#which was my intro to tumblr reading and writing fanfic and just fandom in general

[i-like-books-and-women]

You ever just come across the spruce material for a fandom you were in ages ago and just have such a fond nostalgia for it? Like "omg I remember losing my fucking shit over that when that episode/chapter/book/season/update came out". And then going to see if the fandom is still alive cause said source material is old, you left the fandom like four years ago, and the source material hasn't received an update in ages and it's still active and you're like "Yo people still live here?"

[marilynthornhilllover]

An Important announcement ⭐️

So as some of you may know, though I’m not quite sure if I’ve said this before but before I was a writer on here I was an editor (still do sometimes). And I found out about tumblr from a friend @slut4milfsss who’s not active anymore :(. Basically she used her work piece for the intro in one of her edit and I was like “ I need to know where I can read that” and she directed me over here. And honestly at first I had absolutely no business or urge to write fics…. Until there were barely any Marilyn thornhill fanfics on here at the time, hence the reason for my username so I began writing my own fics and over time I eventually started writing on different characters/fandoms.

I’ve loved writing since I was in elementary school but my love really grew in high school, and I loved literature and I had that fattest crush on my professor Ms. Lane who’s now Mrs. Cambridge ( don’t worry guys she knows and she’s honestly fine with my little story lmao). Growing up with parents who had money wasn’t always the nicest experience, most of the time I used writing as a coping mechanism with my depression and anxiety.

Graduating high school a bit early,and then before going to college I took a gap year to really decide what I wanted to do with my life and I decided whole heartedly on psychology! But anyway cut the long story short, I’ve had this app for 2 1/2 years which is crazy because it feels like yesterday when my writing started getting recognition. I’m honestly so proud of the work I did and the friends and amazingly talented and supportive writer buddies I’ve come across but unfortunately I’m not 18, 21 and 23 anymore next year (2025) I’m gonna be 25….😭😔. Time flew so much! I literally remember my high school days, college days and university days as well as my gap year in London so well.

I’m a clinical psychologist and in June I did my final course exams and I’m now officially an badge clinical psychologist with my own office in NYC and let’s just say I love my job it has a deeper meaning behind it and waking up everyday and getting the privilege to meet and therapy patients struggling with their MH and working along side some of the best doctors has always been my dream. Recently I’ve started another short course work in neuroscience and it’s so intriguing. Trust me wasting your 20’s away in degrees is not boring it’s worth it.

With that being said. This year wasn’t the best or easiest year for me. Don’t even get me started on 2023.I’ve got a lot of good things going for me right now, new friends, for the summer I traveled to L.A, I went to one the the VP’s rally where I got a picture with her, new experiences and most of all I think I may have met the love of my life! <3. And now going into 2025 I need space and a little breather. I wanna do some new stuff, I wanna travel and I wanna be happy with friends and family and work on some personal relationships and most importantly myself.

With that being said I will be taking a break from tumblr and taking a step back from this account and writing in general . I don’t know when I’ll be back or if I’ll ever be be back (that’s not decisive as yet for now I promise it’s just a break) I’ve taken breaks before, especially before my CPB exams and some random anon people decided to bash me in my own anon box as if I don’t have a life of my own….. but anywaysss I know I have a bunch of requests in my inbox which I will try to get through while I’m away along with CHP 10 the finale of my lady d series. I do love writing for you guys and this app has been my safe place and just a place of peace, smiles, experiences and growth, and I don’t know why I feel like I’m out growing my jacket. But I do want to focus on certain areas in my life now before I make decisions I don’t want to. I’ll always come back and reblog and share my love and support once in a while so don’t worry.

So To all my favorite writers @regalbootie @daydream-cement @prettygreenpills @littledollll @cissyenthusiast010155 @v3nusxsky @d4rkhold @wifeofnatasharomanoff @milfsloverblog @brienneoftarth1989 @willalovexx @daddy-heather-dunbar @togrowoldinv @kararomanoff @harksness @weemssapphic @storiesofsvu2-0 @schemmentigfs @ottiliaxwritten @ilovehugslikealotalot @m1lfsh4ke @gamma-rae-bursts , more in numbers than I can ever tag ( sorry if I didn’t tag you! I literally can’t remember the rest) , sorry for the random tag as well guys 😭☹️ but I do wanna say a small heart felt thank you, not only for being the most generous, genuine, kind, supportive, authentic, optimistically talented writers I’ve ever encountered but for just doing what you do, being a writer can be so hard and it takes endless courage but you guys manage to come through regardless. I remember reading some of you guys work and was in constant awe, most of my motivation and will power to write and be inspired came from you guys. And to my mutuals…. @willalovexx @luisa323 @milkiedimitrescu @m1lfsh4ke @gamma-rae-bursts @mymiraclewitch @kmaxmadness (and again sorry if I forgot anyone) Words cannot describe how much I love you guys. My love pours out beyond words, I will always cherish the continuous amount of love, generosity and support you all have given me. Especially the love you showed to me in times of anon hate and towards my fanfics. I truly did enjoy my time on this app all the fun times 😂 and most definitely the comments. I’ve made so many friends on here like Heidi who deactivated her account sadly but we are still so close and talk everyday on instagram.

I forbid any tears from this post!😤 but I really do love you guys and I will always think of each and everyone of you. And I wish nothing but the best for all you!🤍🌸. Remember to stay true to yourselves, go out with friends, fall in love, do silly things, give yourself a reason, do what makes you happy! Always…. And please do take breaks. Don’t write your life away when there’s so many amazing opportunities, experiences and people waiting. The world is waiting, the life than you want is waiting. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate, wishing everyone a very heart felt holidays and happy new year!🎆🎊

— sincerely, your best friend.

[afantasyoffiction]

a lil intro :)

hi hello to anyone who's checking this out!

i’m caitlin, an aspiring fantasy writer and maybe poet, english literature nerd and general fandom weirdo who likes to talk a lot about all my many many obsessions :)

i'm new to actively participating on this site as opposed to watching thru the window of pinterest...but now that i write more and 9-1-1 in particular doesn't post on pinterest so much, i'm on here too rip

i talk about: writing, procrastinating writing, reading writing and characters in writing who drive me insane!

my writing: i write poetry which i will post on here occasionally! but my main writing that is intended for other ppl to read is fanfic in the below fandoms, and my fantasy wip:

my wip: a ya fantasy book (one day trilogy i hope!) about a world where witches are gone, but persecution of them isn't. trying to save her innocent sister from execution, my fmc gets dragged into a storm of political plotting, conflicting agendas and strange powers beyond her comprehension. a book about family, and realising that what you thought was a bedtime story might still be around to haunt you...

my ao3: a_fantasy_2 (but there's currently not much on there that's escaped my drafts - i'll repost anything i'm proud of here first!)

main fandoms: i have been in a ridiculous number of fandoms so this is not all of them but these are my main ones - bold are ones im currently in the trenches abt :)

9-1-1 (pls no ship war content tho i just cannot)

marauders (my og loml one true fandom its a canon event i fear)

good omens (book and tv show changed my life)

anything leigh bardugo but SoC and RoW especially

supernatural (its been a while but then again i'm fandom posting on this site so its kinda a given)

anything by chloe gong....(message me PLEASE. best ya fantasy writer and my literal writing idol)

EPIC the musical - i love this so freaking much, if you don't know what this is go find out u won't regret it

hamilton (i am in fact hamiltrash, unfortunately)

aftg (im not writing that out. if you know what that acronym is thats on you.)

tagging system: i got one of those creepy teeth 'frequent poster badges' today, so i think it might be time for me to get one of these. ahem. on an incoherent blog, i declare order:

#caitlin writes and yaps abt it - writblr content (these will almost always have the 'writblr' and 'writers on tumblr' tag as well)

#caitlin's original writing - any writing from my wips or poetry i share

#caitlin the english major - literature posts

#caitlin reblogs from even cooler blogs - reblogging my moots or other cool ppl!

#caitlin does ask games - making a separate tag bc i LOVE these

#caitlin rambles miscellaneous - anything else thats incoherent

fandom posts will all be tagged with their fandom and with #caitlin a fandom nerd

sound good? let me know if this actually makes this blog make any more sense mk team

please send me: asks/posts/comments about these fandoms, short fic writing prompts within these fandoms, writblr content, writing questions, or literature thoughts :)

(pls don’t send me requests for money or ai content. i will block and delete, here’s why)

basically reach out if you just want to ramble about any of these things because what else is tumblr dot com for ... seriously what. actually what was this site made for it beats me

[EDIT: after an excessive amount of overthinking, ive decided that while i will post abt my wip on here, it will be hopefully vague enough to not necessarily link this blog to it if i ever did manage to get it published. there will be wip-related posts tho bc theyre fun! im just delulu and an overthinker]

[panharmonium]

Hi! Do you have any Naruto fanfics (specifically Kakashi and Sasuke)? Sorry for bothering I just can't find any good ones anywhere. Thanks for your time <3

Hi!  Don’t worry, you’re not bothering me.  I totally sympathize with this; the lack of Kakashi and Sasuke material out there really took me by surprise when I first finished Naruto.  I unfortunately can’t answer your question about fic too thoroughly - despite my current Naruto obsession, I generally don’t read fic for fandoms where I’m actively writing, unless it’s something written by a friend.  But I know there are other people who hang out on my blog who might have recommendations, so maybe they’ll be able to chime in here with something they’ve enjoyed!

In terms of just general suggestions, you might consider checking out @keepyourpantsongohan’s blog - she cares a lot about Kakashi and Sasuke’s relationship (and about Kakashi and Yamato, which is like striking gold twice) - her posts were a huge breath of fresh air for me when I first started checking out the Naruto fandom, and she’s been in the fandom much longer than I have, so it’s possible she might have some recommendations to consider.

If you enjoy AU stories, I’d also recommend checking out @padmerrie! She’s a writer + fanartist who’s just as invested in Kakashi and Sasuke’s relationship as I am, and her Bookends 'verse is a modern-day au where Kakashi becomes Sasuke’s guardian at a young age.  Kakashi and Sasuke’s relationship as a family unit is the core of the premise, though the Bookends!verse also features Madara and Hashirama as Sasuke’s meddling “grandparents,” alive!Team Minato (minus Minato, that is, and not without that group’s characteristic brand of issues), and all the other characters you might expect to see in the Naruto ‘verse, with the addition of Kakashi’s (eight) pet dogs and Sasuke’s (one) pet cat.  

The story isn’t being written in chronological order (Bookends is more like an AU sandbox we play in whenever we feel like it, which is always), and there’s more to it than what has been written down so far, but there’s a basic intro post about the AU on @padmerrie’s blog, two one-shot fics set in that universe hosted on her AO3 page (with more currently in progress), and lots of fanart and other related posts on her tumblr under the bookends or vague bookends thoughts tags.  

(I tend to post about this AU fairly regularly too, in between working on canon stuff, so you can find related posts on my own blog under those same tags.)

And that’s about it for my recommendations!  Perhaps other folks here might be able to drop some recs of their own - if you guys know of any Kakashi & Sasuke stories you’ve enjoyed, feel free to drop them in the replies for @chocolatewobblermuffinwagon.

[whump-in-the-night]

New intro post

Hello friends. So a while back tunglr.hell broke my original whump sideblog (@harlows-whump-stuff) and has not fixed it. So. New whump sideblog.

Will be archiving any whump posted here over on DreamWidth as well, right here.

I take drabble requests/prompts for generic whump (fandom whump too at my discretion)

Here is my original intro post, but edited up and updated:

Main is @reallyreal-madeingold.

I write fanfic for the Buffyverse, and my AO3 is linked here. It's not all whumpy, but some of it is! I also run a rarepair group for the buffyverse, which has a Tumblr account here: @otherworldlychemistry

I also write original fiction, and I hope to start an original whump story or two on this blog soon!

I don't have a DNI list, I'm not going to inspect everyone who interacts with me. Minors and those who are easily triggered should be mindful that there may be adult content on this blog, including but not limited to, sex, violence, blood and gore, etc.

I believe in these three core tenants for fiction and fandom: Ship and let ship, don't like don't read, your kink is not my kink (and that's ok).

Just a few of my fav whump tropes:

lab whump/lab rat stuff, medical whump, military whump, nonhuman characters (I especially have a thing for vampires...I blame my BtVS brainrot lol), strained relationship between caretaker and whumpee, bonus points if they're enemies, impersonal whumper(s) (scientists just trying to figure out what makes nonhuman!whumpee tick, etc) possessive caretaker, especially of the "this is for your own good." variety. In a similar vein, having to drug and/or restrain whumpee for their own good. Villain whumpee with heroic caretaker, or vice versa. But especially villain whumpee. Sickfic/delirium/hallucinations/sleep deprivation, drugging. Pet whump (sometimes). And more.

Squicks: Don't have a ton. Can't do cannibalism. Hand/finger/eye stuff often is a squick. Animal death/abuse. Character death.

Happy to be here with this shiny new blog!

[undeadgayboynes]

Ruh roh!! An intro post!!

My name is Bones and, before I even start talking about myself, I think I should establish a few things: 

I’m brand new to tumblr. I’ve poked my nose in a few times in the past and I’ll search tags for fanart to look at, but that’s about it. Never got particularly far or particularly invested and I’m gonna have to learn how things work as I go. 

Now you might, but probably not, be asking why am I here now then? The answer is pretty simple: I am absolutely desperate to ramble about my current hyperfixations and other random junk somewhere other than the notes app on my phone. I can’t bombard my poor friends with random bs about things they really have no interest in. I need an outlet before my brain fully turns to mush.

With that out of the way, let’s actually get to an actually introduction.

Like I said, my name is Bones, I’m turning 20 years old in like a week, and I use exclusively he/it pronouns. I’m gay, transmasc, and polyamorous. I present pretty fem/gnc but I’m very much a guy. I deal with a handful of mental illnesses, which I’m pretty open about, as well as being autistic and having ADHD (hence the hyperfixations). I’m a college student studying Visual Arts and I draw A LOT but who knows if I’ll post my stuff here since art-block has been beating my ass. I've picked up writing, both fanfics and about original characters, as a hobby

My current hyperfixations are Re-Animator and Evil Dead but I’m just a horror fan in general. 

Other than all that I also enjoy other fandoms, psychology, vulture culture, fashion, paganism, and other things I’m failing to think of right now.

Ok, if you read all this then you’re probably p cool! I’m pretty friendly and love to chat so say hi or whatever! 

[phoebe-delia]

Happy 10 Year Anniversary, @lqtraintracks!

I have waxed poetic about my admiration for @lqtraintracks on Tumblr, on Discord, in AO3 comments, and in their DMs. It is no secret that I’m a massive fan of their work, and I’ll get into one of those fics in particular later.

I’ve said this before, but I posted my first fic on AO3 in April and I finally caved and made a Tumblr in June. I remember making my profile and my intro post, and following the authors I knew of at the time and could find. Lqt was one of the first, if not the first person I followed.

Soon after, I got a notification. “lqtraintracks started following phoebe-delia”

The person who had written some of my all-time favorite fics, and who was a big reason why I had decided to start writing Drarry in the first place, was my very first follower on Tumblr.

I lost my fucking marbles. And when I found them, I lost them again.

Once the shock finally settled, it occurred to me that this person had 1. Never knowingly interacted with me before (I’d commented on Right Hand Red under another username) and 2. Had probably seen my bio and intro post about being a new Drarry writer and then just…followed me back.

It was then that lqt became a role model for me for more than just writing.

I have made a conscious effort to be as generous, heartfelt, and open as lqt was and continues to be. Since then, they have been kind and patient with my constant fangirling, and they have even taken the time to read a few bits of my work on Tumblr and reblog them with lovely feedback. I’ve gotten asks in the past about which comments mean the most to me, and while a few heartfelt ones on AO3 come to mind, so does even the simplest praise from this writer and person I admire so much.

While I will always and forever be a fan of their work, I am extremely grateful for the chance to get to know them a little better as a person. One of the highlights of my birthday was talking with them over DM, and there have been other chances for us to connect. When I first started reading fanfic a couple years ago, their writing (and fic in general) was a big escape for me during a hard time. Now, this year has been incredibly difficult for reasons that I won’t share here, but lqt’s words—both in fic and in conversation—have made this time more bearable for me.

I am by no means the first or the last person to have been forever changed by Lqt’s work and their kindness, but I feel remarkably lucky to have befriended the person whose work I read late into the night, tucked into bed and wondering if I’d ever be as free as Harry and Draco speeding down the highway.

I’d say I can’t believe you’ve been writing fic for 10 years, but it’s obvious from your skill, your insight and your generosity. I think we all discover fic and fandom at the right time—much like how a certain Wailing Warner knows when it’s needed most and when it’s not. For me, I found your fics and RHR at the time I needed them. I joined the fandom and made a tumblr at the time you happened to be on to return my follow. Your WOD gift fic came at the lowest point in my life so far—when I’ve needed it most.

That being said, I now get to ramble on about the only fic to rival RHR for my favorite by lqt: 28 Minutes in Heaven, the one they wrote me for the WOD gift exchange. It is 11k of party games and falling in love and banter and humor and not knowing what you’re doing but allowing that to be okay. It has been pulling me through the moments I’ve needed it and I cannot rec it enough.

Thank you, lqt, for being there for the last ten years, making the work for us to find at the exact right time.

[drsteggy]

Hey Stegg! I’m going around to some of my writer mutuals/favorite fic writers and asking about their favorite works! Just to spread a little fic writer hype :) Tell us about the best fic you’ve written and why it’s kickass! This could include anything, from developmental fun facts, to character stuff, to your writing process, to thematic-weaving coolness. Have at it! :D

I still think of myself as fairly new in this space, and while I try to write and post regularly, I definitely don’t have a big body of work just yet. I also don’t know if I’m a good judge of my own work. I did have a crappy relationship with my stats last summer, but I’ve mostly gotten over it and I really do try to write things that I want to write, so most of my stuff is pretty self indulgent.

Like. I did creative writing in high school, and undergrad, but it got set aside hard for a long time as I turned skills I had to written debates on blog posts and forums. I came to fic writing without much clue what to do-my studies were sciences and a lot of them, and whatever English classes I took were pretty much minimal. I did love to read, and I read a lot, but if you asked me how stories worked I really could not tell you very well. I still can’t. I recognize that I probably soaked up how I liked story arcs to go, and I knew when I felt cheated or baited and switched (looking at you, LOST and Game of Thrones) but I definitely feel like the dumb kid when I’m somewhere watching people talk about the nuts and bolts of things. So we are gonna go on about my favorite thing I’ve written, because it’s also almost all I’ve written.

So my favorite thing I’ve written is still Uneasy Lies the Chosen of Farore. When I started to really fixate on the Legend of Zelda, I first sought out fan art, and there’s so much gorgeous art. Art led to fic. I hadn’t read fanfic since the 90s when I was obsessing over The X Files.

I particularly liked how flexible canon seemed to be in the fandom. The story goes that the hero and the incarnation of Hylia reincarnate repeatedly, and not all of them got to be a game, right? That idea was so exciting. Surely, at some point, they were adults, maybe older adults, maybe characters I could relate to a bit better than teenagers. So I looked, and the best I could do was finding them in their early, maybe mid 20s. This was frustrating to me and I spent a lot of time wondering if I would be worthy, should I stumble upon a sword with a blue hilt and a strangely flipped cross guard and I decided that I was a lot more worthy than I would have been at sixteen or twenty-five and from there it was a pretty short journey to imagining what it would be like to take that hilt, and that’s pretty much the first chapter.

I’ve written about how the rest of the story came to be before, so I’ll try to not retread that ground. At the time this was going on, I was still sorting out a pretty turbulent and awful period of my own life, and while I was mostly on the other side, I was also still trying to fit it into the rest of my life and I dealt with a lot of it through that story. I half joke sometimes that this version of Link is very much a self insert. I feel like a lot of readers pick up on the parent stuff. But there’s other stuff too, because when I decided to turn my thousand word scene into an 88k fic, I decided to use the overall arc of the previous four or five years as a scaffold to hang stuff on.

I’m not gonna delve into personal stuff for me other than broad strokes. I think I generally made better choices in my life, for example, than Link does, but it did take a therapist to help me see why I made some choices the way I did. The Great Deku Tree and Impa both say things to Link that were said to me. Zelda does as well at some point. Each time that happens he does take a minute to think on it and changes a little bit, so that by the time he is at the end of the story, the guy he was at the beginning might not recognize him.

People often comment that they find this Link and Zelda very relatable and I’m glad they do. In the games, Link is supposed to be the slate your write your experience on as you go. He is supposed to just be an extension of the player, maybe more so in Breath of the Wild which was my intro to the franchise. I really love the journey he goes on from realizing he is a pretty hot mess, and how much his shit is not as together as he assumed, though he needed a big event to change things out of his control to see it, to where is much more emotionally grown up and has found a soft place to land with people he loves who love him back on equal footing.

I recognize my little AU seems a little weird at first, but I’ve enjoyed playing in it enough that I also ended up writing a series of side fics for it, and I still think about what might have happened before and after the sword, that I suspect there will probably be more. It’s definitely a work I’m really proud of, and it also helped bring me into a community of people I really like, too.

The art I commissioned for this fic is making rounds on Tumblr again today, for some reason. Someone reblogged it and a bunch of other people saw it for the first time. I like to think when someone reblog sit out of the blue it means than maybe they went and had a read, and I like having that thought. I’m glad I brought this thing into the world. 2020 sucked pretty hard but this fic probably would not exist if it hadn’t.

Thank you, @kittmoon for the ask. I really do like to talk about that fic.

[thelittlefanpire]

100 days of writing // day 1

thanks to @the-wip-project for putting this idea together and @kinetic-elaboration for always sharing her writing thoughts on tumblr. I see them and I love them and I’m going to try this thing out for myself! It’s always seemed like a very therapeutic thing to do, almost like a diary or journal, and that’s probably how a lot of these posts are going to read. No promises on consistent or quality content, but here we go! (please let me know if you’d like to be tagged in these posts, feel free to interact and reblog, and tag me in your posts as well, mutuals!)

So...I don’t actually write every day, but I do think about writing literally very single day of my life. I am sitting on a pile of WIPs and ideas that seem to be never-ending and I need to find a way to organize my work and motivate myself to do the actual writing bit...

When I started my journey back into fanfic writing, a couple of years ago, I had three initial fic ideas. Three vibes. Three stories I wanted to write...someday! But I’ve always felt with my writing that there were certain things I wasn’t ready for...there were certain ideas I wasn’t a good enough of a writer to write yet. I needed to practice.

So I came up with lots of ideas. Honestly, brainstorming and thinking about writing as always been way more easy for me, but like same, amiright? I would then write the “easier—less complex—good enough for me” fics. @troped-fanfic-challenge helped with that A LOT. And other fandom events. They helped me get over my fear of the way my writing had to be “good enough” and allowed it to just be. Practice isn’t meant to be perfect. These stories just need to exist outside of my brain.

Then I got really burnt out on TROPED writing and was just generally unhappy with most of the things I created last year. This year it has been better but I’ve still had some trouble being consistent. I’ve fallen behind on TROPED Rounds which frustrates me to no end. I also think being a mod is a hindrance sometimes because @dylanobrienisbatman and I come up with these prompts weeks and even months ahead of time, giving me just way too much time to let a idea marinate, so when the writing period comes around I’ve just fizzled out on it.

Today I’ve taken a look at my list of WIPs and ideas to figure out which one was calling to me the loudest. Here are a few I’ve been looking at: (keeping it vague in case these things never see the light of day!)

Conclave - this is the last TROPED event I was supposed to participate in. I had my Location/Character/Theme/Tropes all picked out, but I did not get past the intro during the writing period. typical. Motivation to continue it is low today.

1.0 R4 - this is the first one on my list I started and still need to finish from a early round of TROPED. Thankfully, it actually exists outside of my brain and Google doc, but after my initial writing time, I have not been able to finish this at all. I have one chapter and an epilogue left to write, but where has my inspiration gone too?! I would have to reread and get in a serious mental space to take this on again.

3.0 R3 - this idea is the most intriguing to me rn. I have an intro written and a pretty hefty outline for it. It’s the TROPED Fantasy Heist AU. There’s a lot of fun elements to it and it’ll be pretty wild by the time I get to the ending. I think there’s enough space between conception and now that I could potentially pick it up again.

JATP R4 - because brainstorming is the most fun, I’m tempted to play around with this round and figure out an idea for the prompt! I would want it to fit it into my Royalty Verse, but that’s adding another idea to my pile. woe is me.

[okay-victoria]

General Information

If you somehow got here not from SpaceBattles, the story for which I’m referencing this information is:

https://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/we-are-each-our-own-devil-youjo-senki-saga-of-tanya-the-evil.815438/

Because I have one of the least-wild Tanya stories out there from a “how crazy can I make her life” perspective, my take on Tanya living a (relatively) normal life ends up coming into more frequent conflict with widely-believed pieces of fanon than its relatively mundane plot would imply. In an effort to stop posting long explanations every time those questions come up, I’m going to try this method.

I only aim to be canon-compliant with the LN, and am only strict on it up to Vol. 5** [when I started writing], but try to fit in any additional worldbuilding info from later volumes if it doesn’t mess everything up.

**Exception - For the future lookback segments where Tanya has been disappeared, it seems...unnecessary to work that into my plot, and kind of sad.

I’m putting canonical references here as they relate to my story, for people to take a gander at and grab information from when they think I’ve abused my author privileges to make the plot work how I want it while ignoring the facts. If you still think I’m blatantly ignoring the actual facts after you read it, I’m happy to discuss on SB, but I don’t feel that is the place to simply point out that counterarguments exist or what the other possible interpretations from the facts are. I’m aware there is an SB discussions thread, but it felt a bit intrusive to bombard it with all this stuff that is related to my story, as I don’t particularly care about convincing people about this that aren’t asking to be convinced.

If you would just like to debate the points in the abstract, and it isn’t an issue of this actual story having a SOD-breaking moment that I haven’t sufficiently explained enough to let you agree to disagree, you are welcome to go back and forth here if you want to debate me personally. To the best of my first-day-on-Tumblr ability, I’ve made it possible for other people to submit full posts/anonymously comment on my posts. It’s possible I’ll join a debate in the SB Discussions thread if you pull something out of here and put it there.

When possible I have not quoted copyrighted information where I thought I could avoid it. I left it in where it felt necessary to have the wording itself be laid bare. If people feel like they need a direct quote on specific bullet points where I haven’t included it, you can ask.

I feel like it hardly needs to be said, but SPOILERS in basically all other posts. The bulk of my info is from Volumes 1 to 5, but there are a handful of references through Volume 8. Mostly they deal with people’s personalities and world-building facts so aren’t going to spoil a bunch of plot happenings.

As a final note, I gathered up all this information to help me write, because unlike Tanya I’m clearly super chill and don’t attack things with a fanatical single-mindedness once I decide to do them. Like all authors, to some degree or other, every word you put on the page is a plot contrivance. I needed a baseline to go off of to determine where there was flexibility in directing the plot as I want to direct it, and where there wasn’t. 

More to the point, this information was never intended to be used to nitpick other stories, especially because the LN isn’t the only source you can go to, it just happened to work best for me. I only have the time and energy to harass myself about details, and I wouldn’t want strict adherence to minute details to be what prevents a good idea from turning into a good story, regardless. I have plenty of my own minute details I overlook. I am not the Lord of the Details, I don’t want to be the Lord of the Details, and if you look there’s a bunch of places in my story you could lob a “it wouldn’t really happen like this” criticism very accurately. Hilariously, those are simply the times when I’m letting Tanya be the OP Tanya everyone knows and loves, so it slides on by without comment.

Please do not be that person, and don’t use a factoid from this to go bother other authors about things you would’ve otherwise not cared about.

Also, as stated in the intro, this is meant as a reference for when your headcanon conflicts with the one used in-story, so that you may hopefully accept that there are reasonable alternative perspectives, even if it isn’t how you choose to personally interpret it. It is not meant to change anyone’s mind, and not necessarily meant as a place to actively browse for opportunities to change my mind just for the hell of it so that we may all converge on the Fandom Headcanon Singularity. The variety of personal headcanons are what makes fanfic possible in the first place :)

However, in general I’m happy to debate as long as I know I’m only among people who care about participating/watching the debate.

[soopersara]

Why and when did you start shipping Zutara?

You want the long version or the short version? Just kidding! There really isn’t a short version. My history with ATLA in general is kind of a mess. 

I saw my first episode of ATLA around the time it was airing - I think it was in 2008 or so when Book 3 was almost done. Anyway, I was babysitting some of my younger cousins, my aunt told me that the boys were allowed to watch a couple of episodes of the show they’d been recording on the DVR. Cool. I’d never heard of it before, but if middle-school me didn’t have to come up with a ton of activities to occupy three little boys until their bedtime, I wasn’t gonna argue about it. 

So I got the boys settled in on the couch, hit play, and I watched my first ever episode of ATLA. The Western Air Temple. And HOLY BUCKETS, dude, I was hooked. Honestly, in a way, I started shipping Zutara right then and there. There was just so much emotion and tension between the two of them. And sure, it was clearly not a romance yet, but the whole point of the episode was Zuko trying to join the Gaang, and for me (then and now), Katara felt like the emotional center of the Gaang. She was the one who seemed to have the most personal history with Zuko, she was the one who was most opposed to him joining, and she was the person whose approval Zuko seemed to want the most. And... damn. I wanted to see that conflict play out and resolve SO BADLY. I wasn’t consciously aware of this at the time, but there’s an old saying that love and hate aren’t opposites, love and apathy are. And that was the first time I ever felt the truth of that statement and wanted to watch the enemies to friends to lovers dynamic play out.

But then my babysitting night ended, and my parents drove me home, and I spent the rest of my middle school and high school years back in my normal life in a house with one TV, no cable, and no internet. I couldn’t have watched the rest of ATLA if I wanted to, and I was unaware of... the majority of what was on the internet in general at that point, so I didn’t know that fandom was a thing. Also, my family has... poor taste in entertainment. They don’t like ANY fantasy/sci-fi, not because they had problems with the plots, tropes, or themes associated with the genres, but because they think that people who enjoy those genres are “weird” and because of that, they’ve never bothered to consume any stories in those genres. Which meant that they teased me for my tastes in stories. A lot. All the time. I wouldn’t have had the guts to watch ATLA in my house even if I had access to it. So I just let my brain run wild extrapolating story ideas from the tiny snippets of ATLA that I had seen and started never finished a few original stories with nuggets of inspiration drawn from the Zutara dynamic.

Then I went off to college a few years later and it occurred to me a couple of times that I could probably find ATLA and watch it online, but I never actually looked for it until a few of my friends in the dorms mentioned that they loved this old kids’ show called Avatar the Last Airbender. I waited until I finally had free time (the few days when I was stuck on campus after finishing finals), and finally got around to watching it. 

And watching ATLA was... not what I expected. Based on what I’d seen of the show several years earlier, I knew that Zuko started off on the wrong side of the war, but I wasn’t prepared to see him be such a raging jerk for so much of the show. Don’t get me wrong, I loved him the whole time but it was a I want to shake you and and tell you to pull your head out of your ass because I know how much better you will be later and I want that NOW kind of love. I knew based on the episode intro I’d seen in middle school that Aang was the protagonist, but I wasn’t prepared to see him drive so much of the show, since he was just... not the central character in the first episode I saw. And on some level, I knew that there had to be a lot of history as enemies between Zuko and the Gaang to cause the amount of animosity I saw, but I didn’t expect his joining the Gaang to come so close to the end. I thought there would be at LEAST a solid season with him as a Gaang member, not... half a season. 

So... I liked ATLA. It was good. The finale was a huge, beautiful spectacle that worked so well on an emotional level, but... there were enough things that niggled at me that I didn’t see it becoming a major interest of mine. At the time, I really only had media/stories that I revisited over and over and over because I loved them unconditionally and media/stories that was... too flawed or not compelling enough for me to revisit.

But ATLA was different. I thought it was going to end up in my list of “meh” stories that I liked but bugged me enough that I’d never go back to it. But I just. Kept. Thinking. About. It. And after a while, I started watching the show over. And over. And over. But those problems still niggled at me, and I didn’t really know how to articulate what my problems with the show were. 

So then I finished college and moved in with a friend. And after she introduced me to a few shows I’d never seen before, I decided to return the favor and introduce her to ATLA. And after that rewatch, I finally started picking out and trying to articulate some of my problems with the show. Two of the first things I realized were that I HATED Maiko as presented in canon (it reminded me too much of my high school classmates whose romantic relationships alway boiled down to “I hate spending time with him/her, but I’m horny.” UGH. I don’t know how many times I had to restrain myself from yelling, “JUST BREAK THE F*CK UP, YOU’RE NOT THE ONLY TWO HORNY TEENAGERS ON THE PLANET.”), and Kataang was... meh. I didn’t hate the idea of them being together eventually, but the development felt half-assed and the kiss in the finale was WAY too sudden for me. I finally remembered that I liked the idea of Zuko and Katara together way back when I first saw The Western Air Temple, and because the internet has a creepy way of reading my thoughts, Pinterest started feeding me Zutara fanart. I. Loved. It. Knowing that I wasn’t the only one who wanted them together was AMAZING (keep in mind, this was like... 2016. I came SO late it’s unreal).

I decided that I wanted to write a Zutara fanfic at some point, then got the idea for an Avatar Katara AU now my mega-slow updating WIP, A Tale of Ice and Smoke. And I started writing it. And posting on FFN. Then some of my scrolling through Zutara content on Pinterest led me to Zutara metas (which reinforced a lot of the conclusions I’d reached about my own issues with the story and helped me identify a few others that I’d noticed but hadn’t been able to express) and other people’s fics, and I started reading those while posting the first few chapters of Ice and Smoke. Then I finally created my own Tumblr and started getting more and more involved in the fandom. When I say that I fell ass-backward into this fandom, I mean it.

So. TLDR: I started either started shipping Zutara in 2008 when I saw one episode (to this day The Western Air Temple is still one of my favorites), or I started shipping it in 2016 after thinking about the show way too much, and deciding that fixing a lot of my problems with the series would most likely lead to Zuko and Katara being together. 

[convenientalias]

So... I don't know if you're supposed to chose any specific questions about a fanfic from the list or they all apply but... can you answer some for More of an Aminta?

So I realize you later sent another ask and specified 5, 6 and 15 (….sorry I’m so slow on responding to things lately, if it made you think I wasn’t going to respond to this, I’ve been very easily distracted lately….) but I like some of the other questions too so I’m just gonna do whatever I want. Not all of them tho.

(For those who haven’t read it, More of an Aminta is here on AO3. It’s my 46k E/R/C fic where Erik forces Raoul to join Don Juan Triumphant as Don Juan  because of Reasons. I am completely unashamed to pimp it bc I love it very much.)

5. What part was hardest to write?

….honestly…. it’s been like 2 years and I have a hard time remembering? In general I believe I found Raoul’s POV the easiest and Christine’s POV the hardest, probably bc Christine has the least going on in the fic–she’s still essentially doing the same stuff as in canon, just with a little added stress, whereas Raoul is learning music and all that and Erik is having a sexuality/am-I-into-Vicomtes crisis. So I was always like… it’s been a while since I wrote a Christine chapter but what is she even up to anyway?

6. What makes this fic special or different from all your other fics?

Actually this fic is very special to me because it was my real intro to the POTO fandom! I had written one creepy E/R fic for POTO before but this was the first fic where I got more attention and met some ppl who became friends on Tumblr. So it is special to me for that reason! It’s different at this point bc it’s the only fic of that length that I’ve completed, though I’m kind of hoping to change that this year with my current WIP. And the length allowed me to pack a lot more in–things that usually would show up in some of my other fics (fake opera meta, kidnapping, Piangi the wise) but more developed and all together.

7. Where did the title come from?

From when I was talking to my roommate about Raoul as Don Juan and she was like “Nah.” But I did eventually title drop and explain.

9. Were there any alternate versions of this fic?

There weren’t but in recent times I’ve kind of wondered what it would be like to write a similar fic but with Erik forcing Raoul to play Aminta instead and Christine, idk, playing Don Juan? I just think the cross dressing would be fun and it would make everything a little bit weirder.

…maybe I’ll write a oneshot along those lines someday.

11. What do you like best about this fic?

Although I enjoyed writing the E/R/C my favorite part was just writing Raoul being a not-very-trained-at-all opera singer. Wise-mentor!Piangi and all the terrible reviews were one of the main reasons I wanted to write the fic. I thought it would be hilarious, and it was really fun to write.

12. What do you like least about this fic?

I feel like it’s good as an E/R fic and an R/C fic, but the E/C side is definitely up in the air, which makes the E/R/C endgame not as neat as it might be.

15. What did you learn from writing this fic?

That I love the POTO fandom! Honestly. I received really great feedback while writing this fic and it really drove me to finish it way faster than I thought I could, and essentially made me decide to stay in the fandom. After More of an Aminta I wrote about 60 more POTO fanfics and I’m still writing them, and it’s as much because I love the ppl in the POTO fandom as because I love the characters and setting. Though I do love both. POTO has such a wide range of dynamics to explore in fic and such a great aesthetic… but enough said.

Uhhhh on a more practical level I learned that balancing three POVs in one fic can be a bitch! I was always trying not to let too long go by without writing a chapter of each POV and it was difficult. Had to re-outline over and over again. But it really was very fun, even the outlining part, bc I secretly love outlining and planning fics.

Thanks for the ask! I love a chance to ramble about More of an Aminta bc those were good times. Sorry I took so long answering you :)

[afterspark-podcast]

Intro: Transcript

Episode Show Notes

[This can also be found on AO3!]

O: Welcome to the AfterSpark Podcast, an episode by episode recap of the original G1 Transformers cartoon. I’m Owls!

S: And I’m Specs!

O: And we’re here to talk to you about giant robots. Or at least, we will be! This is actually our intro. What we’d like to do is recap all of generation 1 because it is full of glorious, glorious cheese. Delightful, cheesy goodness and honestly we just want to talk about it, because it’s fun.

S: Yeah

O: And we just wanted to introduce ourselves and kind of our experience with fandom and what things we like before we got into actually talking about the episodes. You should be able to check out our actual first episode the same time we post this. So if you’re like, “Hey, I don’t really care about any of this stuff,” it’s cool, I get it. The other episode’s over there. It’s fine, we’ll see you in a few minutes. For the rest of you that are sticking around, allow us to introduce ourselves. We’ve been friends for nine (9) years.

S: Mm-hmm.

O: Uhh, we went to college together. We were both in art degrees so we like art and comics and media and all that junk.

S: Yep, yep.

O: We’re also neighbors that live in the same building, so one day I was like, “Hey, hey, Specs, want to talk about giant robots?”

S: And I’m like, “Yes!”

O: So here we are, getting ready to talk to you about giant robots, hopefully. We are both first time podcasters, and a shoutout to my husband Chezni for helping us out with sound, so hopefully we don’t sound like complete shit while you’re listening to us. Hopefully it’s a little bit slightly, well, cultured shit -

S: [Laughter]

O: -Or at least our sound quality doesn’t sound awful, because that’s a big deal in podcasting. One of my biggest inspirations was the Jem Jam, which is another podcast that does episode by episode recaps of Jem and the Holograms, which is another Eighties (80’s) Hasbro-

S: -Franchise.

O: Thank you. That is equally ridiculous in vastly different ways. Mostly involving the Eighties (80’s) and music and hair and fashion and all these lovely things.

S: And Soap Opera Drama~!

O: And Soap Opera level of drama. It was also delightful. Go was the show or listen to the podcast because it is completely ridiculous and highly entertaining. But! Something I noticed when I was trying to kind of look around at Transformers podcasts was that I didn’t see anything that quite had that same vibe of just a bunch of friends talking about something ridiculous and I really wanted that and realized it wasn't there and thought, “Eh, maybe we can do that?”

O: And yeah, that’s what we’re trying to do.

S: So. Hi, I’m Specs. I’m been, uhm. Oh, this feels- [sigh] - This feels like I’m in a support group.

O: [Laughter] Welcome! Tell us how Transformers has affected your life. Tell us, Specs! Tell us!

S: Eh, I got into Transformers in like 2002-2003 and I got into it with fanfic. Because of course I did. So much fanfic over the last, like, sixteen (16) years. Oh my god. [huff of laughter]

O: She has quite a collection downloaded.

S: I save things. Habitually. After, uh, there was the great ezboard wipeout of, like, 2005. So, I got into fanfic. Or got into Transformers through fanfic basically I’d been poking through the Medabots thing [category] on fanfiction.net and oh. This person who wrote this thing that I read has also written about these other robots. And I was like, “Ok, let me check this out,” and I had no idea what was going on, so I was like, “I’m going to read through this entire category or at least look through, find whatever the heck looks interesting and then read it,” and that was like  4000 things [fics/works] in the category at that point.

O: Which is significantly less than what’s in there now, I do feel the need to point out. But!

S: I still went through that, and yeah there was a lot of stuff. Yeah, there’s actually still things I really like that I read way back when but basically that was my first exposure to transformers. My first complete canon experience was the G1 [Marvel] comics, but US and UK runs. So I’ve read the entirety of that and I think I read that before 2003 was done, so before 2004. I’ve still got it. It’s been a long time since I’ve read it. Basically, my dad bought a CD, two CD’s actually that had scan of the comics and that’s how I read it and that’s my complete G1 comic experience.

O: So accidentally pirating. [Laughter]

S: [Laughter] Kind of, yeah.

O: Not intentional, but, uh, y’know.

S: Yeah, and then I ended up on the Padded Cell, which was like the- the major sort of transformative fandom hub at the time? A lot of the stuff you see in fanfic now came from people who were on that forum from like 2000-2008. It wasn’t really the hub of anything anymore as things shifted to Lifejournal and [later] Tumblr, People moved away from forums and into, y’know-

O: Other social media accounts.

S: Yeah

O: That were easier and, y’know, they didn’t have to keep servers up and all that junk.

S: Yeah, but it was- it was neat, because I got to see a lot of the fandom stuff, like evolving firsthand, but, uh, so yeah. My fave G1 characters are Ratchet, because I really thought that he was the main character-

O: [Stifled laughter]

S: - in the comics for awhile, because, like, everyone is frigging, like all the Autobots are frigging out.[Laughter] LIke really quickly after they wake up and Ratchet’s just off doing whatever with Buster and then he has to do like a blood-fuel? Pact with Megatron-

O: [Laughing]

S: [Laughing] -and it’s weird. Yeah.

O: I have no frame of reference for any of this.

S: Well, maybe you will soon.

O: She’s lending them to me. Oh no.

S: And then there’s Dead End because like the first DVD’s that I got- I got the second half of season two, and was like, “I like lIke Dead End’s voice, oh no, he’s depressed. Let me hug this- hug this poor robot and so I got the entire. I have an entire, like, complete original G1 Stunticon toys. Set of the G1 toys with all of their combiner stuff. Never actually got around to combining them because I’m lazy and I was more interested in the characters themselves than in Menasor. So yeah, I’ve got those and I’ll bring them up to show them to you and I’ll bring the Alternator Dead End up, too

O: Yes, show me more toys!

S: And- And Wheeljack., which I don’t have an original Wheeljack toy, but I do have a Wheeljack Alternator. Basically G1 sort of got me on the kick for medics and scientists. I like most of the medics that pop up in various series. And yeah, so, favorite overall character is Ratchet and Rescue Bot Blades, who is coincidentally, the Rescue Bots medic. [Laughter]

O: He was before he got turned into a helicopter [laughter]

S: Yeah

O: Which is a great out of context thing to say.

S: Yes, it is.

O: Blade’s is adorable!

S: Like all of the Rescue Bots characters are adorable and you should watch that right now. Go watch it.

O: It is better than it has any right to be. I know, you’re sitting here going- if you haven’t seen it already- why would I watch something that was made for preschoolers? It is written better than it has any right to be. I do not know why, I don’t care why. It is actually quite good and very entertaining even if you’re an adult and you like transformers.

S: It’s got some of the most consistent writing out of any of the shows, like they knew what they had to do, they worked well within the guidelines they had to work with. Like, no one can die, no one can be seriously injured.

O: Right. Because preschoolers. Right.

S: And so it doesn’t have any of the weird tonal inconsistencies that sometimes Prime could get and it wasn’t, like, canceled like Animated was.

O: [softly] Yeah.

S: [sighs] And then Rewind. He’s basically kind of a librarian, and I think. Just Rewind and Chromedome are really neat. I like them both. I like most of the IDW characters.

O: They’re very, very good.

S: Mm-hmm. Favorite series: IDW G1, especially phase two. My favorites are Lost Light and More Than Meets The Eye. I still have a really soft spot for the original G1 comics, cuz they’re the first things that I read.

O: That makes sense.

S: Mm-hmm. And so, let’s - let’s go over to Owls.

O: Hi! My name is Owls. Uh, so in contrast to my friend, I’ve been in the fandom for three months, maybe. It all started a fateful day when I watched someone on YouTube talk about Beast Wars. I had the sneaking suspicion of I vaguely liked Beast Machine’s growing up? Didn’t remember anything else and thought, “Hey! I should watch Beast Wars!” This was my first mistake. At which point I, ah, messaged Specs and I was like, “Hey! You’ve got a copy of Beast Wars, right?”

S: Yep, mm-hmm.

O: And she did, and I watched it and then I rapidly ascended into Transformers madness. And I now lie at the bottom of a ravine getting buried by toys, comics, and various amounts of DVD’s.

S: Yep. Ones [Comics and DVD’s] that I’ve mostly lent you, but… [Laughter]

O: Mostly. I did buy Beast Machines, because she didn’t have it and I wanted to watch it and I have Opinions™. I have Opinions that I won’t get into right now. But I have opinions.

S: You also have Beast Wars.

O: I also bought Beast Wars, but that’s because it is my favorite Transformers thing. SO I’ve probably watched about six different animated series, uh, and the Bay movies and now I know enough to hate the Bay movies. Oh my god! I didn’t know before but now I do. [Laughter] Now I do.

S: Now you know the pain.

O: Now I do, yes. My desk is rapidly accumulating Transformers. Help.

S: [Laughter]

O: We’ve got Grumpy Desk Raptor, and we’ve got 99.9% Done-With-Your-Shit-Rodimus-Grandpa, and smaller, more murderous Desk Raptor. I’ll leave it you to figure out who those three are. [Laughter]

S: I like your desk raptors-

O: My desk-

S: and grumpy grandpa.

O: I-I-I collect grumpy, grumpy characters. This is going to become a theme. Ah, my favorite characters are Dinobot from Beast Wars, who is AWESOME! And I’m so mad he doesn’t show up in anything else! But I guess I should be happy he’s alive in the IDW comics and presumably in a good place?!

S: He’s in the Christmas ep- He’s in the Christmas episode, basically.

O: There’s an adorable panel, it is my life. Ahem. Anyway, so Dinobot from Beast Wars, Lost Light Megatron, which, if you’ve not read the comics, I won’t tell you we’re going to be spoiler free here, but I also don’t want to like be blatant about it so, he’s really well written and I really enjoy him and there’s a very, very obvious reason for that if you’ve read the comics. I also really like Transformers Prime Ratchet, who is just a serious Mood. Uh, he, y’know, is trying to do his job and then he’s like “What the hell are all these human children doing here? And you’re breaking my shit,” And honestly, that’s kind of how I feel most days if I’m around children, yeah.

S: And then he takes over their science projects, because of course he does.

O: Transformers Prime, though I love it, has some weird tonal issues.

S: It does.

O: We’ll get to that eventually.

S:  [Softly] It does.

O: I-I feel like I have to do some honorable mentions for pretty much any version of Soundwave, Grimlock, and Starscream in existence. Except for Grimlock from Car Robots or the 2001 Robots in Disguise, because he doesn’t really act like Grimlock. Regardless, they’re all delightful and I love them. And that basically sums up the characters I like for G1 pretty well, which is Soundwave and Grimlock are probably my favorites. Uh, I also rather enjoy Perceptor and I enjoy Megatron for the pure, pure delightful camp factor. [Laughter] He has no redeeming qualities and I love him.

Both: [Laughter]

O: None. So obviously,  I have been here for, oh, three months. I know nothing about fandom. I really wanted to do something to get involved, and was like, “Oh dear gog, I can’t draw robots, I don’t really think I feel competent enough to post fanfic,” and I thought, ‘By god  , my executive function must surely be worth something.’ And then I decided to put together a podcast, because through the powers of organization, anything is possible.

S: It is, it is. [laughter]

O: And here we are. Through the power of organization. That being said, ah, with us doing this podcast we really wanted to try to put some emphasis on fanworks and fanart and so what we would like to do with the episodes we release is recommend a fanfic and maybe some fanart with our episodes because Specs has been in the fandom for so long she;s got this great stash of ~vintage~ transformers work. Not all of it we can share because some of it’s been taken down and we don’t want to post something without the original authors’ permission or it being posted somewhere, but basically we’re hoping we can give you some good fanfics to kinda go with the theme of the episode . So, should be fun. That being said, if you’re got recommendations for fanart or fanworks-

S: Or questions, or complaints. I’m our complaints department for the record.

O: You can shoot us a message. You can find us on Tumblr. We are AfterSpark-Podcast on Tumblr and you can find other methods in which to contact us there. All that being said, I think we’ve kind of come to the end of our intro here. Hopefully you’ll come join us on our delight ride

through generation 1 and the waves of pure cheesiness we are about to embark on, because trust me, we are.

S: Our delightful ride on jousting jets.

O: A delightful ride on jousting jets. Just wait for it. Um, well, this is Owls!

S: And Specs!

O: Signing off. Thanks for listening to AfterSpark Podcast.

S: Toodles!

[summylise]

Erasing the Stigma: Fanfiction as Legitimate Form of Literature

Remember this post from a few weeks ago that got a ton of notes (which I am STOKED about)? Well...I just submitted the final draft!! I figured you guys would want to see what your responses amounted to so here it is!! If you’d like to share it with others (especially those who look down at fanfiction) go ahead!! I’d love to spread the word more~~

(Oh! and here is where you can access the original formatted with the works cited essay)

      Erasing the Stigma: Fanfiction as Legitimate Form of Literature

Two writers type on a desktop computer. One sits cross-legged in a dark room lit only by a single, smooth Mac surrounded by sheets of character references, thesauruses, dictionaries, and the occasional motivational quote. The other in a similar position but at their local Panera with nothing but their school laptop open to a few wikis, Thesaurus.com, and maybe some calming music. Both bite their lip as the words fail to transfer to screen. Both stress about the possible response to their pieces. A few hours later and they are ready to submit. The first contacts their agent who then contacts a few others. Days, weeks, months pass and the first writer still hasn’t heard back from their agent. The second author uploads their file as soon as they finish typing the last word, sometimes in an email to their beta (or their editor from the same fan-base), other times directly to the site. Days, weeks, months pass and the second author has already cranked out more chapters, received a handful of reviews, and has gained many followers. The difference? The second person uploaded theirs to Fanfiction.net and is looked down upon by most of society. There has often been a stigma associated with the term “fanfiction”, as if it was a disease or something others look down upon. Yet many see it as a creative outlet and something that allows them to fully express themselves in a way that formal writing or writing a physical book cannot. Some oppose the fact that fanfiction, stories written about video games, movies, television shows, etc., are forms of literature and say that reading and writing is not “real” reading or writing. They even may go as far to say that fanfics serve no outside purpose and has no content. While some stories may be lacking in the grammatical or logical correctness, fanfiction as a whole is in fact a valid form of literature, especially when compared to formal reading and writing.

In order to discuss fanfiction, it needs to be defined. Fanfics are stories that are written by fans of a certain form of entertainment (whether that be musicals, books, animes, television shows, movies, etc.)(Lammers and Marsh). Fanfic authors are not paid, do not expect anything in return (except for the occasional review or two), and write just because they like the show and have an appreciation for writing. The fanfic author, formerly known as epeolatryx on Tumblr, writes, “People don’t pay for fanfiction. Reviews are our currency. Thank yous pay for the effort we spend on the next one,” (Xambedo). Another difference comes in the form of creativity, or rather, starting with nothing versus starting with a pre-existing base. Instead of creating entirely new universes with brand new characters, fanfic authors use existing characters, settings, and plots from existing medias to generate their own stories. Some of these stories even become so popular that they end up published due to a uniqueness they had despite being based on something else. The After series by Anna Todd, a One Direction fanfic, began on Wattpad, a free, digital publishing service, and became a published novel that is going to be made into a movie (Contrera). Granted, Todd had to change the names of the band mates in order to avoid copyright infringement but this successful story still began as fanfiction. Other fanfictions include The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Ella Enchanted, and many more that do not seem obvious to the naked eye. The only difference between stories on sites like Fanfiction.net and the ones listed above are that the second are considered “actual books” or “real reading” whereas the first are not. It all comes down to what makes up real literature.

Literature is defined as “any piece of writing that can claim that it has—in some way—artistic beauty” according to Richard Jewell, author of Experiencing the Humanities. However, he later states that items such as bullet points and grocery lists would not count as they are not artistic and are only meant to serve as lists rather than actual pieces. In his textbook, he states all of the qualities that make literature and claims that if a piece were to include those attributes, that it would be considered literature. Those three attributes are creative description, characters, and plot (Jewell). All of those are included in fanfiction which are just stories created using non-original characters. Based on these requirements, fanfiction would factually be regarded as literature. Not only does fanfiction count technically as literature, but the process is the same.

Fanfiction should also be viewed through a newer learning term known as the multiliteracy framework. Multiliteracies are forms of reading or writing that incorporate more than just a pen and an idea; they explain how different cultural mediums, forms of communication, and compositional variety come together to create a piece (Chandler-Olcott and Mahar 559). Three main branches of this framework can specifically be applied to fanfiction: multimodality, intertextuality, and hybridity.

Multimodality involves the “integration of various Designs such as visual, linguistic, and audio in one text…” (Chandler-Olcott and Mahar 561). In regards to fanfiction, authors often employ these three attributes in order to entertain their readers and make their story more enjoyable. In my experience as a fanfic writer and reader, we authors show pictures or fanarts that we have created or have had created for us, find music or sound effects to serve as the background to our stories, and alter their fonts to evoke a stronger meaning (such as italicizing thoughts). By doing so, we are incorporating many different elements into one to create a diverse and interesting final product.

The second concept is that of intertextuality. Intertextuality are the “relationships and references between and among texts. Fanfiction is the crossing of original ideas with those of pre-existing characters and features which, in a sense, is exactly what intertextuality is. The connection between two sources doesn’t have to be strictly between two written pieces; Chandler-Olcott and Mahar explain that it can also occur between fanfiction and reality. The authors describe a fanfic the girls they studied wrote that involved deep, psychological questions such as a woman’s place in the world and heterosexual relationships despite the girls still being in middle school. The authors say, “Viewing rhetorical moves like these from the perspective of the Multiliteracies framework helped us to appreciate how complicated, and even sophisticated, the girls’ fanfics often were,” (Chandler-Olcott and Mahar 563). The two fanfic authors were able to pull from different forms of “text” in order to create a unique and thought provoking piece by using the concept of intertextuality.

Finally, hybridity is the creation of new ideas by picking and choosing specific parts of different mediums and combining them in a unique and sometimes never before seen way. Fanfics tend to grab from many different areas such as different genres and different story structures. When I go to publish a work of mine on Fanfiction.net, it prompts me to select two different genres before I can continue. Much like published books, fanfictions mix many genres together such as adventure, romance, comedy, etc. in order to create a successful and unique piece. However, fanfictions differ from books immensely when it comes to story structure. In fanfics, there tends to be a lack of an exposition or any explanation, description, or background of the story; the author jumps right in (Chandler-Olcott and Mahar 564). Fanfic authors choose to not add an exposition because they know that their audience knows almost everything about their characters: their physical attributes, their history, their personalities, their hopes and fears (Chandler-Olcott and Mahar 564). By neglecting to include an intro and picking multiple genres with which to base their stories on, fanfic authors rely very heavily on the concept of hybridity. Creating a hybrid of literature tends to have consequences, though not the ones that society may expect.

Fanfictions are a new branch of reading and writing that not only counts structurally, subjectively, and scholarly as a form of literature but also, much like its published counterparts, leaves an impression. In my survey of over two-hundred people, I found that around 53.59% of respondents had connected with new people they otherwise would not have met through fanfiction, whether it was reading or writing. This is due to the collaboration and connection with authors and readers via the follow, favorite, review or comment ability on Fanfiction.net that allows people to say how a certain chapter made them feel, make assumptions on future chapters, and offer suggestions for future chapters. Social media also plays a role in connecting readers and writers. On the popular social media site, Tumblr, many fanfic authors publish their stories in order to further spread their work across their fandoms (or domains in which fans from the same genre congregate). This allows the fan-base to actually contact the author on a more personal level rather than just via the comment section.

In addition, fanfiction affect the connection between each other but it also changes one’s reading and writing habits. Motoko Rich’s claim that student standardized reading scores have steadily declined due to online reading (Rich 1). However, measuring one’s aptitude for test taking does not translate to their inclination towards reading. A psychology professor at Michigan State, Linda A. Jackson, agrees when talking about the results of giving low income students internet access: “[The students] were kids who would typically not be reading in their free time… Once they’re on the Internet, they’re reading,” (qtd. in Rich). I have also found that fanfiction actually increases a reader's want to read by means of the survey I conducted. 75.95% of respondents say that they are more motivated to read fanfiction than actual books, which in turn makes it easier for them to read more.“Books are a big time commitment for something I might not like. With fanfiction, I get something I’m already familiar with and will know I’ll enjoy, and they’re much shorter,” said a respondent to my survey. This is because in published works, the author has to include an exposition where they describe the characters and setting. In fanfiction, since it’s based on a world that already exists, the readers already know what the characters and setting look like so the author can jump right into writing their story. Reading online not only increases one’s wish to read, but also improves their writing as well. According to the study done by Jayne C. Lammers and Valerie L. Marsh titled “Going Public”, the young author they had longitudinally studied said that fanfiction had allowed her to stay anonymous and therefore felt more willing to share her works with others than if they had known who she was (Lammers and Marsh 281). By being anonymous, fanfic authors are able to express themselves and produce pieces that they otherwise may not have shared which allows them to further grow as a writer. A fanfiction writer who took my survey said the following:

Real writing, to me, is writing that makes us grow both as readers and writers. When I first started writing, it was through fanfiction. I was horrid at first. But fanfiction gave me a supportive, eager community to be able to continue producing work and subsequently grow into the writer that I am today. Therefore, I can confidently say that fanfiction is a valid alternative to reading and writing.

With the practice of writing fanfiction and support of the community, this author was able to make a name for themselves and eventually grow into the writer as seen above. A writer that may either turn into a published author or a fanfiction author.

[q--q]

Fanfic recs - The Untamed

So, I was trying to put together a good intro-list of fics for a friend of mine, to get her started in the fandom and it made me think about my fav fics in general. I wanted to see if I could boil it down to my top five .... which was really really difficult! And to make matters harder for myself I’ve limited it to only completed fics (fair warning some of these are NSFW)

5. Gunmetal Grey by paperlungs (Words: 14,128)

Jiang Cheng has burned a lot of bridges in his life. It’s almost like he’s forgotten that you can walk across them to get to the other side instead of torching them to the ground.

He looks at Nie Huaisang and wonders-

-He wonders if there’s room yet in his scorched chest for one more bridge to burn.

(spy au)

This is part 1 an unfinished series (3 installments so far). I love a good spy AU and I love how the author wrote both Jiang Cheng and Nie Huaisang and their relationship. There’s a fair bit of angst in this fic (which is one of my major go-to tropes) but it all hurts so good. 

4. A Civil Combpaign by Ariaste (Words: 19,645)

“And,” said one of the pompous ministers, “there’s the matter of a marriage to consider as well!”

Jin Ling, who at the beginning of that sentence had expected to slam into the very last wall of his patience and lose his temper entirely, paused. “A what?”

Thing was… it wasn’t such a bad idea.

In which Jin Ling sets out to marry Lan Sizhui and it goes about as well as can be expected. This is my staple feel-good fic. It sweet and heartwarming and full of teenage dumbasses. There is also a companion piece told from Wei Wuxian’s perspective and podfics of both read by exmanhater

3 The Absolutely True Story of the Yiling Patriarch: A Manifesto in Many Parts by aubreyli (Words: 19,692)

In which the junior disciples (namely, Lan Jingyi, Ouyang Zizhen, and a reluctant Lan Sizhui) turn to RPF in an attempt to rehabilitate Wei Wuxian's reputation so that he and Hanguang-jun can get together and get married and live happily ever after. It's... surprisingly effective.

The premise of this fic boarders on crack by the author pulls it off marvellously. It does pretty much what it says on the tin but there are some wonderful juniors moments and cameo appearances from Jiang Cheng, our favourite angry grape, and Nie Huaisang, who as always had hidden depths. There is also a sequel of sorts, starring the juniors and a podifc read by Rhea314

2. The Lost Cause by KouriArashi (Words: 18,838)

AU in which Nie Huaisang and Jin Guangyao work together to take down Jin Guangshan from the beginning.

Or: the story in which Nie Huaisang just wants to paint fans and feed birds and he doesn't understand why this is so much to ask.

I love, love, love a good Nie Huaisang fic. And I love the hot mess of a murdering psycho that is Meng Yao/Jin Guangyao. So those two together in one fic is just brilliant. This was the second fic I read in the fandom and the first podfic I listened to (read by sisi_rambles). I love the idea of Nie Huaisang taking it on himself to fix things before they all go to hell and Jin Guangyao learning that he’s met his match. It’s a gen fic, which is unusual for me, but the podfic especially is still one of my first picks for entertainment when I have housework or a long drive to do.

1. My Age Has Never Made Me Wise by idrilka (Words:63,439)  

“We hear that His Excellency might be married by summer’s end,” the merchant’s wife says and Wei Wuxian freezes, his heart in his throat. “The Gusu Lan sect has been buying enough red silk and brocade that the merchants in Caiyi can’t satisfy the demand.”

He feels himself grow brittle inside, like a flick of a finger to his temple might make him shatter. His ears are ringing. 

“Who’s the lucky bride?” he asks despite himself. His tongue sticks to the roof of his mouth.

This fic broke my heart and then took the time to mend it again. It was one of the first I read in the fandom and I was late to work in order to finish reading it. The miscommunication trope in full force (another of my go-to tropes) and I just really like the writing style and the flow of the narrative. 

0. Linger by the Door by piecrust (Words: 78,447)

Wei Wuxian travels the world alone, finding homes in unexpected places, and loving Lan Zhan one letter at a time.

Okay, I’m cheating. This one should really have beat out My Age Has Never Made Me Wise for the top spot. It is so so good - I just couldn’t put it down. It also comes with a short companion piece on tumblr for those who want a bit more Lan Qiren in their lives.