#is it because i'm a historian? it unnerves me to no end

[smuggsy]

can ppl stop going into museums and throwing shit at historically-relevant material. thank you

[jeannereames]

Does fanfiction bother you/ unnerve you? I know many artists consider fanfiction, especially of historical fiction, view it offensive and disown it. In a way, I think (based on my parasocial? relationship with ATG and investment in his and Hephaistion's relationship) would find it just an added web to his lore/ mythos? I can't ask him but I'd like to ask you (who I consider perhaps THE go-to historian for ATG).

I don't have a problem with fanfic.

I have a longer answer HERE, which explains why.

One thing I didn't address before is the opinion among some historians that ANY fiction (fanfic or professionally published) is problematic because it imposes a particular (probably untrue) elaboration about real human beings.

This is not an unfair concern, at least when it comes to living people, and why you can get in trouble for naming (non-public) individuals in print. There's a whole set of rules in publishing about what can and can't be said of living people (without facing a possible lawsuit). But I don't write about living people, so I'm sketchy on the details.

When it comes to people who have been dead so long they lack even (known) living descendants, I don't have an issue. I think it's crucial to mark fiction from history. That's one reason you'll see me, in some blog entries here, draw a line of separation between the historical people and my fictional characters. In fact, I've argued that writing fiction makes me a better historian--more aware of where the data ends and speculation begins, and even all-out fabrication, however rooted in fact. 😜

I AM, however, annoyed (not really offended) when historical fiction (whether fanfiction, but especially professionally published) is done BADLY. Practice the art of getting it right--or write something else. Especially if you're putting it out there for people to buy, for heaven's sake. I'm not paying for somebody's lazy research.

[unproduciblesmackdown]

i'm so glad that you like the nancy drew games because i, too, like them. what's your fave game? your fave puzzle??

yeah i love those games!!! i havent played like 85% of them but thats ok because it gives me something to look forward to in case i ever have a pc that works at all/works with the nd games again

my favorite is treasure in the royal tower, it was the first game i played and apparently thats true for a lot of people… it took me literally a year to finish the game b/c for like most of that time i didnt realize i hadnt done something wrong when you get stuck in the elevator, i figured that had to be one of the second chance scenarios b/c since it was my first nd game i didnt know what an actual second chance was like. smh. but that made it super rewarding when i finally solved the case aylmao….so much stuff in the game was so Long Awaited because of the delay.

its not just that it was the first game i played that i like it though! i think its really good and there was so much stuff to explore that i liked to just go all around the castle a bunch of times, and the atmosphere was slightly unnerving too, with all the dead ends and everything. and the ghosts and mysterious noises. it was super cozy though, was another reason i liked it for the environment. and when it came to actual sleuthing it was nice that you had a lot of characters to have a lot of conversations with. i like things that are really Task Based because im pretty bad at figuring out how puzzles work at all. and this game having you go through an elevator shaft a few times (which is creepily fun b/c elevator shafts make me nervous and i was killed by the elevator a few times) and crawling around in vents to break into secret rooms and do secret research and find the creepy secret basement all for the secret tower….its good shit. and then you can take a break and hang out in your cozy room and talk to your gfs and order food and nap indefinitely

also i god damn love hotchkiss. she’s the best then and now. she’s really cool as a historian, and watching the video she made was super fun, and everything she has to say is great and i especially love the part where you can hang out with her in the middle of the night. i played cry and it was so exciting that she was someone you could call for advice and stuff

im honestly not sure what puzzle is my favorite?? they’re usually my biggest hurdles in the games…im not good at figuring out how theyre supposed to work and in the blackmoor manor one and cry i relied a lot on just straightforward asking the forums for the answer…even hints werent enough for me…..also its been so long since i got to play any of the games that i honestly forget the nuts and bolts of any of the puzzles i solved. but there is the silver lining of the fact that since its so difficult for me, when i DO solve puzzles its a real victory. i usual avoid games that are like, all puzzles, coz i suck so bad at them, with the exception of the portal games which i really like and which im pretty good at, but in that case the parameters and tools and objective of the puzzles is always consistent and clear, so

what i really enjoy is the atmosphere of games, and ones that have a good balance between giving you objectives but also needing you to just poke around and figure out what clues and leads are already lying around. i dont hate puzzles but as someone who’s really shit at them its really frustrating if my progress has to grind to a halt multiple times b/c i cant figure them out. but in a few games ive also hit a brick wall just for reasons i cant figure out, aka maybe partially puzzle issues and/or partially just not being able to figure out what im supposed to do to move the game forward

nancy is a super fun character though, she is so fearless its funny which is also good because the games are genuinely really creepy and tense and scary a lot, which i love about them. i also love that she’s really nosy and tactless and is up late, because thats very relatable. and that she can die painfully. the stakes are real

uhhhh it honestly blows that i havent been able to play the games for like a literal decade and dont know when i’ll be able to again b/c i enjoy them so so much and still love them a lot to this day, when i enjoy so little

i wish i knew more abt the games i havent played tho. i hear fun things about some of the plots but wikipedia only gives a kind of Promo Plot Summary and theres no her nancy drew wiki and im like, wheres the content

i dont really mind spoilers since knowing who did it doesnt help you solve a game any faster so for real like @ me with ur own fave game/puzzle/character/moments/general n drew appreciation b/c i like to talk about things i like and i know the games are popular enough that a good few of you played at least one and probably also enjoyed it b/c at their best the games are great

also just remembered i always like when theres ghosts, which theres a lot of. like message in a haunted mansion. love to search for Ghostly Occurrences as well as clues. haunt it