#such talented writers in the wincest community

[weylersource]

Happy birthday @wincestation, one of the most talented writers in the Wyler community who blesses us with her amazing stories on a regular basis.

Apparently this is a day late, but I hope you had a wonderful birthday yesterday. Stay spooky 🖤

[overrated-sheep]

Currently devouring wincest fics and I love every writer so much man like everything I've read is sooo good and its all FREE?? idk I just love this community sm, you're all so fucking talented (ಥ _ ಥ)

[historians]

rian, why do so many people have to be negative about fanfiction? it makes me feel kind of uncomfortable with myself, honestly :(. can you maybe name some ways in which fanfiction (+ shipping etc.) can be good? because 1. i think the world could use that right now and 2. in real life situations i can never think clearly enough to come up with reasons myself.

i actually went off about this on twitter a while back!! from a writer’s perspective, albeit, but you can read it here. (tl;dr: fanfic is uniquely useful writing practice and shouldn’t delegitimize a writer’s talent or potential) but like. now i’m gonna go off. i could talk about this shit for hours.

in general though, there’s a lot of reasons why fanfic/shipping/etc are often good and productive things! aside from the importance fanfic and shipping has to marginalized communities in fandom (who disproportionately write and consume them), in general they provide a space to creatively engage with media to personal and creative benefit. media a reflection, but it’s also a form of escapism. if you’re not reflected in it, the escapism part requires a little bit of creativity. for fans who don’t see themselves in media very often, or at all, it’s a powerful way to feel the same connection to media that we can’t get just by passively consuming it. for creators, especially ones interested in crafting narratives, fanwork is a creative outlet to examine the themes and boundaries of other works using your own medium. it’s invaluable. writing and reading fic has made me a better writer than classroom knowledge or talent alone ever could. full stop. at its most basic level, all fanwork, including fanfic, is a way for fans to connect with the content we love, and let it push our own creative boundaries. (to whatever extent you let it, that it is). the very nature of being a fan of anything makes its existence inevitable and necessary. 

i’ve seen people argue that fanworks/fanfic itself has credibility, but shipping within it doesn’t. (or straight up-discredits it.) it’s an arbitrary line to draw. shipping can be easily done in a way that is unhealthy (y’all remember misscribe?) or problematic (republican coworker who ships wincest but thinks lesbians are weird, i’m talking to you.) but even in the fucked up places it can sometimes wind up, the practice itself (imo) isn’t that hard to understand. it’s wish fulfillment, and extreme examples or ‘not getting it’ aren’t legitimate reasons to dismiss anything that includes it when wish fulfillment is all but inherent in fiction. i can’t speak for everyone, but i started shipping things because i wanted to see experiences i felt like i could relate to, and i write shipping fic because it’s an incredibly useful and fun way to play around with character dynamics, emotions, and motivations. it turns out it’s pretty good at doing those things! but more importantly, if it’s fun for you, it’s really fucking fun for you. some people get their kicks from watching sports teams win. others get their kicks from reading about two cartoon dudes falling in love. life sucks, you cling to what you can, and wish-fulfillment has never been an acceptable reason to dismiss the value of creative work. 

fanfic gets an unfair rep, and i can’t help but feel there’s a correlation with how often it’s presented as mostly shipping related (aka sexual, aka written for female sexual gratification), and how that’s conflated with low-quality writing. it’s frustrating how fanfic is still seen as harlequin romance for nerds, especially when it feels like other forms of fanwork are starting to be seen as legitimate skills. in reality, fanfic is just like everything else. there’s bad fanfic, with all those awful cliches and shoddy continuity, but we also have a very bad, very distinct sort of image that pops into our head at the mention of deviantart, don’t we? (no, not the furry porn.) but there’s also good fanfic, and fanartists who turned into the reason you picked up the pen. with anything, there’s a spectrum.

good fanfic is written by talented, skilled people who have spent years and years honing their craft and are choosing to do labor-intensive work for free out of passion. i’ve read countless works, with and without shipping, by people who are clearly publishable, but are gifting the communities they love with substantial works of art (bc writing is an art!) its detractors never seem to really grasp this. there are works that contain just as much technical skill, just as much character depth, and just as much emotional nuance as the majority of what you could pull off the shelf. the author of your favorite fic has probably put in just as many hours and years writing as the best fanartist you know has drawing. it can be really fucking good.

but honestly like who fucking cares if people don’t like it bc the principle itself is fucking harmless and we’re going to die someday! life is short! anyone who thinks it’s weird or fucked up can eat my whole entire ass!

[thewhiterabbit42]

Blog Appreciations - Round 1

I’ve been kicking around this idea of wanting to do some sort of blog appreciation and have finally come up with how I’d like to do it.

What It Is:  A drabble / oneshot of the tagged person’s choosing* (see below) with an explanation of why they’re being appreciated

Who It’s For:  I will be tagging specific blogs / users but the idea is to give back to the wonderful artists / writers who put their own time and energy into creating entertainment for us and, let’s face it, who don’t get nearly as much feedback as they deserve.  The other group I’d like to acknowledge are those who do go out of their way to support this community with their feedback and encouragement. 

Other Info: For anyone not interested in receiving a oneshot or drabble, I’m afraid my other talents are limited.  However I’d be happy to simply make a post about why you are awesome and at least give you a signal boost.

Now that that’s set, let Round 1 of appreciations begin!

I’d like to tag:  @omgreganlove, @girl-next-door-writes, @lacqueluster, and @crowley-you-sinnamon-roll

Just let me know:

If you’re interested

What character(s) / pairing(s) you’d like

How you’d like to cry - Angst? Super happy fluffiness? Orgasmic overload? (Just kidding, please don’t cry)

Any other details you’d like included

*The only exception is I will not write Wincest.  No disrespect if that’s anyone’s cup of tea, it just doesn’t happen to be one of mine.

Each of you have contributed something wonderful either through your feedback and support or your writing (though often through both) and I just want to say THANK YOU!!!