#fanfiction writers end up doing sjm's work to write acotar fanfic

[novaricewrites]

ACOTAR'S Worldbuilding is a tragedy

I feel there was so much wasted potential in the worldbuilding in ACOTAR and it is saddening because the opportunities were there to make it a decent series. You can have both romance (yes with sex scenes) and fundamental worldbuilding.

And I think a large part of this stems from SJM's failure to expand on Prythian, the other Courts and explore Faerie culture - instead using a modern, human and heteronormative framework to prop up a few of her favorite characters and neglect deeper development for anything else.

I'm aware that this would require her to think critically, and delve into the politics between the Courts, which can get complicated and likely not her strong suit when her series is riddled with plot holes as is. And she is incapable of not giving her favorite characters plot armor and telling the readers of how they should think.

But in that case, she needs to keep her story logical and not have the character be in a position (*cough the High Lady thing) where politics and culture would inevitably be crucial to know unless she wants these glaring contradictions.

Part of my frustrations (which are for a whole other post) are also her careless (and often stereotypical) use of different cultures for shallow worldbuilding and her pattern of harmful mishandling of POC characters for the sake of the narrative.

I picked up the book series because the faerie aspect was intriguing and I adore stories drawing from ancient religions and folklore.

Yet what we got is bland and lacks the fickle, beautiful yet eerie quality that is the essence of faeries. The first book did have some of this atmosphere at least which is why I prefer it the most.

The series has eventually degraded into the author's self-indulgent erotica about hot and shitty people who act mostly like humans, except with pointy ears and wings.

Yes I am petty and bitter.

I don't hate the idea of this series but the execution was brutal and I needed to get this out.

[secret-third-thing]

Fanfiction writing ask, all the ones that end in zero goooooooo!

OMG THAT'S SO MANY. Thank you thank you thank you

10 -Do you work on multiple wips or stick to one fic at a time?

Multiple ones, but I "limit" myself to max 3 fic at a time. My biggest challenge is finishing things, so I’ve been really pushing myself to balance some short pieces with only one long one. That being said, I have an idea document that I keep updated, so I don’t lose anything that I really like.

20 - Do you prefer writing AUs or canon fics?

Canon is easier for some reason? I think that’s because I like working within confines of a pre-existing world rather than having A TON of possibility. That being said, I am warming up to AUs and have been trying my hand at them.

30 - How much do you edit your fics?  Do you edit as you write or wait until you finish the first draft?

A ton. I try and get everything out at once. Then I read for plot…does it make sense (hopefully)? Then I edit for specific word choice. Then I go back and do this bit over and over until I get so sick of the chapter that I would rather clean my apartment. THEN I run everything through grammarly and pray it catches everything. Then I post… and then I find errors. : ) 

40 - What is your favorite world that you’ve created for a fic?

I don't have a lot out but BITW is my fav...which is just ACOTAR 2.0. SJM didn’t give us a lot on Montesere so I basically built an entire nation/economy/politics for several months so I’d have something to work with. It’s not perfect but I’m proud of it. 

50 - How would you describe your writing style?

I’m cheating here a bit. My writing instructor from when I took a class this year says that I like to write with visceral sensations err… like “feel it in your body” kind of things. I don’t know if my fanfics really embody that, but my original fiction definitely leans on sensations being a major component of my writing. I also am very plot driven.

60 - In [insert fic], what inspired the idea for the plot?

I’ll do a 2 for 1 on this one You’re going to laugh at this, BITW was inspired by The Cruel Prince, Natasha, Pierre, and the War of 1812 (aka War and Peace), St. George and the Dragon, and my desperate need for Eris to get laid by someone who will give him hell first. Heatwave is just inspired by Rockport, MA + My late cousin who had Elain’s job.

70 - Are you subscribed to any writers on AO3?

GreenZeus and LadyTess (both not on Tumblr????? idk). I need to use this feature more often. I didn’t start actually “USING” AO3 until recently so I’m still discovering how this site works haha. I am certain that in a month I will have about 30 writers on this list.

80 - Free space - asker can come up with any writing or fic-related question they want!

You didn't give me a question so I'll ask a random one I just thought of <3: What's the longest thing you've ever written?

Back from 2015-18 I co-wrote a fic with a close friend. It was this very CW-style (like riverdale) queer drama about slightly supernatural-ish teens living in a mansion in the woods. I still have all of it. I wish I could do something with it one day, but the timing isn't right. It's two hundred typed pages...single spaced.

[houseofhurricane]

I have to say that I fundamentally do not understand the approach to shipping that says, “my ship has to win,” where winning is becoming canon.

This might be because I write fanfiction and commission artists, and at the end of the day, if the ships I love don’t wind up on the official page, I got to enjoy the experience for myself with a lot of talented and lovely people. And if I don’t like what happens in canon... I can always write more fanfic.

I also end up shipping contradictory ships (like Gwynriel and Azris) because why not? Especially when Gwynriel serves such perfect friends-to-lovers vibes and Azris gives us the best enemies-to-lovers arc in Prythian history. I love writing a variety of ships because I get to explore these different character and relationship dynamics in a way that’s impossible with original fiction. Lucien can’t have exclusive relationships with both Elain and Vassa in canon, for example, but I can write fics for both ships that make me (and hopefully readers!) fall in love with each ship. I love that experience, and I love that freedom and challenge as a writer. 

I also sometimes just run out of ideas for a ship, or just have one idea about a particular ship that I’d like to explore. Once I write that fic, I’m tapped out. I’ve occasionally gotten feedback about “abandoning” a ship, but it’s truly not like that for me—I just don’t know what else to write about them!

Admittedly, and this is not a surprise to anyone who follows me, I do like to analyze why I think certain ships (like Gwynriel or Elucien) are likelier to happen than other ships. This isn’t because I want to dunk on people or because their ships are bad. I love a lot of ships, in ACOTAR and in other fandoms, that I know with 100% certainty will not happen. Ultimately—and I know this is very nerdy—this is an exercise in studying craft. I want to see how relationships are teased out and built up. How chemistry is established. How romantic foreshadowing works. But if I’m wrong, I’m going to go back to the text and see what I missed, because there’s always more to learn. But I love figuring out why these texts set us up to feel a certain way about a ship.

One common thread? None of this requires me to be a jerk to people who don’t share my opinions. Though thankfully they are few in number, some of the messages I’ve gotten when I make ship posts have been quite hurtful and bewildering, especially when they come from people who don’t follow me. Why seek me out?

Because I’m just a fan like everyone else. I don’t have special hotline to SJM, and anyway I’m very certain that she’s not running online opinion polls to determine which ships she’ll feature in her next book.

Instead, I think that an online fan community, of shippers or otherwise, should be a place where people come together to celebrate their favorite books and their favorite ships. We can think differently, but this isn’t a competition. If anyone wins, it should be all of us, for having the good taste that brings us together.