always! So...

MLD: [laughing] Right. So it was just kind of the falsity of those narratives, which I get can be comforting to some people and if that's what you want that's fine but it's not appealing to me particularly, so the high school AU that I wrote really heavily features zits and body odor and teenagers acting like real assholes, in an unpleasant way. And when I was writing it, I thought that only adults would like it, because it's kind of...very lovingly rude to teenagers. In a way, it literally explicitly says "teenagers are dumb," which they are, and I say that totally lovingly, teenagers are amazing but they're also idiots, I was completely stupid at age sixteen, it's fine.

It was really interesting seeing the reaction to that once I'd put it up, because the people who responded the most intensely were obviously teenagers who were like "this is my life! Oh my God!" and I was very moved by this. But I was thinking about this topic before we started recording, and the sort of different fandoms I've been really deep into at various times and the ways I've engaged with fanfiction around them because you, Elizabeth, have been reading all this X-men fanfic and we've talked about it a little bit and the last fandom I think I was really crazy into in an insane way was Captain America several years ago, and I read a lot of fanfiction and I don't think I read almost any AUs, despite writing one myself, and I don't think I was very interested in them, and I was thinking about what made that not appealing to me in that context vs. X-Men, which is the AU heaven?

FK: It's interesting to me because I also said I didn't like high school AUs but I think that for me the reason I don't like them is I don't want to go back to high school. Nothing was good there. And I also don't have a strong positive feeling about the tropes of high school...I mean, who doesn't like, whatever, Rock N' Roll High School or Mean Girls or whatever. but...

ELM: I've never even heard of the first thing you said.

FK: Rock N' Roll High School, the greatest high school movie ever made?

ELM: Morgan, do you know this? I don't know this.

FK: I'm gonna make you watch this.

ELM: You said this in the same breath as Mean Girls, which is a masterpiece.

FK: This is so good.

ELM: Better than Mean Girls?!

FK: In a very different way.

ELM: OK.

FK: It's about fandom, too!

ELM: OK now I'm scared of this.

FK: It's about a girl who is a fan of a band and brings them to her high school.

ELM: OK?

FK: It's great! Anyway, I don't have a super super positive...that's not a trope that I love, and also I think it's really hard to translate characters into high school in a way that feels real or that it's saying something important to me. Do you know what I mean? There's some tropes where I'm like, "yeah, haha, it's not really saying anything that he's a duke now..." [everyone cracks up] "...and this is Regency England, but I fuckin' love Regency England, so I'm gonna go and enjoy this." Almost always there's no deeper meaning there, but it's a trope that I love, so who cares?

But in order to bring someone along into an AU space that's not already that, I feel like I want to get something...I want it to have meaning that they've been put into an AU. I want it to uncover something about the characters for me. I don't know.

ELM: That's funny, cause you're saying...and I think it's interesting, Morgan's saying she doesn't like high school AUs because they don't act like teens, and I agree with...not that there's any opposition here. I feel the same way as Flourish, in that when I've read them I've found that they also don't feel likethe characters. So then what are they? You slapped some names on the cast of Saved by the Bell? [laughing] I'm trying to think of a high school show. 90210? These are two absurd examples.

FK: Dawson's Creek...?

ELM: Did they act like teens? I don't think so!

MLD: Most shows about teenagers do not feature characters who remotely resemble teenagers, for instance, I have never seen an episode of Riverdale but everything I see from Riverdale I'm just like what is happening?! Who are these people?! I feel so old watching it. I'm just like, this is a culture that is beyond me and yet despite me feeling old watching it it's not that this is what the teens act like now, it's clearly [laughing] there's just, this is an alien thing that no human has ever behaved in this way at all, right? I feel like teen shows tend to be like that. They're just not of this world, and I think that AUs are kind of like that too, although in a different way. And that's not appealing to me, because even if really good AUs where the characters are kind of just original characters but written really well, sometimes I can enjoy that, but if they're just nonsense in whatever the specific genre is...I don't care.

FK: I guess that regardless of how the characters are written, and how much relationship they have to canon or not, I feel like if you're not interested in the location they're put in...I also don't want to read a college AU because college to me is neither aspirational nor a rosy time to look back on and dream about. Maybe someday it will be.

ELM: Wait, pause, do you feel like...have you guys read many college AUs? I've read some. College AUs to me always seem to be just about dorms, and...has this been everyone else's experience, or have you not read many of them?

MLD: I have only read a few. I feel like there are way more, at least recently - in quotes, "recently" - grad school fics and that is because more people writing fanfic [laughter] today are graduate students! And I can appreciate a grad school fanfiction. That's fine. College, no thank you, I do not need this. And I went to school in New York City so my experience was very different from the big state school or small liberal arts college type, "you're in the middle of nowhere and theres a dorm."

ELM: Dorms and quads. I just feel like there's a lot of dorms in these.

FK: What I wanna know is why do we stop at grad school? Why don't we have some college professor AUs where people are really getting into it with the conflict, some people have tenure, you're stuck with each other forever, you've got some pretty high stakes in this situation!

ELM: Flourish, I don't know if you're aware that in 95% of all X-men AUs Charles Xavier is still a professor.

FK: Well that's true. [all laughing]

ELM: They literally never, ever can give him a different job. It's extraordinary to me. Sure. Professor. Of the same subject.

FK: But they don't really get into, like, him fighting with someone over tenure cases in my experence.

ELM: Sometimes!

FK: Really?

ELM: Well, not over tenure. He always has tenure.

FK: Over other people's tenure cases!

MLD: I also have an answer for this: it's because the people writing fanfiction are graduate students. [all laugh]

FK: In graduate school did you not put your professors under even more of a magnifying glass to try and figure out the politics? I feel like I was way more invested in departmental politics as a grad student.

ELM: Is this cause you ended up marrying your professor?

FK: Well, that is how it ended. [all laughing]

MLD: I was totally fascinated by all my professors during my master's but that particular kind of thing was not so interesting to me and it was not the kind of thing that we had access to. You do get more access as a grad student, but...

ELM: Also in the UK, both Morgan and I went to grad school in the UK, and the system is quite different and so my grad school professors...I don't think any of them were full professors. You can have been teaching for 20 years and not have the title "professor."

FK: Yeah it's a much bigger deal which is fun when you go to the UK with someone who's a full professor here, like my husband, and then he gets treated really nicely.

ELM: They just handed it to him! To be fair he has been a professor for a long time at this point.

FK: That's true thank you.

ELM: Yeah. [all laughing] Now I'm calling him old.

FK: Good thing he doesn't listen to this podcast.

ELM:: He does not listen to it! Don't worry. OK. So do you guys, Morgan, you brought this up, you feel like in some fandoms you do it some fandoms you don't. Prior to dying and going to Hell and only reading X-men fic [all laughing] it's more of a purgatory right now. I was personally staunchly, who cares if other people do it, but personally I was like "oh I don't read stuff like that. I don't read X is a blank and Y is a blank." Or here's this scenario. And now I cannot stop and I'm worried about myself. and I'm wondering if it's...I don't know. I'm wondering about those as texts, working across fandoms or within fandoms or that kind of thing. Those are the questions I have about that.

MLD:: I was trying to think about these general topics before we started recording and I think the way I tend to read AUs is that I run through all the good canon fic in a fandom and reject the AUs and then when I get really desperate I start reading the AUs [laughing] And some of them are really good! But at first I'm like "ugh, I don't want to read that!" [grouchy noises] And then in some fandoms I just can't do it, it just will not click in my brain, but it tends to be a step...a last resort thing.

And for some reason, X-men, there's...I don't know what it is, there's a property that it has that is...the AU is actually the preferred object for me. [laughter] The platonic ideal of the X-men fic is not a canon fic, it is a ridiculous AU.

FK: But I think this actually may relate to stakes and ethics, though, because I too have this thing...I love One Direction and 99% of all One Direction fanfic is AUs and I cannot read them. I just can't. I can't do it. Don't make me. I know they're great. I know. I've been recommended all of them. [all laughs]

But. When I'm reading Reylo fanfic, like you, the preferred version of Reylo fanfic is definitely an AU for me. I'm like yeah, obviously they are both rising music stars in the late 90s. Why... [all laughing] It's a great story by the way I will put it in the show notes. It's really good.

ELM:: What kind of music stars I need to know!!!

FK: He was a really good...he had an album of folk, but it was all stolen from his grandfather's, things his grandfather had written and he never told anybody, and then he got snookered into making a deal with Snoke and had to become the front man of this awful Linkin Park like band, which is miserable, and she is a folk singer-songwriter like Jewel sort of, and there's a lot of butterfly hair clips. And it made me so nostalgic. [all laughing]

ELM:: OH MAN.

FK: The point I was trying to make was, I think there's something in both of these cases where you've got these weird messed up ethical situations and it's sort of easier to just enjoy a story when no one's killing anybody, you know?

MLD:: Here's my response to that: I also enjoy the Reylo dynamic in the Star Wars films [all continuing to chuckle] but I absolutely cannot read AU fics because the whole point is that it's bad and AU fic would make me feel gross. Sorry! Because if you have to acknowledge the badness... I have not found almost any good fic period because it's just very hard to do, right? The whole dynamic is just very complicated.

FK: Yeah, it is.

MLD:: Whereas X-men also has this complicated ethical stuff, but in the X-men films, it is treated so nonsensically [all laugh] that it just doesn't matter! The basic tone of those movies is just garbage. So you can write whatever the fuck you want! There are some fics that treat stuff seriously, with much more weight than the actual movies do, that do a really good job of it, and then there are some AUs that are just so dumb but in a smart way that are also really fun. But I think again the tone of those films is just...this is so absurd that you can kind of get away with doing anything, and I think that that's why I like all those AUs so much. You have these two characters who are really really compelling, the queerbaiting is so through the roof that you're dying to read SOMETHING.

ELM:: It's shocking, honestly.

MLD:: So whatever! It's fine. Whereas I think the Star Wars stuff for me, I don't think those movies are perfect but the pathos of the stuff in them seems more real to me than X-men which is just like "BLEAH! Whatever! I guess Magneto blew up a city or something this time! Whatever, he's gonna be back, it's fine." [all laughing]

ELM:: He always comes back, don't worry about it!

MLD:: Exactly! It feels fake.

FK: I don't disagree with you...I think that the reason that I like AUs in the Reylo space is because they consciously are like "nope, we're not dealing with that! We're not even gonna try to deal with the question of is he or is he not... he didn't kill anyone in this universe! He maybe ruined a couple of musical careers, but whatever it's fine! We're just gonna live with it." You know what I mean? It sounds like whereas with X-men it never mattered in the first place, so.

ELM:: Yeah, I mean, you can treat it seriously. Like you said, there's definitely some fics that take it much more seriously than others. I read the Quicksilver fic, by the way. The Septembriseur fic. It made me cry.

MLD:: This is a good friend of mine who wrote one about Quicksilver and it is a genuine work of art.

ELM:: It's a work of art.

MLD:: Seriously deals with trauma...she's the best writer I know. In any genre, anything. She's so gifted. You read that and you're like, this is both a piece of fiction craft-wise genius, but also all the emotional stuff is so deep and affecting and then you can just go read for instance the X-men fic that I wrote which is none of those things!

ELM:: Morgan, I love your fic so much!

MLD:: I'm very proud of it, and it's perfectly well written, it's fine, but in terms of the deep emotional stakes? Not so much!

FK: I have not read your X-men fic so I cannot speak to this.

ELM:: You should read it immediately afterwards. It's a delight. Genuine delight.

FK: OK. I will read it.

ELM:: I read it before I knew, I did not realize who had written it because it was very highly rated on the AO3. I'm not biased.

FK: I was away, this is following on from something aways back in the conversation, you're gonna have to forgive me. Your point that you can treat it seriously is true. One of the fics you recced me that I hadn't read before, I think you recced it as "they're dicking around in Amsterdam being dicks"?

ELM:: Douchebags, douchebags.

FK: Douchebags, not dicks.

ELM:: Morgan recommended this to me so that's a passed-along rec.

FK: What's the title of it?

ELM:: It's called "i guess i should say thanks or some shit." And the author, I think we know the author but it's been orphaned on the AO3, so it's by no one.

FK: It's orphaned, so it's by orphaned.

ELM:: Anonymous genius.

FK: Anonymous genius. So this story is, you know, Charles and Erik have their powers and they're bumping around Amsterdam being douchebags, but there's no killing of people, there's no Holocaust backstory it's strongly implied, I think, although I only read it once so...

ELM:: No, it's set in the relatively recent...

FK: Right! It's set recently.

ELM:: There's no Holocaust.

FK: I didn't think so, I was trying... oh, you're right, they have cell phones. So it's set recently. Whatever. So all the stuff that's super super super high stakes is gone, but they're still talking about reading people's minds and stealing bikes and ethical questions about having powers.

ELM:: The classical ethical question: Should you steal a bike?

MLD:: If you can and no one will catch you... [all laugh]

FK: So it treats telepathy very seriously in a way that literally nothing in X-men ever has in canon!

MLD:: That's one of my favorite fics ever in any canon, I've read it so many times, I love it so much! And I think what you're saying is totally right about it dealing with these questions in an interesting way, and I also think that what makes it so good is that it does not present either Charles or Erik as a remotely appealing person.

ELM:: Yes, which is canonical!

MLD:: They are just awful, in a way - exactly. In a way that's really fun to read about! They're very entertaining, and it's not like you hate them anything, cause obviously then why would you want to read this romance story about them? But they're both plainly just dreadful people. And that to me is so much more enjoyable as just writing period, as a general statement, than a story that tries to make the characters really good. Obviously it's, you can write fiction about good people that's also really compelling, that's fine, but I just read something I'm not going to say what it is that definitely did the thing where it's sort of like, "this person believes in all the right social justice stuff!" and I was like "this is boring to me." That can sort of weigh on a story after awhile, whereas this one in particular was just like, no. [all laugh] They're just assholes!

FK: I think part of that has to do wtih the changing of the stakes. I think it can be really tempting, if you're in a super super super hyper dramatic situation, like, OK, we have to have a hero in here, someone's blowing up a city! I read a lot of post-apocalyptic books just because I like the setting and almost always there's a man and he's the embodiment of American manhood and he's doing all the right things. [everyone laughs] I'm like OK great. And depending on what someone's political views are the embodiment of American manhood could be a lot of different things. Sometimes he's an antiracist, sometimes he's a gun nut! Depends who's writing it!

ELM:: Flourish, what books are you reading?! I didn't know about this secret love of yours!

FK: I just like postapocalyptic stories!

ELM:: Starring American men. Continue.

FK: I had actually never read Stephen King's The Stand because it's 10 million long but I have an Audible account now so I was like "let's maximize my Audible account," so obviously I got The Stand, because it's really long and I pay as much for it as I do for a short book. And every character in that so far is miserable. I'm like, I hate you all, this is glorious, Stephen King you did a good thing! But it's hard because you can see there's these moments in the story you want the person to be a hero, because the stakes are so high, like, surely this is gonna be the moment! ...no. But I think that in AUs it's like that. If the stakes are really high you're like "make him a hero."

ELM:: Not necessarily. If we bring it back to...I love that we're extensively discussing one fanfiction that everyone should pause and go read it and then you'll know what we're talking about [all laughing] but I also feel like the moral grey areas that both of those characters can occupy even in canonical situations or high stakes canonical-ish situations where there's some sort of supervillain or whatever, obviously they're still going to be occupying those moral grey spaces and they are both kind of douchebags always. But when they are saving the world, it's not necessarily that you get a pass, it's just that it's a little less stark I feel like. Whereas an AU can kind of strip that away and give you more space to sit with that ambiguity in a way that...I don't know. This is how I feel about a lot of blockbustery stuff too. It doesn't really give you that space and that's one thing I think fanfiction does. Maybe not always just AUs. Obviously lots of fanfiction does this.

FK: You mean, like, you're watching a two hour movie and it's like blam blam blam we have this story and it's action-packed and then OK, I didn't have any time to think about whether it was a good idea to do that or not...right? Is that it?

ELM:: I don't know, can you think of any...even Black Panther which I really liked, I don't think had enough time to sit with the complex moral questions they were asking. I think they did a better job than a lot of other big blockbustery superhero movies but I still feel like they had to go relatively quickly.

MLD:: I think a lot of that is also just a function of being a film versus...

ELM:: Being a hundred thousand word fanfiction?

MLD:: Or a novel or whatever. I think Black Panther was really incredible, I don't think it was the most politically deep movie I had ever seen in my life... this is very off topic. But it's a movie made directly for children. So that's fine. But I think something like X-men, as I was saying, you watch the movies and they're nonsense with occasional moments of "oh that could be interesting if they actually did something with it," and that's what all the fanfic does, is mine those occasional moments of potential insight. [laughing] For hundreds of thousands of words! Which is great.

ELM:: But then what's that distance when it's just brought over into an AU?

MLD:: Well, that's the question and I think that's why I tend to avoid reading them until I'm so desperate that I [laughing] can't get away from it. With X-men as we were just saying there is something bizarrely compelling about all of them that I don't even know that I have the full answer except what I was proposing. And in other fandoms it gets interesting cause I think there can be a tendency to write generic romance novels about white men under the auspices of a fandom which is risky.

ELM:: This is something that I actually kinda wanna dig into and I'm wondering if we should take a break, cause we're kind of at a halfway point, and pick up from there.

FK: Sounds good, let's do it.

[Interstitial music by Jahzzar]

FK: OK, we're back, and we're gonna talk a little bit about Any Two Guys stories, because this is an important question in the world of AUs. For those of you who don't read a lot of fanfic, of which I think there are some, Any Two Guys stories are stories that could be about any two guys! Not just the people you're supposedly in the fandom for.

ELM:: So this is a long time criticism of slash fandom in general, not just with AUs, right? The dark haired man and the light haired man. [all laugh] The taller man and the shorter man.

FK: The older man and the younger man.

ELM:: It's true! [MLD: hooting]

MLD:: We could go on and on!

ELM:: I will admit, this is one of the reasons I've always had a low key bias against this kind of AU. This is not the first time that I've read AUs, obviously, but it's just like...when you hit a point not too far in where you're like "this has nothing to do with the characters, you've just slapped their names on it," that's the point where I get to feel a little resentful, and I don't know if that's fair, because I kind of feel like there's plenty of people who know...it's deliberate. It's not like they think they're doing some deep read on the original characters; they're just telling a story. But then it's like, what am I reading? I'm just reading a story starring the actors of the canon [laughing], the namesakes of these two characters. All right.

FK: I feel like one question is, what is fanfic for? Because part of fanfic is for interrogating the original text, obviously, but part of fanfic is also sometimes about desire or emotional... when I say desire I don't mean just lust. I mean also emotional engagement in fantasy people, who may or may not be the characters in the story. The characters in the story might be the starting point for those fantasy people, but let's be real, my headcanon of Scully is definitely not canon Scully. She's just not. She's better. [laughs] I wonder sometimes whether "any two guys" stories are also about the stuff that people bring to reading it, as much as they are...it's more like, here is a story that could be just a gay romance novel, but I know that you're going to paratextually bring this stuff to it, and therefore it's different than if you were reading it just as a romance novel.

MLD:: Well, obviously this stuff gets written in the groupthink of a fandom. Usually. Some people write things...

ELM:: I love what I would call "intertextuality" you just called "groupthink." It's really good. [all laugh]

MLD:: That is the way I think about fandom! It's all groupthink. I wrote quite a bit by my standards of Captain America fanfic, I think more than for any other fandom, and that was definitely the most clearcut experience I have had of fandom groupthink in the sense that...

ELM:: Engaging as fanon as much as canon.

MLD:: Right. There were certain trends that would happen and then I would push back against certain things in my writing, but it wasn't just me, you could sense that there would be this push back against something and then something else would come up and it was...I think that happens in most fandoms once you get to a certain size, but it was the most clearcut and visible to me in that one, which was really interesting to observe, and I think I conceptualized it most clearly in that. I was like "oh, everyone is putting their brains into the same space and stuff is coming out." Which was really fun, even if some of the stuff coming out I found very aggravating [laughing] A lot of the appeal of writing this stuff was that experience of knowing that everyone that was going to read your thing would be informed by all the other stuff that they were writing.

Which is kind of interesting for me to think now, cause I still get comments on some of that stuff, obviously sporadically, and I know that people coming to it now if they're coming to it cold are having a very different experience. Which is fine, it's just not the same thing. So if you're writing a two guys AU in that context, obviously it is a different thing. But for me that's still not massively appealing because it strays away from the questions that were appealing to me. For instance, in the Captain America stuff, which tended to have to do at some point with canon even if they had spiraled out to fanon stuff that we'd all made up and agreed upon collectively, even though it...you know? I'm rambling at this point but I think you get what I mean.

ELM:: That makes total sense.

FK: What you just said makes complete sense, and it's interesting to me when I think of an AU that I really love that many people really love, "The Student Prince," which is a Merlin AU, but I hate Merlin. I watched the first episode [over laughter] and I turned it off in anger because what did you do.

ELM:: Wait, you've only seen one episode?

FK: Yeah, I hate it!

ELM:: That's the foundation of your hatred?

FK: It was not good. I couldn't. It was like a Did Not Finish book. Sometimes you get into a book and you're like, Did Not Finish. Exactly like that. I settled in planning on watching all of it because I liked some of the fic, and no. But it's also a Kate and Wills AU...

ELM:: Because it's set at St. Andrews, right?

FK: So I was coming at it as the Kate and Wills AU that happens to have gay Merlin and Arthur in it [all cackle] and everyone else who read that I'm pretty sure was coming at it from the Merlin AU that happens to be about royals, and now it makes so much more sense to me the things that I liked and cared about in that fic were very different!

ELM:: It's really good. But do you think that people were coming into it because of Merlin? That story was in the Rec Center last week, and probably not for the first time, and when I looked and checked the link, that has half a million hits on AO3.

FK: I don't think all those people watched Merlin.

ELM:: I don't think those are all Merlin fans. Obviously it's a relatively popular fandom but still. What a compelling concept!

MLD:: This is interesting too though is the phenomenon of people reading AUs when they aren't familiar with the source material at all, which people definitely do and I've had people send me things and be like "this is so amazing, it doesn't matter that you haven't seen the thing, it's an AU, it's so good," and I just can't bring myself to do it. I just...it doesn't. I'm sure they're right, but I just can't, I don't care.

FK: For whatever reason people do this with me for SGA all the time, Stargate Atlantis, and I have seen more SGA than Merlin but somehow it just doesn't, I can't, no.

ELM:: But I feel like there are a lot of people for whom that works, right?

FK: Yeah, well, obviously it works for me for some things, because I read the Merlin fic! [all laugh]

ELM:: So why does it work for you for some things and not others? It needs to push your buttons in some other way then. Apparently it needs to be about dukes or princes or something, cause you're a total monarchist.

FK: Monarchist all the way down. Well, I think also with Merlin it helps because it is itself based on something. I think that if I had never seen Sherlock, but I had read Sherlock Holmes, I could probably read some Sherlock fanfic and be like "OK! This is just an AU of an AU, fine. We're moving on."

ELM:: So, but, is that a problem? This isn't meant to be a referendum on any one given fic.

FK: Can I just say we have managed to go this entire time without mentioning Fifty Shades of Grey and I'm really proud of us but I had to break the streak?

MLD:: That literally did not enter my mind.

ELM:: I never think about Fifty Shades of Grey.

FK: That's because you guys are slash only and I'm draggin' the het in here!

ELM:: It's true.

MLD:: I have definitely read and written het fanfic! [all laugh]

ELM:: Oh wow!

MLD:: BUT FIFTY SHADES OF GREY IS NOT ON MY RADAR IN ANY CAPACITY AT ALL!

FK: Well, I feel like Twilight was one of the earliest fandoms that was mostly AU fic, though. I mean, I would propose that. I don't think I ever saw a fandom that was mostly AU fanfic before Twilight. I did read Twilight fic, by the way, I'm not ashamed to admit it. I'm not a huge Twilight fan, but it was everywhere.

ELM:: You wrote your master's thesis on Twilight, I think you're a huge fan.

FK: No...I didn't write it on Twilight, I wrote it on Twilight fans.

ELM:: Wasn't it also Twilight anti-fans?

FK: Yeah. Twilight anti-fans. [all laugh]

ELM:: Sorry. I twisted that deliberately. I apologies.

FK: In an ONTD community called ONTD_Twatlight. But anyway.

ELM:: I'm glad that MIT gave you a degree for that. Delightful. Really good. Yeah, I mean, if you wanna talk about Fifty Shades we can, I was gonna talk about whether Any Two Guys is problematic.

MLD:: [laughing] Two roads diverge, et cetera, et cetera.

FK: This is how our roads ALWAYS diverge. Elizabeth is like, "but is it problematic?" and I'm like "but did it make a lot of money?"

ELM:: Those are the questions?! Are those the questions right now?

FK: Not really the question! Well, it is a little bit the question though. This is a little related. Is Any Two Guys problematic, but also don't Any Two Guys fics where you file off the serial numbers lead us into that monetization of fandom question.

ELM:: That is a connection you can make between those two things. But I don't know if that's the problematic element of it. I think that the problems there are this kind of idea of it beyond fanfiction, slotting in and out of all the issues that surround slash. Whether it's systemic bias and racism or fetishization or etc etc. I think all of that comes into focus when you have this idea that all you need to do is slap two names onto a male/male romance and then people will say "fine with me!" You know? Isn't that just a full expression of all of those issues?

FK: But why is that much different than...I think there are many het romance fics, like Fifty Shades, where it could be any two people. Is it different, materially, from that? I know it is because there's issues around male/male romance, but...

ELM:: So then any two man and woman... [laughing] I don't know what the phrase would be.

FK: Any two hets?

ELM:: Any two hets! Any two straights. Well, we don't know if they're straight or het, that's true. I was trying to go with just their sex to start. Is that a space of diversity? Or do you often find the same sorts of bodies being interchanged? Slapping the same sorts of names onto the same two man and woman? Same single man and single woman. [laughing] Same two men and women would be much more fun. Quads all over. Do we call them quads?

MLD:: This is just taking a turn!

FK: Doesn't this get us back to the fact that...I think it is, and I think one of the ways we know that is looking at Sleepy Hollow, with an African American female lead and the fights people had about allowing her to have romance, right? And right now in the het romance world there's a huge, huge, huge racism fight going on. For people who don't follow this world, historically lines of romance novels have been segregated, yes segregated like it is the Jim Crow south because people are disgusting and this has continued to exist into literally 2000. Sometimes literally today!

ELM:: Wasn't the recent controversy because someone had crunched the numbers because one of the big prizes in the romance world, was it no black characters?

FK: I believe it was writer but that was only one...there was a thing about the RITAs, which there's multiple categories and there have been multiple characters nominated in different categories...but...weirdly? If I recall correctly? Which probably I don't because I'm not looking at the thing right now and there were so many issues that got wrapped up in each other too. This year there was a woman who was nominated for prizes and got...she was black and got no support at all from her publisher whereas all the white authors did. Very blatant racism going on throughout this.

So I'm just saying, I think it's broader than a slash issue. For once it's not just the slashers! It's everyone! We're all horrible racists!

ELM:: Sorry, I always claim slash first. You know. Trying to claim responsibility.

FK: Any Two Guys, people also have a term for that and people don't use that term for het romance. I'm not sure why.

MLD:: Maybe it's just that there's something very obvious about it when there's two men and it's the same!

ELM:: The dark haired one and the light haired one. [all laugh]

MLD:: It becomes very clear in a way where maybe it's also the tradition of het romance looking like that has gone on for a very very very long time. Whereas male/male romance being a thing in this thing is obviously quite recent. So there's probably...I'm completely thinking out loud right now! But there's probably more discourse like this because it's being invented in this way over the past many years in real time and we're seeing it.

FK: That makes perfect sense. When I think about it, there's all these terms in the romance space, not necessarily in the fanfic space. He's another alpha hero, he's another...there's all these terms for categories of types of characters, stock characters.

ELM:: Tell me some more of the romance words. Alpha hero?

FK: Yeah! If he's an alpha, he's masterful! He's commanding! And many people don't like him because he tends to kiss you against your will! [all chortle]

ELM:: He sounds very problematic!

FK: It's slightly dubcony but it's okay! [all still laughing] And this is a type! You read romance and you're like, yup, that dude. There he is. People subvert it, most of the time people subvert it now, it's not super popular. But it's a thing, there's all these tropes. I guess you're right. I don't know enough about the male/male romance space but I assume they're developing but it's a larger portion of the market.

MLD:: Also there's academic books I was using in grad school last year tying the het romance novels to Jane Austen and the entire history of romance as a genre. This is not something romance publishers made up in the 50s or 60s or whatever. This has gone on for a long time in the Western world with white people. Almost always been the leads in those stories. It's the cultural default mode, obviously, which of course people are now discussing aggressively a lot. But there's a lot of ground to make up from the early decades of the last millennium, right? [laughing]

ELM:: Whereas I think in slash also if you think about it in a sort of shortened time frame, and I just want to clarify that I think that there's obviously a lot of robust discourse in the male/male romance original, and some of it crosses over but some of it doesn't. And I think this Any Two Guys thing is specifically a fandom thing. This is specifically about AUs and shipping. AUs and shipping, two separate things intersecting. I don't wanna go too far into this.

FK: Well, I guess that is different, because...maybe it is to do also with queerphobia to some degree because I think there is an assumption that people who are shipping are interested in finding the ship, and they go looking for it, as opposed to "these two characters just seemed like they had..." I think people get very cynical about slashers in a way they're not as cynical about het shippers.

ELM:: That's interesting, wait, I wanna know more about this. Tell me.

FK: Maybe because het romance is so frequently canonical, or possibly canonical, or understood as potentially canonical.

ELM:: And the idea that there's a guy and a girl in this moviea nd they're probably going to get together, that kind of thing?

FK: Yeah, and I think that then there's not an assumption... "oh, you just went to this to find an object to cling to." No, of course, everybody does that. If it's het, it's assumed you're going to go find it, whereas slashers, you're just looking for something. You're reading too far into it and you're doing it for your own tastes, not for what's in the work.

ELM:: Hm. I love that you say "slashers." It makes me feel really old school. [MLD: laughs]

FK: Well, what else? "slash readers"? "people who enjoy male/male romance in fandom"?

ELM:: As you know, the kids don't use the term slash anymore! Yeah. Those relationshippers. That's right. On Wattpad they don't know those words.

MLD:: We're just all very old.

FK: They definitely know those words on Wattpad cause they also say "don't like don't read" as though it's nineteen ninety fuckin' nine!

ELM:: They say that? That's incredible! Those kids. Teens! Who are dumb. I'm glad we established that. I always try to support teens, but you're right, teens are dumb.

FK: I too did those things.

ELM:: Did anyone not?

FK: Everyone did. We all passed through this period of time.

ELM:: Dumb things you did. It's OK. I do dumb things now too, it's fine. We just do different some things.

MLD:: Exactly. Sort of aged into a new thing.

FK: I think we're going to have to wrap up fairly soon but before we do, we have talked almost not at all about canon divergent AUs or fusions or anything like that, so maybe we should [laughing] talk about that a little bit, guys?

ELM:: Canon divergent AUs, my favorite, actually one of my favorite things literally in all of fanfiction. Ironically, after disparaging the other kind for so long.

MLD:: Right, I love them. And I love fusion fics depending on what the fandom is so that's interesting.

ELM:: OK define fusion fic.

MLD:: The one that immediately springs to mind is His Dark Materials.

ELM:: OK. You know I've read a bunch of those about... daemon? You say dee-mon AUs? And I haven't read His Dark Materials. Very confusing to me.

FK: You would be really into His Dark Materials and should probably read it. I don't know if you'd love the writing but there's a lot of things in it...

MLD:: That shocks me.

FK: ...that I feel like you would be into. You should.

ELM:: My friend gave me his old copies because he works at Scholastic and so he got the new ones, just a few months ago, and they're on my shelf, I'm literally looking at them. The one thing that concerns me is I don't know if I wanna read novels with the perspective of smug atheism, and that's how they've been described to me, so you can disabuse me of this impression.

FK: I did not find them that bad. He is that bad, but I did not find them that bad.

ELM:: Great!

MLD:: I don't feel that they read that way, but.

ELM:: Great! That's two. Alright.

FK: He is that bad but I don't think these novels are that bad.

ELM:: Actually I just heard him on the radio recently and it seems like he's not that bad anymore.

FK: Well, he went through a period.

ELM:: He said he's come to see that you can be dogmatic about anything, even non-belief, and I was like good. Call Richard Dawkins, he must know.

MLD:: He was extremely charming at the reading I went to when I was nine years old. He was very nice to all of us and very funny. So I am a partisan. Those were my favorite books when I was nine, so.

FK: It's funny that you say this though because to me fusion fics are almost like the other kind of AU. It's almost like, great, you found another setting, another thing to fuse into this. It's almost like a setting. But canon divergence is different, because it's almost like you've got all fanfic on a spectrum from "this is mildly canon divergent because it happens in the future, we don't have next season so we're writing it now," to the very canon divergent, Sirius didn't go to...

ELM:: Where you make a very deliberate turn.

FK: Sirius didn't go to prison and therefore everything in the Harry Potter books is different, and everything is really different.

ELM:: A literal turn. Maybe he turned in the opposite direction and that was the butterfly, you know? There's definitely stories like that. [all laugh]

FK: Absolutely. But they're all on this spectrum. All fanfic is canon divergent at some point, and is therefore kind of AU, even if it's just a fill in fic.

ELM:: You wouldn't want fic if it wasn't canon divergent. But I think the difference is usually if it says it's canon divergent, that usually means it's that kind of deliberate choice. Right? So...or alternate meetings, or fix-its, or any of these things. This is some of my favorite stuff about fanfiction!

FK: It seems to me almost like the canon divergent, when it's being chosen intentionally, plays a similar role to the kind of AU when you put them in a different situation so there can be heightened or lowered stakes, so you're almost revealing something about canon by changing something in it, right? If I change this one thing in canon, we see how much else changed.

ELM:: I don't think it necessarily lowers stakes...

FK: Oh I didn't mean that, I just meant lowering the stakes can be one way to...it's almost like changing one thing in canon. If you lower the stakes, you're changing one thing about canon and keeping everything else the same and you see something more clearly, right?

ELM:: Hmm. Hmmmmm.

FK: If you change something in the plot...

[all] HMMMMM.

ELM:: I'm thinking right now!

FK: It's the same butterfly effect idea, potentially.

ELM:: But now I'm struggling to think of any other kind of fic [laughing] there's something, I enjoy the kind that follows the canonical time frame, say, of the length of a movie, and pulls back a curtain or shows what's happening to the characters in between the scenes, I enjoy that, but isn't...

FK: THEY'RE ALL AUS UNDER THE SKIN. [all laugh]

ELM:: Yeah, if it wasn't in some way an...but this is the thing, maybe we shouldn't be turning around the term AU so lightly, AU means alternate universe, right? What is fanfiction? What is the nature of fanfiction?

[all talking over each other awhile]

FK: But in an alternate universe, in a world about alternate universes, if you're reading alternate universe fiction, some of them are very mildly different! Isn't there that theory that in every other alternate universe you died in every millisecond from a different thing? There's millions of alternate universes that are exactly like this one except that you died in a different millisecond in each of them, if there's truly infinite alternate universes out there?

ELM:: Is this what physicists do with their spare time?

FK: When they're high. [laughing]

ELM:: You know, whenever I talk to physicists and I'm like "really, really?" it's always something like this. I'm like, this counts as science?! Shouldn't you be measuring something? In a test tube?

FK: Measuring the numbers of horrible ways you could die in any millisecond!

ELM:: That's just a fun theory! I just don't...if we have any physicists listening to this they should write in and defend to me theoretical physics [MLB is dying in the background] It just sounds to me like they have fun imaginations and good vocabulary and they were in school for like eight years. I'll contact my physics friends and ask. Yeah. I don't know.

FK: I feel like this may be just where we came to at the end of this episode, Elizabeth. It may be that it's all, it was all an AU.

ELM:: Do you think there's...how many seconds. 60 times 60. 3600 alternate universes of this episode where every second a new episode spun out into a different direction?

FK: Yes. That's how many ideas about what alternate universes are work. That's how they work.

ELM:: We didn't even get to talk about soulmate AUs. [FK sighs happily]

MLD:: That's good because I don't have good thoughts about those, so...

ELM:: I know and that would be a point of discourse. Flourish loves them, obviously.

FK: I love them, obviously.

ELM:: She swooned. Cause she loves forced marriages.

FK: I do.

ELM:: She loves when agency is removed.

FK: I love it.

ELM:: Morgan and I are on the same page of almost everything here.

MLD:: [laughing] We're just on the same X-men plane right now and that's synced our brains up.

FK: I also feel like there are situations in which I would not like a soulmate AU, it's just that coming out of One Direction fanfic the only kind of good AU in it is soulmate AUs that are very canonical except for the soulmate thing. So. I think I've been destroyed by that.

ELM:: If it's your favorite trope that's fine but you also love arranged marriages and things like that so...

FK: Yeah they're interesting it's true.

ELM:: You like the lack of agency and having to work within it.

FK: That's true. That is accurate.

ELM:: I'm gonna psychoanalyze you now. Whereas Morgan and I like people being douchebags to each other. [everyone laughs]

MLD:: That's my preference!

FK: Well OK so things we've learned: everything is an AU, there are two choices, you can like people being douchebags or you can want to have agency taken away from people... [all laugh] Why not both?! is a question.

ELM:: OH NO. Where they have it written on their hands but then they just shout at each other the entire time? I could write that. I could write that one very easily for you.

FK: Yes. And everyone was an idiot when they were a teenager and that's OK. And teenagers are being idiots right now. That's it. That's our takeaways.

MLD:: I think that's a great set of takeaways [all laughing] We've solved the question!

FK: In some other alternate universe, this was a different way but this is how it went in this universe.

ELM:: That's right. Alright. We'll write it differently next time. [all laughing]

FK: Thank you so much for coming on Morgan, this was amazing.

MLD:: Thank you so much for having me, this was so much fun!

[Interstitial music by Jahzzar]

FK: OK I think that was more laughs per minute than any interview we've ever done.

ELM:: Good times. [laughing] And it's not just because, full disclosure, we recorded that a few days ago, I was at the height of a cold then, which I still have remnants of, and I was drinking scotch.

FK: And Dayquil!

ELM:: No! No. I had the Dayquil many hours earlier, you should not combine them. Top tip. Don't combine alcohol and any 'quil because it has acetominophen.

FK: I love that you call them a 'quil.

ELM:: Yeah they're 'quils. But here's what I'm gonna admit to right now because it's been a few days.

FK: OK...

ELM:: In the intervening five days since we recorded that...

FK: Oh no.

ELM:: I read and loved a high school AU. [FK gasps, ELM: laughs]

FK: Wooooooooah. I am, I don't know what to say! First of all we're gonna put it in the show notes and I need to read it and find out if I agree with you or not. That was actually one of the things I really liked about this interview was I felt like Morgan was great but also I disagreed with her fundamentally on some basic things and yet it was great. Anyway. I wanna find out if I disagree with you on this!

ELM:: Disagree? I mean like...

FK: I mean, whatever, if I don't like it...I guess I can't say that. That would be mean. I'll read it but I'm sure I'll love it.

ELM:: Did you, we didn't actually discuss this in the conversation but did you read the Rageprufrock fic that I sent you? That I think is my favorite probably in the X-men fandom? Limited Release.

FK: Yes.

ELM:: Did you like that?

FK: I read it. Yes.

ELM:: This hits a lot of the same notes.

FK: OK. I mean it wasn't, I will say I liked it, it was not my favorite fic that I have ever read, but I really enjoyed it.

ELM:: It didn't have to be your favorite fic ever...

FK: I don't mean to be an asshole, it's just sometimes you read a fic and you're like THIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS.

ELM:: Yeah. I love that story. So this hit a lot of similar notes. And I don't know that I would say that the teens...do they act like real teens? Unclear.

FK: You may not care.

ELM:: Do I care? They didn't act like 90210 characters.

FK: I certainly don't care. I like Riverdale.

ELM:: Yes. The name of the story I believe it was "If You Liked The Book You'll Hate The Movie." So we'll put that in the show notes and people can see. It's about mental illness.

FK: OK!

ELM:: And about how no one ever gets better.

FK: That's true. Sort of.

ELM:: [laughs] Good! Good.

FK: We also had one thing that we didn't get to in our interview, which is that we got an ask from dzamieponders. "jamieponders" maybe? Not sure how to say their name. "Dz" is sometimes said like a J? So it could be Jamie? The ask is this. What do you think of the theory that fanworks often rely on significantly changing the plot, characters, and/or setting (but usually not all three),a nd that how much each fandom c hanges each thing can tell you about the fandom itself? Like, coffeeshop AUs change plot and setting but not characters, side character perspective stuff changes character but not plot or setting, and other species!character fics, I guess like mermaid fics or centaurification or something, change setting but not plot or characters. That's the ask. And we didn't get to it.

ELM:: We did not get to it. I don't necessarily disagree with this but I think it may be a little...I don't think it's as simple as that? I am intrigued by the idea of, and I think we touched on this many a time in this conversation, about why certain fandoms can lend themselves to this and not necessarily for everyone. Like what you were talking about with Star Wars and what you think is a really peak ripe for AU land Morgan was like absolutely not.

FK: [laughs] Other people also, clearly there's a deep divide in this because everybody it seems like has one of the two responses. When I wrote about Reylo and when we had the Problem of Reylo episode, it's really interesting. It's so divisive. I wonder if everything else is like that too. I wonder if X-men is like that, it's just that all the people we know love the AUs.

ELM:: I don't think there's any way that's possible. Just if you actually look at the numbers on AO3.

FK: Yeah but if you look at the numbers on AO3 of Reylo there's so many AUs too, right?

ELM:: Look, I've been deep in the Archive.

FK: I don't mean to challenge your knowledge. I am sure that you are correct. I think you really are.

ELM:: It just also, it's like, I don't think it's just what has been kudosed to the top, it really does seem like...and actually a lot of the writers I've been encountering I've read in other fandoms too. A lot of good... that sounds shitty to say. "All the good writers are writing AUs!" or whatever. But it does seem like that was, and I'm sure people who were in that fandom at the time these stories were being written could speak more to these conversations. But I have to wonder, I think it's probably reading too much into saying that what the choices around these shifting plot/setting/character questions say much about the fandom itself. I feel like it's somewhat of an individual thing.

FK: I don't know, I think there is something to be said for there almost being different communities of writers being interested in different things, especially if you get a big enough fandom. In Harry Potter there's huge communities of people who write certain types of fics that I would basically never read. People who are writing not just self-inserts but also things that hew very closely to the story of the books, that are continuing the story in ways that are very canon-compliant, and a lot of those people seem to be interested in things about the world, worldbuilding details and all this stuff, in ways that are different fundamentally than people writing a coffeeshop AU where the focus is on the characters. And there's some fandoms I find that are like this too. There are some fandoms where the stories are interested in different kinds of things. In general. Most people's stories. So I don't disagree with this, I just don't know how to quantify that.

ELM:: Yeah, but I also do think there's something...character is a tricky thing and it's a lot harder to pin down than plot and setting. It's very easy to say if the plot diverges from what happens in the canon, and I think at the heart of a lot of my critiques of a lot of AU culture is that from what I've read in the past there are times when I'm like "what is character anymore?" This feels so distant, this doesn't seem...the character can be internally consistent to the story, and still feel like an utterly different character. To the point where it's different than if I take Harry Potter and I stick him in a different situation, obviously he's going to say different things than the things he said in the book. But fundamentally if I can deconstruct his character I should be able to write that situation, right?

FK: I agree with you, and I think that the idea that...coffeeshop AUs change plot and setting, but not characters, well, bringing it back to my current pet fandom, when I think about even the Reylo AUs that I've enjoyed a great deal, part of the point is that they change the character, I think. The Kylo Ren in these books is not a mass murderer. That's part of the point.

ELM:: But that's action, that's not necessarily character, right? That's, I mean, what is character then?

FK: He doesn't have the opportunity, he's not in a setting where he's a force master, therefore he doesn't do it, maybe.

ELM:: Is he a petulant child in all of them? Then that's still canonical.

FK: He is a petulant child in all of them. But I do think there's something, there's a question about how much does your action make up your character. I think there is something fundamental about the actions that we take, even though they're impacted by circumstance.

ELM:: Oh a thousand percent! Obviously I've been thinking about this a lot when you have a canon where one of the characters does wind up murdering a lot of people but he's also the victim of explicit torture in a concentration camp, you know? Trigger warning, that's a little...

FK: Not to mention that he's half of your ship. [laughing]

ELM:: No but that's part of it! And it's interesting to see the good AUs find other, if it's moved into modern era, need to find another way to make him...you can't just say "he's grumpy." [laughs] Almost always there's some other kind of trauma and not in a way that excuses any of the behavior, but because it's so intrinsically wrapped up in what a character is...

FK: Otherwise the character isn't coherent. People aren't just like that unless...you know?

ELM:: Well it might be. Some people are tempermentally quite grumpy. But it does feel like, what is this character when you take away the circumstances? It's easy to see in an X-men story because it's very blunt circumstances. But it's a little harder to see when it's something less traumatic, I think.

FK: Yeah. I agree.

ELM:: So it's hard.

FK: Alright, well, I think that was a great ask. Thank you, dzamie or jamieponders or however your name is said and I'm really sorry that we've destroyed it.

ELM:: So, I think that's it for AUs! I'm probably gonna, after we wrap up, gonna go read some more. But I'm curious to know people's thoughts.

FK: Yeah! I look forward to hearing from people on this as well, and it's very easy to send us your thoughts! You can email us, fansplaining@gmail.com, our website fansplaining.com is a Tumblr, the askbox is on, and so is anon, please don't be a jerk. You can send us fanmail but please don't, because that's...I don't know. You can.

ELM:: You can, it's a hard...it's a hard thing to respond to.

FK: It's a hard medium because it's...

ELM:: Tumblr's fanmail feature, if you're not familiar. Don't be familiar with it if you're not familiar.

FK: Send us an email instead.

ELM:: An email will do it. You can also send an ask, and if you want to use your username but you don't want us to reply just say so in the ask. Say just respond privately please. We'll obviously always respect that.

FK: We've also got Twitter, @fansplaining on Twitter, we've also got Facebook if you really feel the need to communicate in that fashion then I guess you can, that's also @fansplaining, and as always, a really good way to support us is to pledge to our Patreon which is at patreon.com/fansplaining, we are very soon going to have a tiny zine for you!

ELM:: Very soon.

FK: So get in your pledge now and get access to all kinds of special episodes, tiny zine, lots of stuff. Please enjoy it.

ELM:: That's right and if you do not have any cash right now you could also, or if you have cash! This isn't just for people with no cash. You could leave us a review and a rating on iTunes. That really helps other people find us. Yeah! Or share us with your friends.

FK: All right! I think that's it.

ELM:: I'm literally gonna go read an AU right now.

FK: OK go enjoy your AU.

ELM:: Flourish, I read a story...

FK: I will talk to you later, Elizabeth! [all laugh]

[Outro music, thank yous and disclaimers]

[treya-barton]

tagged by: @thenameisfame

nicknames: Val, Valkyrie, Valhalla, V-chan

gender/pronouns: female

height: 6′1″

time: 12:56am

birthday: May 17

favorite bands: TVXQ, V6, Linkin Park, Maroon 5, Train, and a bunch more kpop, jpop/rock, rock, and pop with occasional country lol

favorite solo artist: Jason Mraz

song stuck in your head: 꺼져 by Hyolyn

last movie you watched: Infinity Wars

last show: The Good Life

why did you create your blog: Basically one of my roommates back in college was on Tumblr so I made one to see what it was all about (especially because I was taking communication classes and we discussed social media a lot).  I then barely used it until recently when I started getting into the FFXV community.

other blogs: I mean I have a Wordpress and a Livejournal I don’t use anymore lol

do you get asks: Occasionally yes :D

how did you get the idea for your url: I was into Gundam Wing and made my own character based on Trowa Barton.  I’ve used this name for pretty much everything since because it’s always available lol

i follow: 155 blogs (most of them after getting into the FFXV fandom lol)

followers: 49

average hours of sleep: Um often 5-6 on days I open because I can’t go to bed early and then 7-8 when I have the late shift.  Can be 8-9 when I’m off lol

instruments: I draw lol  When we had the chance to pick band in elementary you had to give up your other extracurriculars and I didn’t want to give up art.

what are you wearing: Star Wars shirt I got at Disney, black capris, and my Italia jacket.

dream job: Either being able to do something creative or with writing (my first job outside of college was working in the advancement office at a school where I got to design, take pictures for, put together their newsletters along with other projects and I enjoyed that a lot) or possibly research.

dream trip: Going to Japan and/or South Korea.  A European trip (I’d love to return to Italy).  Road trip across the US.

significant other: Nope.

last book i read: Rhett and Link’s Book of Mythicality (I’m honestly in the middle of several right now though).

top 3 fictional universes: Star Wars, Persona, Harry Potter

tagging: Anyone who would like to participate :)