#when i say i treat rpf as a writing exercise. this is what i mean. sorry.

[shesmore-shoebill]

now im curious as to how disaster!amanda would be in a courtmangelarasha situation. does she pine for the three of them and is genuinely clueless about the reciprocated feelings? is she in a constant state of ‘are they flirting with me or just fucking with me’ ?

HMMM. so the thing about throuple/quartet dynamics is imo, that adding more people to a dynamic is not an addition problem as much as it is like. algebra. yknow. or calculus. w/e. Its not just adding a person, its interplay between all parties involved and their individual and combined dynamics. So while this is probably meant lightheartedly, unfortunately, I ended up thinking extensively about logistics and the how of this, since IMO that changes what Disaster!Amanda looks like and I really want it to feel. Legit. or as legit as RPF gets lmfao.

as always, this is all about RPF amanda, not real amanda, and this is specifically about like, my version of rpf amanda.

in general I think the tricky thing about pining Amanda is that she strikes me as someone to, upon realizing her emotions, either actually have a direct, adult conversation with the person about it, or actively go "oh no". and then do everything in her power to lock that shit down.

So. Hypothetical Amanda might be less of a disaster if she had similar feelings about multiple people simultaneously, over time. I think a key part to my version of disaster!amanda is her being caught off guard, acting in a panic, and then the shitshow that spirals out from that + doubling down. Amanda developing feelings for the three of them over time without confessing to anyone, i think means by the time we hit the full quartet, Amanda would have either tried to do something about communicating, or have somewhat of a handle on how to deal with her feelings solo. (Which could be a great angst thing! But maybe less comedic by that point.)

So in a scenario where Amanda is the only one really out of the loop... hmmm. Tricky for me to immediately come up with the setup. It might need to be something similar to my S&B Courtmangela setup in which the three (Court Arasha Angela) get close and Amanda is like. Fine about it. (Smosh Mouth FOMO tattoo joke style but dialed up x5). And she's flirting with them to deal with it, and they're flirting back, and it just. Keeps escalating. I think there needs to be an element of like, maybe Amanda not realizing she likes them all that way, just knowing she's feeling kind of. Left behind. And she's flirting with them, and they flirt back, and lets be real I think Amanda is the type where if you flirt with her as a bit she Will Double Down, so it would just Keep Going. I think the angst dial is dependent on how much Amanda recognizes her feelings- either she Knows and she's going to hide it from them or die trying (devastating), or she really Doesnt Realize until it culminates in a deeply funny way. Someone is in a kiss with tongue. Shayne is losing his mind because his friend is. A fool. <3

(Angst central: Amanda starts almost exclusively flirting with them when interacting instead of holding proper conversations bc she feels. bad. and is deflecting. Courtney and Angela especially start noticing because hey. They arent clueless. What the fuck. That sucks. Maybe Arasha has to be the one to actually talk to her about it BC Courtmangela have more deeply established ties that are in further jeopardy.............)

OPTIONALLY. if the feelings towards everyone differ drastically/change over time, then it brings back in that fun element of "oh shit oh god oh fuck".

Knowing she would probably try to communicate like an adult, I think there's a lot of fun with the disaster!Amanda in this universe being Amanda not realizing her own additional feelings until comedically late/after other people have already figured it out bc she just doesn't register it as that/is misreading her own emotions/it happens WHILE SHES ALREADY dating one or two of them.

(And again, critically, flirting is happening through all this but not everyone is formally in a relationship.)

My initial instinct about this was "Amangela Courtrasha first", and then the merge. I think a hilarious route for that would be your standard Amangela story, then that all gets sorted. And some time into the relationship, Angela has figured out Amanda's feelings (and her own) towards Courtney and Arasha. + that the flirting that keeps happening is mutual. And so we get:

Angela, loves Amanda (and courtrasha), has slowly realized that Amanda Does Not Realize Her Feelings: 'and you love them too, so-'

Amanda (was staunchly in denial, thought she was safe after figuring out her feelings towards Angela): I WHAT. what. oh shit. THATS what that is???

Or we could have Courtmanda and Arangela first. For max comedy we could have Courtney assuming that Amanda DOES know and so is unbothered by Amanda and Angela acting... well........ wellll...... 👀 and Amanda feels. maybe strange about watching Courtney and Arasha together, not bad but. Strange. (Esp because Amanda has also been looking at Arasha more but maybe she doesnt admit that.) She talks to Court and Courtney compares it to her and Ang and Amanda is okay with them all being- equal, right? (they mean dating but that is lost in the convo). Amanda (clueless) goes. oh like me and ang. of course. :)

And then eventually Angela kisses Amanda and Amanda freaks out and tells Courtney and they're like. .... Amanda did you not know. Amanda tell me you knew. Amanda how did you not realize.

it all works out though. :)

Arasha and Amanda first I'm still thinking about. Maybe a FWB sitch and then... hmm. i might have spent too long on this ask as it is lmfao. ANYWAY. fun ask. sorry if this isnt what you expected.. Unfortunately to me, a 4 person dynamic is not 1 dynamic. its 5-6 dynamics in a trenchcoat.

[bisluthq]

Okay so I’ve been meaning to ask for a while now but I was far too nervous and didn’t want to offend anyone. But, that being said, can I ask why you choose to indulge in RPF? I personally find it super strange, invasive and (maybe this is a stretch) but also low-key dehumanising?

Idk what word to use here and how to eloquently word this but definitely feels like RPF plays into the fetishisation and the ‘disconnect’ of celebrities from people who indulge in it. Like, by writing RPF you’re writing your own version of that person (some people try and stay accurate whilst others invent whole new personalities after) but you don’t know them, not entirely, and for writers to (understandably) fill in the gaps with whatever they like and create fics seems a little disrespectful and voyeuristic, esp because you’re using very real people to fill in the majority of the sexy (or just generally desired) ‘character bar’ whilst headcanoning the rest and publishing it.

Idk, I personally find it kinda disrespectful as to how real human beings are just used almost as props to serve and fulfill a handful of people’s fantasies/desires. At least with fictional characters, it’s not that big a deal if you headcanon, fill in the personality gaps or go ooc because they are fictional. But for RPF, the real people are often treated as jumping off points for whatever build-a-bearfantasy writers have in mind (younger writers/readers are far more likely to do this but I believe it’s a widespread phenomenon amongst everyone who indulges in it)

And I know the people involved are likely never going to read it but it still doesn’t mean they haven’t been disregarded/disrespected as a person already. I’ve personally never liked RPF, writing or reading, but I know some people like it - I just don’t know why?? I know one argument I’ve heard is that celebs are in the public eye and so, they can rightfully be objectified/sexualised by their fanbase, which yes kinda makes sense but idk if it merits/justifies using the shell of the celebrity to fulfill the kinks of everyone in their fanbase.

I’m not sure how much sense I’ve made here. I’m pretty sure I’ve repeated myself the entire time lol but I am curious to what your answer would be. Full disclaimer - it is not my intention to shame you or anyone else - I just want to understand your thought process because it is wildly different to mine and for the most part I like/vibe with this blog a lot because your attitude towards celebs and celeb gossip is so refreshing. When I saw all the joshlie/swiftwyn fics I was a bit lost and further lost when people started actively thirsting, hence the reason behind this ask. Sorry this was so long ✌🏼

Okay so I have a lot of Thoughts™️ on this tbh. Now backstory: I was SUPER pearl clutchy about RPF for like actual years. I somehow missed the After phenomenon in terms of the books, but when the film deal came through I was properly scandalized. I was like, “Good grief imagine being Harry and you’re the basis for a whole ass abusive boyfriend character like what the actual fuck is wrong with these people!?” And then I did more thinking about it especially as I watched the sheer commercial success of this shitshow. 

Now I’m very like theoretically anti capitalism but I’m also a very pragmatic person whose primary love is and always has been and always will be the entertainment industry so we do have to look at what makes money because this shit’s not charity. And what the runaway success of After taught me is... RPF makes money. Like BIG money.

So then I had to relax on the pearl clutching and start asking myself why that is. Why are people into this shit? Well, celebs market themselves as 1) a brand and 2) sexual beings. You’re supposed to want them. That’s how they’re being sold to you. Harry’s not posing fucking stark naked in the Fine Line insert art for his health. Taylor’s not posting National Sock Appreciation Day for you to appreciate her socks. Like these are sexual beings and they’re being marketed to us as sexual fantasy. That’s part of why we’re buying their shit.

Let’s go back to the ‘celebs market themselves as a brand’ - if you look at people inspiring RPF it’s hardly ever people who are like... freaky private. Nobody’s putting out Saoirse Ronan RPF because tbh the average person, even an average fan of hers, doesn’t really know anything about her. She avoids socials and she doesn’t take too much press and she sorta just does her thing. People like Harry and Taylor and tbh Karlie market their personalities. They’re selling a whole package - not just a talented professional, not just a hot person, but a whole ass person who you’re supposed to buy into while also being y’know turned on by them per my previous points. 

So here we get into the RPF of it all. Realistically, these people are going to inspire fantasies. They’re trying to do that. And they’re also selling and marketing their relationships and personalities. Again, this is not an accident, this is a purposeful commercial push.

With that in mind, what’s so wrong about imagining scenarios that they’re kinda like... trying to concoct for us already? Taylor’s been singing about her sex life non stop since 2017. She’s told us these songs are about Joe. Joe’s a public figure who also takes interviews and markets his personality. Is it, therefore, wrong to imagine what that sex is like if they’re both hot and making money off of us? Is she not lowkey trying to get us to do that when she’s, like I say, singing about sex with him on main since 2017?

Now with RPF what we need to remember is this is purely fantasy. It isn’t real, and it’s not like... canon. I’m also not into like AU RPF personally like I don’t really have much imagination for like RPF crackships lmao but I’m also not going to get all huffy over it. For me, if celebrities sell shit using their relationship - as Taylor absolutely fucking does - and sell themselves as sexual and desirable - as Taylor absolutely fucking does - there’s nothing that wrong with fantasizing about what that is like.

It’s obviously not real. It shouldn’t be treated as real. But as an exercise in imagination, I don’t see what’s so wrong with it.

Also many of us have fantasies all the time even if we don’t write and publish them. We have sex dreams and weird fantasies about people we know/crushes and of course we fantasize about celebs. I think putting that down in formal words isn’t worth getting all up in arms about. I think it’s just having a bit of fun.

Finally, back to After: this is a HUGE commercial market. We can see that. And like I don’t see it as that unethical when I examine it closely because these people are also making money off of it. It’s like we can say “oh celeb gossip is so terrible” but it makes the people involved huge money. And considering at the end of the day entertainment shit does come down to the bottom line... ehhhh I’m okay with it.

Hope this kinda gives my take and it’s a conversation I’m very interested in so if y’all would like to keep having with takes and countertakes I’m all for it.

[fieryrondo]

What do you think about RPF in general? And do your family / friends / colleagues know you write fanfic?

Oh boy what a question. ^^ This is not actually the first time I’ve gotten this question but I’ve had some time to sit on this and have reached the point where I feel ok with sharing.

My thoughts about RPF in general? It’s an extremely controversial (perhaps the most controversial) subgenre of fanfiction that is fraught with moral, legal and ethical implications. Fanfiction writers themselves are divided on this, with reactions running the gamut of enthusiasm to downright disgust. Why do you invade their privacy by writing about real people? Why can’t you make up your own characters? What if so-and-so reads your fic? Won’t they find it creepy?

All valid questions that I return to every time I put pen to paper.

When I wrote my first RPF, The (Un)Banquet (yes, I wrote that one…) back in December 2016, I admit I didn’t think very seriously about the moral implications of writing RPF. What went down in Marseilles that December was so absurd, the story just begged to be written. It was fun, it was challenging, (I may have been slightly high when I wrote it) the FS rpf tag was a tiny thing. I had expected to just post the thing and quietly disappear to my corner and resume watching figure skating from afar.

And then came the comments.

I had written fanfiction before (a few things, nothing worth mentioning ^^) but this was the first time I had received feedback. So. Much. Feedback. I was shocked honestly. Feedback from new fans. Feedback from veteran fans. To be honest, the veteran fan feedback scared me the most. Especially the Big Names. Like holy shit, people were actually reading, even sharing it. Oops, I forgot the Junior Grand Prix existed. Uh oh, they actually do celebrate Christmas in Spain and not just Epiphany. Oh no, Daisuke Takahashi actually really likes dogs ^^

Most of it, thankfully, was relatively positive. I think I amused some veteran fans, the way full-grown deer might laugh at the clumsy first steps of a gamboling fawn. Others were less so. How dare I, a three-week-old fan, dared to presume, even from a hypothetical and completely fictional lens, to write about real people? Suddenly, writing RPF no longer seemed quite the carefree activity I had thought it to be. Doubt dogged every word I wrote. How will fans at large receive this? Will they like it? Am I treating the skaters like real people? If the portrayal is not faithful is it at least respectful in spirit?

But I couldn’t stop writing. 

I had fallen into the fandom too deeply, too fast, too attached to the greater-than-life narratives of skaters. Research and setting clear boundaries became my way of compromising. I couldn’t please everyone (and most writers know this is a bad idea) but I could try to make intentions as transparent as possible. It was impossible to learn everything but I would do as much research as I could to avoid making any major missteps that might set off a fan. I hesitate to call it my signature, but the research, partly done out of fear, evolved into a labor of love. Research became almost as fun as writing itself.

Why do I write RPF? I write RPF because I love figure skating. I love the figure skaters, their stories are inspiring, and what we see on the ice and through interviews are only a fraction of the lives they lead. They are regular people who live extraordinary lives, who train and work and dream big dreams. Sometimes they succeed, other times they don’t. Exactly the stuff that makes good writing material. 

I write because I think there’s a story to be told. I like to find meaning in the world, and imagining my favorite skaters struggling with life, overcoming challenges, forging meaningful and lasting relationships, being happy and satisfied, these are the stories that I want to write. And in general, I think many RPF writers feel this way. It’s a writer’s instinct to read between the lines, to fill in the gaps of a story, like glimpsing a unicorn in the forest and trying to assemble an image of it in its entirety. We recognize the final product is a fiction itself (no reputable RPF writer would dare presume to call their work anything other than fiction/AU; it’s just a boundary we don’t ever cross) but the feelings behind the crafting are real.

That being said, fanfiction is a highly personal activity that I only share with very close friends (who incidentally are also fic writers). My family has some vague idea that I write fic (euphemistically called “character study exercises”) but they don’t read my stuff (which may be a blessing because I think even the concept of RPF would weird them out! ^^)

You don’t have to enjoy RPF, and are entitled the right to read whatever you like. For anyone new or interested in RPF, I ask that if it’s possible, please be kind. RPF isn’t “just” RPF; it’s a work of art that someone out there has worked very hard on during their free time. And if you find yourself enjoying their fic, please try to leave feedback for the writer. I can say with absolute certainty that had it not been for the support I received early on, The (Un)Banquet would have been my first and last RPF. I wouldn’t have gone on to write The Pooh Addendum, Tan fuerte, hatsuhinode. El cisne would have never existed. So to all of my readers, past, present, and future, thank you so much for your support.