#yes your honor i'll write tropes in my fic

[kindly-whisper-norbury]

I love AO3. I really, truly do. But at the same time, it reminds me that fanfic had a very different feel back in the day… in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

We didn't so much promote our stories as we traded them like literary contraband, handing them out in the back alleys of newsboards and forums and LiveJournal to be gobbled up by the desperate, starving masses. Sometimes you wouldn't post them, you would simply mention that you had written them; and when someone asked to see your story you would send them an email with the creation copy-pasted within. Those of us who had our own Geocities or Angelfire websites would make elaborate pages for each story, setting the background and font color to match what we felt the fic evoked, and of course adding pictures that we had slapped together in Photoshop for flavor.

When FFnet came along, we eagerly thrust our creations into its algorithm, like birds shoving their babies out of the nest; then we held our breath and waited to see if anyone cared enough to make a comment before our stories slipped into the depths of the pit, never to be seen or read again. And the tingle we felt in our chests when someone did finally comment left us on a high for hours or even days.

There were annual fanfiction awards for some fandoms, and if you won any category at all you would wear that award proudly... a badge of honor to be displayed in your forum signature or FFnet profile. But really, the ultimate honor was when someone did fan art of your stories and posted it on DeviantArt or LJ, and you would hold on to that picture like a child clinging to a favorite teddy bear.

More often than not, the people you knew in real life weren't aware of what you did with your spare time, and you would have died of embarrassment if they ever found out. In general, you stayed in your lane, keeping other fandoms out of your business, except for the occasional crossover (which came with the added complication of having to choose which fandom to post them under on FFnet). We didn't have beta readers... hell, sometimes we didn't edit at all. Grammar and spelling mattered less than your passion for the subject, and research was conducted somewhat haphazardly, to the point where any anachronisms were shrugged off. Still, OOC characters were raked thoroughly across the coals; questioned and poked until the author explained why they had written them that way.

The tropes and cliches that people now cringe at were created then, embraced wholeheartedly. Mary Sues and self-inserts and songfics were everywhere… and we loved it. Authors would interrupt their own stories in the middle to add notes, sometimes presented as the characters themselves giving you information about what was going on in the story or what led the author to add this or that small detail.

We were afraid of being copyright claimed, we were afraid of being ridiculed, we were afraid of being sued by Anne Rice (even if we didn't write anything that took place in her universe). We felt rebellious, accomplished, and maybe a little guilty about what we wrote; but we wrote it because we loved it, and that was enough.

As I said, I really do love AO3… but there was just such a culture surrounding fanfic back then… a kinship and a sisterhood. I wish that those who have never gotten to experience it could have the chance to go back for a while, feel the way it felt… same as I wish my own kids could have experienced the freedom of summer vacation back when summer vacation meant freedom.

The world is just too fast now, the internet too loud; you have to run to catch up, scream to be heard... when sometimes all you want to do is whisper, "Hey… I wrote something… does anyone want to take a look?" and to have someone whisper back, "Yes! Send it to me and I'll print it out to read in bed tonight!"

#writing #writers #fanfiction #writers on tumblr #writeblr #ao3 #fanfic #the 1990s

[aelaer]

Alright, let’s take that follow up ask 😂

18. What are some tropes that others love, but you just tend to avoid?

Or something along those lines. Things you like/dislike. What marks the difference between a “good” and a “great” fic for you?

Whelp I lost my draft as I started this. I figured that's as good a sign as any to save this as a draft and review it a few times to make sure I'm critical of the *genre and trope* and not the individual writing it. And yes I think they're two *very* distinct things. And I'd like to piss off as few people (who aren't blocked) as possible while still remaining true to myself. We'll see how successful it is.

Cut cuz it got long and if folks click it thinking they might get mad, and then get mad, well, you can't say I didn't warn you. I don't like quite a few popular tropes in a lot of stories you see Stephen in. And I'll not hide my own opinions on my own blog. 😜 What's the terminology? Don't like, don't read? Yeah, if (general) you don't like strong opinions that might go against yours, don't read on. You've been warned!

Let's start with some of the most popular AO3 tropes, taken from the 2016 Fanfic Survey from Fansplaining. Here's the top 20 tropes across the survey and if I dislike it, I have bolded it and have a comment beside it. Otherwise I'm indifferent to it or I like the trope.

Friends to Lovers

Canon-divergent Alternate Universes

Slow Burn

Rescue Missions/Saving Each Other

Bed Sharing (aka One Hotel Room Left) Honestly I find this trope really stupid in most circumstances. It just makes me roll my eyes. This isn't to say that fics with this trope are badly written, I just... think the situation's really contrived. There's better ways to explore pining.

Teamwork

Fluff

Hurt/Comfort

Huddling for Warmth I only dislike it if it's adding unnecessary sexual tension. Like if you're in a perilous situation you don't need to talk about how omg touching him makes you feel things. It's like - dude you're gonna lose fingers otherwise. Characters, you need to shut the fuck up, this is not the right time. You guys can be romantic later. Hell this even counts for established relationships; characters getting aroused when they're in actual perilous situations is one of my biggest pet peeves in romance. It's dumb. (Note- this doesn't count if they're joking about it, joking is a great coping mechanism. I mean legit horniness as they're half-dead or something. What the fuck. Exception if the author explicitly lists being in legit perilous situations as a fetish in which case, good for author for that creativity.)

Mutual Pining

Established Relationship

Fix-it Fic

Isolated or Trapped (e.g. in a cave, a Canadian shack, etc.)

Missing scenes or fill-in fic

Everyone Knows They're In Love

Unresolved Sexual Tension

Fake Relationship (incl. Married for a Case and Marriage of Convenience)

Pining

Worldbuilding

Only 2 out of the top 20, not bad! Most are "take it or leave it" but some I like so yay.

Okay now for the next part.

On my Doctor Strange AO3 filtered page that I have up in perpetuity on my phone, I have the following filters applied to exclude (which takes off about 20% of all fics in the category from sight). Ordered from least likely to offend to most likely to offend others:

Non-English fics

Peter Parker/Stephen Strange

Stephen Strange/Reader

Not Civil War Team Captain America Friendly & Not Steve Rogers Friendly

An honorable spicy mention that isn't easily filtered so I don't filter it but I get into it below. It involves Peter.

Not English fics: With as picky a reader as I am, auto Google Translate simply doesn't work well for me. Trust me, I've tried and I was very sad when translate proved to be less than great. I wish I could speak/read all languages.

Peter/Stephen: I had to block this one because it was just coming up too much after NWH, but America/Stephen falls here as well (it's just significantly rarer and I can easily skip those fics). No hard feelings to those who write/ship it because they're, you know, fictional, but I'm definitely not a fan of the trope. Underage with two minors already skeeves me out, underage with a middle aged man and a minor is a big no-go unless the adult is framed as a villain in the narrative (and with luck gets justice served to him). But in the shipping sense this isn't usually the case in the story, and while some authors do a great job in showing it's not right/good, this isn't my flavor of Stephen at all. Even villain Stephen.

In the case the minors are aged up to be legal, I still dislike it. I find it incredibly creepy IRL when a person goes for someone who is young enough to be their child, and I can't separate that feeling in the fiction I read for the most part. The exception to this rule is when the person is like over 35 - by that age you know if you want to be with a 55 year old, and you have all that life experience. But there's so much growing done in the 20s and a lot of life experience that nothing but time can provide.

Finally, I find men in their 40s who are looking for someone (especially a girl) 24 or younger incredibly immature and, frankly put, the absolute opposite of dignified and sexy. There are exceptions of course, but my good guy!Stephen doesn't fall into that category. He's interested in brains, personality, and life experience, with looks being like, the 4th factor, haha, so no need for such a large age gap. Again, just skeeves me out.

Stephen Strange/Reader: I wouldn't have blocked it if it wasn't so prevalent, but it's literally Stephen's second-most popular ship. All respect to anyone who enjoys reader-insert fics, but I just... don't. The handful of times I've tried it I couldn't see myself as the supposed character because they were so different from who I am as a person. "Choose your own adventure" books that I read in my youth worked for me because I had choices in steering the story; that's not the case in reader fics so I'm left seeing "myself" doing things that I'd never do in a million years. That contradiction just makes me unable to appreciate them myself.

Big reason I don't have that problem with OCs is because they're not me, and so I don't have that weird contradictory feeling while reading the fic. They're another person so I can appreciate them as another character, especially if Stephen manages to stay in character within the story. But as romance isn't a genre I actively look for, I don't tend to look out for OC fics either as they're usually super romance-heavy as opposed to the romance being a side plot (which is how I get through canon char romances - if it's a side plot in the very long story I'll get through it for juicy plot).

Not Civil War Team Captain America Friendly & Not Steve Rogers Friendly: Blocking these two covers the majority of the stories that are not other-character friendly, and it blocks almost all Civil War Team Iron Man fics, so these two tags cover basically the entire gauntlet of that type of MCU fic. Ever since AO3 canonicalized those tags my blood pressure has lowered significantly and it's made browsing AO3 so much less stressful.

I'll say it up front: I don't think a fic can be good writing if it's written to be Not Team Cap Friendly. That's not to say that the writer themselves is incapable of writing quality works because that's usually not the case. But for works with that specific trope, I do not think that work can be good. A significant factor of what I consider good fanfic writing/bad fanfic writing is characterization, and the characterization is usually butchered in this genre of fic.

If an author chooses only to write this trope POV, all the more power to them. However, I think they are limiting their capabilities in choosing to ignore the grey storytelling the MCU brought to the story and are definitely limiting their visions by choosing to view these grey characters and their grey choices as black and white/good and bad with all the nuances erased. And because those choices are made, I don't think that the fic that comes out with those limitations can be considered good writing. And here are the reasons why, largely centering around characterization:

The only way these fics work is by making Steve completely OOC. I've seen writers erase all his leadership capabilities established in the first 3 films he was in, his ability to think fast on his feet, any sign of intelligence that is firmly established in the first three films he was in, and make him callous in a way that he hasn't ever shown in canon. I've seen writers make Steve unaware of email, I've seen them say that he never led men in WW2 (and isn't an actual captain), and most ridiculously, I've seen them say he was trying to kill Tony in Siberia and left him for dead there and completely ignore all his training in that if he wanted to kill Tony, he very well could have. (And ignore that T'Challa was there as well ffs - that's another rant.) But yes - this is all OOC to Steve's character. If someone wants to know why saying Steve trying to kill Tony in Siberia is OOC and thus not Steve friendly, send me a separate ask as I have a write up on Discord that I can bring here if folks want clarification on that front.

If you have to make other characters OOC to make your best boy shine better, I don't trust you to write best boy well. And usually he isn't. Tony is a terribly flawed character which is why he's so so so interesting, but Not Team Cap friendly fics are determined to erase all of Tony's flaws and everything that makes him interesting. For instance, I've seen Tony suddenly become an expert negotiator and politician, ignoring both IM2 and his lack of finesse with Ross in CW (this isn't him delegating the work to lawyers/PR people - this is in fics where he's the figurehead behind this because he's suddenly an expert political negotiator). Then in some fics Tony's suddenly a socialist, ignoring the fact that he's made his fortune and still makes money from his corporation and there's nothing in canon that suggests that he ain't still benefiting from the capitalist institution. He's *generous*, absolutely, and I headcanon he put in hundreds of millions into rebuilding Sokovia - but he's not suddenly a socialist. He's a rich white man with rich white man privileges and while he's doing his best to make good in the world, he has benefits that the rest of the world just doesn't. And Tony's still arrogant and it can still be hard to work with him and erasing all those flaws makes him just... not Tony. He's just this bland vanilla OOC caricature.

In a lot of "not team cap friendly" fics I see a tag along the lines of "actions have consequences". If that's the case, why the hell wasn't Tony prosecuted for making Ultron? Wanda didn't force him to make anything - she amplified his fears, absolutely, but he made the robot. In secret. And that robot killed a city. Tony in CW is rightfully really regretful about it - but if actions actually had consequences and Tony tried to get Team Cap like, jailed or forcefully retired (like he or his friends do in some fics), Nat should strike back and tell everyone that he was behind Ultron. IT'S LIKE EVERY CHARACTER MAKES MISTAKES OR SOMETHING AND THAT NONE OF THEM ARE PERFECT. WHAT A THOUGHT. And that's why that tag is not very well thought out. The tag ignores the stark (hah) fact that all Avengers have made mistakes, some of them major - and Tony's absolutely not exempt from that. And his mistake-making didn't stop after he became Iron Man.

All of Tony's friends ignore that Tony recruited a 15 year old to Germany and guess what? Pepper and Rhodey aren't Tony boot-lickers. They'd give him the appropriate "What the fuck were you thinking" language because yeah, that was fucked up! Ignoring that happened is another big item in these type of fics.

Stephen's personality is typically bland and he often has no life beyond Tony's in these type of fics. He definitely has no opinions on the Avengers that *differ* from Tony because him having his own opinions, or taking the time to form his own opinions from his own interactions, would be showing more nuance and depth than these fics want to get into.

Stephen's often petty and violent, especially towards Steve - and again completely ignores all of Tony's mistakes because Tony doesn't make horrific mistakes, oh no! I'd argue the petty violence is OOC, but fucking DS2 and fucking Waldron Jossed that. So if you want that petty violence, it's technically seen on screen, but that's a *Waldron* idea so... yeah. I don't know any big Stephen fan who is particularly fond of Waldron and what he brought to Stephen's character. But this whole essay is about OOC characterization so I can't argue that this is OOC anymore. Fucking Waldron.

Like Stephen, Rhodey and Pepper also lose their personalities and ability to argue with Tony because Tony is always right. Rhodey forgets that Tony is a billionaire and can easily go use a lab in Stark Industries buildings across the country, or go to one of his many homes that all billionaires have because they're *billionaires*, if he *has* to avoid Steve for some reason. Rhodey also forgets that Tony could handle this with the best therapist money can by if he can't physically handle being in a room with someone he dislikes. If Steve actually tried to kill him in a fic, please go back to the first bullet point on this list. An IC Steve wouldn't so there wouldn't be that fear of more physical retaliation because Steve wouldn't be trying to stop Tony from killing Bucky, so again, unless Tony tries to kill Bucky once more, the situation won't escalate to violence. But yes, in these fics, Rhodey would prefer that the civil rights breaking Accords that allow indefinite imprisonment with no promise of trial stand. He'd rather the rest of the Avengers remain fugitives with no home because he forgets his friend is a billionaire with virtually unlimited resources to go wherever he wants and to get the help he needs. The growth we see in his stance that came with IW after he saw the Accords' rollout just poofs away.

Pepper tends to be turned into a secretary again just there to help with Tony's emotional needs instead of a powerful CEO whose really fucking busy running a company.

So with an OOC Steve, it usually leads to an OOC Tony, OOC Rhodey, OOC Pepper, and OOC Stephen. And that is why I consider these fics bad.

There may be exceptions to this, but when I was still attempting the tag in 2019, I never found a fic under the tag that was an exception. I stopped trying the last 3 or so years. And unless you're an author who's written in that tag and you want me to read your story and want to try to change my mind (because you're a masochist? why would you want to do this to yourself?), don't send me those fics. 99% I'm going to find them bad.

I'm not gonna subject those authors to the above opinion because they enjoy the black/white world and they have a huge readership who loves that crack. And good for them! That doesn't change my opinion that I think it's lousy writing because characterization is 70% of my opinion of a fic. If you have all this OOC characterization in a non-crack/parody fic, I just won't have a high opinion. And I'll say it in my own space under a cut, but I'm not going to search you out anymore - I haven't since 2019 (early 2020 was the cut off). Writers have the right to write what's popular - and I can dislike that popular content. But it's a lucrative readership and if that black and white world brings you joy, then all the more power to you.

Important: Not character-friendly fics are different from Dark!character fics. Dark character fics acknowledge that in canon, the characters are written as protagonists and heroes, and the author is purposefully changing this. In not character friendly fics, the author is usually inventing something stupid or terrible (and often enough ooc) for the character to have done/not done to strengthen the position of their chosen protagonist, or is ignoring canon traits of the character to, again, strengthen the position of their chosen protagonist. This is especially seen with Steve.

Honorable mention: I dislike the majority of fics (no idea of percentage but very likely over 50%) labeled Supreme Family, *strictly* due to how Peter is treated. Let me explain.

Peter is an incredibly independent teenager living in NYC with his own friends and his own brains and solo superheroing the majority of the time. These fics have a tendency to erase all of this, making him overly reliant on Tony, making him act as if he's aged between 8 to 12 rather than 15 to 18, and erasing his connection to May, Ned, and MJ. His whole life is made secondary to be part of the Tony Stark fanclub and it's *weird*. Peter is so much more than his connection to Tony and fans of this trope sometimes forget this.

I'll give a real world example. There's a large age gap between my sister and myself, so I got to see her in her teenage years while I was an adult. She's smart, fiercely independent, and had good friends and extra curricular activities throughout high school just like Peter did. We had family dinner together on occasion but she wanted to be doing her own thing as much as possible. She'd text my parents for the "Hey I'm alive" check ins but otherwise? She was AWOL as much as she could get away with.

Peter may be less so, especially if May insists on dinner together at least a couple times a week with his form of extracurricular activities, but I cannot emphasize enough how Peter having his own life is so important to his character and him being around Tony most of his free time outside of school and Spider-Man is *weird*. Even if he likes him!

This is just one teenager in my example, but a staple of teenagers is finding their independence as they grow into adulthood. Clinging to other adult figures does not tend to be the trend with those who have a big independence streak.

Peter in canon is all about establishing his independence - and you could see this especially throughout all of Homecoming. His independence is integral to his character. And if Tony was his adopted dad in the fic, I'd say him always hanging out with him is doubly weird because, again, independence. It's a major part of most teenagers and it's very well established in Peter's personality.

So yeah. Fic writers please stop writing him like a 10 year old unless he's actually 10 in the fic. Let him live his own life in the Supreme Family trope. Let him go out with friends and do after school clubs and not go to Tony's lab after school every day of the week because it's just not him and his movies established that very well. Let him get annoyed at the tracking and let him yell at his parental figures because conflict is normal. Let him be a teenager.

(And as someone who loves Found Family, I can't emphasize enough how much that theme falls short if the characters within the family forget their independence and lives outside of the family. It's just no fun.)

So yeah. Have all these spicy hot takes!

#meta #so many spicy takes #if you get easily offended by strong opinions don't click the read more #the rest of the tagging is for my own internal sorting rather than tumblr algorithm #so apologies if some mcu fans who don't know me come across this #this post may not be for you because i do have some minority opinions in the space #ask #answered #mckiwi #fanfic #tropes #tony stark #anti fics #steve rogers #stephen strange #peter parker #strong opinions

[kelin-is-writing]

Hi! I wanted to ask two thing If thats okay.

First is : I have a story about Dabi and reader but Im stuck. They were childhood friends, he had the 'I will marry you when we grow up' talks and promised to always keep an eye on reader. Then he dissapeared and then...Im stuck. Pls how could they meet again? (H would reveal that he is Touya much later) I know he would stalk reader but...The first and second time they would actually meet?

And the second is : Should it be like having a relationship (and smut) after the reveal? Or before that and he would tease about reader not loving her childhood crush Touya since she is with Dabi and THEN reveal that he is indeed Touya?

Thanks If you find any time for my ask ❤️

Oh my–! Help–! it's totally okay asking! You know, i feel so honored to see someone asking me for advice like– SDJKSJDKSJDKSDJSKJDKSDJKSJDKSJDSJNXSMJDKSJDSKJDSKDJK it's actually making me want to cry, because no one has ever asked me advices for such things. ANYWAYS!

Let’s start with one question that’s been on my mind since i started reading the first question: is your story settled into the Bnha universe or a Quirkless!au? I ask because I’ve seen lots of AUs playing with the Touya hiding his real identity through Dabi in quirkless!aus too! (like i'm doing with a long fic of mine) Which is why i'll try to give you an answer that can be used for both things.

I think that Dabi and Reader should meet up in a crucial moment of their lives where both of them never expects to meet again after one of the two disappears, i think that from a literature point of view this method can help carve/influence a character's course throught out the story to forge their development for me.

The setting is up to you, depending on what you have in mind for your story, the setting of their meeting can vary. They could be meeting on the streets like they could be meeting in a bar or another place, it's really up to the plot you've decided for when they meet again.

If there's the possibility I think yes, Dabi would keep watching over Reader if she's truly important to him even after all the year they haven't seen each others. So once again, depending on your settings this trope can be used in a story.

As for the second question, you know what? I think it can work both ways, because seeing you accept Dabi makes him think that Touya didn’t have importance in your life when maybe unbeknownst of him you’ve always loved him since he was Touya. This can work both before AND after he tells you about his real identity. Dabi’s character to me (others can have whatever headcanons they want about him) is someone who in his life needs many things, two of which are reassurance and stability, especially because as Touya he didn’t get none of these, his father’s selfish and toxic ambitions, needs, goals and attitude messed up with this kid’s mental health the most because I think Dabi is one of the characters who inside of him has the biggest amount of love in the serie and he’s someone that would’ve been as good of an influence to the Todoroki's as much as Shouto is doing, if only he had close to him someone who actually supported and encouraged him as what he wanted to be: an Hero (he doesn’t need near him someone like Midoriya though, nor like any of the other hypocrits around him or his father for that matter). But with the way the Hero society is right now, someone emotional like Dabi (yes, he is the emotional type) would’ve never followed it blindly either way. This man is where he is now because he had too much love inside of him that went unseen and ignored by the peoples who he wanted to give it to, a love that he repressed to the point he became numb to anything except the “hate” for the one person who messed him up that way after gaslighting him.

So whether is before or after he reveals his identity to the Reader, once you understand his character as both Touya and Dabi, you’ll be able to write it the right way.

But if you want a suggestion from me, I think I would go with that... be it SFW or NSFW, a sincere and genuine Reader is the best choice for a character like Dabi.

One thing is for sure, he would feel bitter and sad about the distance created with the Reader (based on how close they were before he became Dabi, you can assert how much hurt he is by it) and question her reasons for reaching out to him and what her goals are, he has trust issues so of course he wouldn’t let her close if she isn’t 100% sincere with him.

You gotta keep this in mind in the case your story is a long slow-burn with angst (like the one I’m writing because I like pain lmfao) and you don’t plan to have smut in it anytime soon, after building trust you gotta slowly put into the characters tension that steadly grows until one of the twos can’t go on anymore without breaking the friends barrier.

If it’s a One-Shot I think that reunion/angsty love making and talk after it would be a good way to settle the unresolved things Dabi and Reader got going on.

This got super long and I sound super annoying, as addition I also suck at giving advices so I’m sorry, you’re genuinely troubled but I’m actually someone hopeless unfortunately 😭

Hope this messy essay was of help though 💀💜

#kelin responds #answered #libertythedragoness #writing #ugh i feel like i just said a bunch of useless shit to you... #i apologize in advance if this didn't help you at all #you'll understand through this why no one asks me for advices 😂😭 #god i'm so fucking annoying istg no wonder some of my friends abandoned me lol

[stevethehairington]

thank you @oatflatwhite and @pizzaqueen and @alligator-writes for the tags!! <3 <3 <3

Total word count on ao3?

548,354! wow!!! that is. kind of wild to think about, ngl. like i wrote all of that? shit.😲

How often do you write?

the answer to this is SO varied. like, it honestly depends on the day. i could spend anywhere from 20 minutes jotting something down in my notes app to literally the whole day on a weekend just clickety-clacking away at the keyboard. it truly just depends on how much time i actually have, and what my motivation and inspiration levels are looking like. i try to write as often as i can though!

Do you have a routine for writing?

i suppose i do! when i'm like properly sitting down to write at home i like to make a big cup of iced coffee to keep me going, i put on a playlist of either whatever i'm really digging at the moment or whatever fits the mood of the fic i'm trying to write, and i just. sit and write until i can't write no more lol

What’s your favorite trope/pairing?

FAKE DATING MY BELOVED <3 there is just something so positively delicious about this trope, there is SO much potential, SO many different fun situations you can put them in. also, thee biggest honorable mention to the mutual pining oblivious idiots trope because that one is ALSO another super favorite, like you CANNOT go wrong with it, i fucking love it when two people are so ridiculously into each other and they think the other is not but ohohoh how wrong they are. OH WAIT ALSO dksjfs literally any type of tender domesticity is also my fucking jam, like give me the going grocery shopping together, give me the soft, sleepy early mornings making each other coffee and breakfast, give me gentle bathing/hair washing or literally any sort of moment where one takes care of the other just because they want to. i eat that shit uppppp!!

as for favorite pairing, currently it is steddie!

Do you have a favorite fic of yours?

as the risk of sounding... full of myself (which i promise i'm not trying to skgjsd), i actually have a lot of fics that i've written that i really really love? like i really do write for myself first and foremost, so i am my biggest fan skdljfds. BUT. if i have to narrow it down to one...

lily white, hold me tight might be one of my favorites that i've written. it's a pre-war stucky fic, hurt/comfort, in which bucky never actually enlisted, but was drafted and steve finds said draft notice. it was like one of the first stucky fics i ever wrote and idk i just really liked writing the emotionality of it, and i really liked how it turned out in the end.

and i also have to give a special shoutout to i want to hold your hand, which is one of my steddie fics, because even though i only just wrote that one not that long ago, it's sort of kind of another favorite of mine? like i put as much of the good stuff as i could in that one, and i just really love how it turned out, and i had just the best time writing it too.

What fic of yours has the most kudos?

imagine being loved by me which is my first and only good omens smut fic lmfao. it honestly surprises me that it is my most popular fic, but i'm not mad kslfsd i actually really love how that one turned out, especially for a smut fic because i am. not the most confident when writing those. so yeah. pretty cool!

but honorable mention, again, to i want to hold your hand because it is only like 48 kudos away from overtaking imagine being loved by me and at the rate its been going, that could absolutely happen any day now. which. is INSANE to me!! because this one has only been posted for like oh wow exactly 4 weeks today! (also holy shit its been a month already???) but yeah it's just done exceptionally well which is amazing to me, and i am so so grateful for that.

Anything you don’t like about your writing.

mm, yes, of course there is sgjshg. i feel like sometimes i can get very repetitive with what i'm saying/how i'm saying things. like, i feel like i'll write certain phrases like "he smiled" or "his eyes" or things like that and then. it feels like i start seeing the same sort of line/same verbiage everywhere in my fic, and i try very hard to change it up so it's not so repetitive but i still feel like i can get that way? the feeling gets especially bad when i've been working on something for a long time and i'm like running low on steam with it, because i feel like i fall back on those a lot.

Now, something you do!

i actually take a lot a lot of pride in my characterizations. i feel like i do a good job at getting the voices of characters down and getting their little mannerisms down too.

characterization is something that is SUPER important to me, both as a writer and as a reader, bc like i know how EASY it is for bad characterization to take you out of a fic, and i Do Not want that to happen, so i always try to put a lot of effort into getting that right.

whenever people compliment my characterizations it literally adds like a hundred years to my life and makes me giggle and kick my feet and for real makes me feel so fucking happy because that it truly is like the highest compliment to me.

now to tag!! i am going to tag: @werewolfsteve @ghostfacemunson @mattmaesonnatural @wlwharrys @ruthofrhythm @willbyersgun

#tag game #mack writes

[sagiow]

💌 💥

Because we've all been there when it comes to a fic that won't cooperate on a Friday night...

Oh, maybe it does want to cooperate, I'm the one brutally avoiding it. Maybe I'll call it later after a few drinks. Late Friday night boozy call? That can only turn out well, right?

💌 Is there a favorite trope you like to write?

Answered here, but I'll add Comedic Relief Character. I can't do Serious Drama too long or my brain starts to stress-eat itself.

I also have to honor @fericita-s Sexy Preacher Pledge and roll Henry Hopkins's sleeves up any time he appears. Because Peacocks.

I don't think I've ever gone down "There was only one bed" lane but always glad to see it pop up in other works!

💥 What is one canon thing that you wish you could change?

To quote @tortoisesshells, CANCELLATION. Otherwise, here's a list:

The English: 13 years. THIRTEEN YEARS.

GLOW: Ruth getting on that plane. Yes, Debbie Darcy-proposed you, but come on, girl, this was a golden deal on a silver platter offered by the friend you've spent 3 seasons trying to reconquer

(also, CANCELLATION)

Mercy Street: Just let Bullen die the first time and focus on the other characters (no, not you, Frank. And you sit your ass back down too, Jimmy). NO STEAM BOATS (what is it with my ships getting separated by actual ships...)

(also, CANCELLATION)

The X-Files: I'd remove Chris Carter from the writing staff after the first movie. It was just random, painful destruction from then on.

#thank you for the tag! #fic ask game

[dyed-red]

23 and 65!

23. how do you deal with writers block?

just starting right out the gate with the hardest question on the list, huh 😂 the honest answer is "a lot of ways" and "it depends on where i'm at in the story".

but some of those ways are:

finding a song that fits the vibe and listening to it on repeat for hours while trying to write

going back and reading what i've already written. this one works best if i start from like... the beginning, or very early in the story. i'll pick back up all the story beats and threads i was laying down and going back over them will help me untangle whatever mess i've made and figure out where i need to go next to make it build right.

writing down scene titles / story events on physical flash cards and rearranging them in different orders in front of me (sitting on the floor and shoo'ing away my cat) to find if i'm missing pieces or what order makes the most sense

stepping away from it for a while so it can percolate in the back of my brain

forcing myself to sit in front of it and get words out

the rubber duck debugging system (talk to someone about it, ideally someone not even in the fandom, and in the process figure out what the issue is or what i need to write next, typically before they even have a chance to chime in)

read something with a somewhat related trope that either inspires me or leaves me so pissed off that i just have to go and continue my story

one piece of advice i've never seen elsewhere: be clear / have solid lines between stories you have no intention to finish vs. ones that are still breathing, even if you're not making much progress on them or doing it quickly. give your mental energy, even if it's just percolation in the back of your mind (yes, percolate like a coffee maker), to the stories you are committed to completing

65. what is your favourite title for a fic you’ve written?

ooh okay so i'm both pretentious af and lazy af about titles. i sort of get stuck on the first one that comes to mind or gels with the story and then don't overthink it.

my runner up would be Architecture of Choice. it's only an honorable mention because, outside the fic itself, it makes me think of where it came from, which is choice architecture within behavioral decision theory, and that's way more technical and related to my day job than i want to be thinking about when writing fic.

so my actual favourite fic title i've written for spn is this pretentious monstrosity: Rusted H(u)e(w)

Like... who the fuck writes a title like that? I do, apparently. because the words came to me somewhat spontaneously like they always do for a title, but then when i went to write them i had "error 404 file not found" for if my brain was supplying "rusted hew" or "rusted hue". so i had to make it both. which fits the the story - not just each of the two readings but also the choppy, inelegant way in which they're spliced together. so i'm pleased with it anyway.

#finally answering these and thanks to all who've dropped some in my inbox! #will answer more in the morning :) #phyn vs. writing #ask games #about the blogger #my other favorite fic title from my prev fandom is: #got a melancholic temperament (that's what they said to me) #but like.... what a long and ridiculous title lol #i like paranthetical titles though #oh god i just reread the title Rusted H(u)e(w) and realized there is yet another reading: Rusted He #which... yeah #okay yeah it's cemented as favorite for sure #apocalyptic melancholy titles for the win i guess

[superbattrash]

I hope I won't look like a stalker but I'll probably leave shitton of asks/comments/likes around your tumblr, please don't be scared, I'm just a human labrador, I'm big and graceless and sometimes I need to be booped in the nose if I'm too much.

So! I am curious - did you read "of all the people" by TheCourtSorcerer? It's starts a little bit like your WHON, with Sups and Bat on alien planet and there is also only one bed because duh. I'm curious how that story will end because you made stuck-on-an-alien-planet-together trope my second favourite trope (after identity porn).

About merman Bruce - did you read Katflap's fic? I really like their fics but I am a creature of fluff and this one has a lot of sad tags. From one hand that's solid 40 chapters of Merman!Bruce content, from the other - I just want them be all fine at the end.

Also I will be honored to join your crusade against offices. Just let me know if you need help ❤️

*cracks knuckles*

You will never look like a stalker until the day you tell me I'm out of milk and my local grocery store has a sale on that chocolate I really like, lol. Please (PLEASE) feel free to interact all you want, it just makes me super duper happy. I also like booping noses, so you're fine :D <3

I did not! But I just looked it up and it sounds really great. I'll have to look into this TheCourtSorcerer, their fics look awesome. I am myself a big ol' whore for the identity porn, my friend. Cannot live without it. @susiecarter's were my first fics back into the fandom and just .. *clenches fist* yes. Ahem, and awwwww, c'monnnn. You're too kind! I'm glad you like my writings, I do so enjoy sharing them :3 also please talk WHON with me, I just wanna know what people think, I'm so proud of it but I also hate it lol

I have noooot, oh my God, the shaaaame. Katflap is such an amazing writer, but I have yet to read the merbruce one. Not because I don't want to - but like you, I am a creature of soft and fluff. I don't do very well with angst and sad, lol. I am but a soft boiled potato owo

GRAB YOUR SWORDS, MEN, WE RIDE AT DAWN (thank you <3)

#I have taken to calling you fass in my head #please correct me if you don't like it #misha answers #look at me ranting again #I should put it in the: #misha rants #tag as well because oops

[krys-loves-otome]

8, 10, 12, 36, 41!

Questions for Fic Writers!

8) What song would make a great fic (to either write or read)?

Like, as in inspo or in like a songfic kinda form? Because I've done and can do both.

Songfics wise, I've done a fic inspired by the Beatles' song 'Yesterday' where a relationship was falling apart (between a brother and sister having a falling out before she gets kidnapped and her bro goes to rescue her. And, yes, it is a YuGiOh fic, Arc V to be specific.). I probably would write with that song again for my more up to date fandoms, if I get the bug in me to write something angst-flavored.

As for inspo style (like how @lorei-writes did it with one of the songs I submitted a while back,' For the First Time' by the Script) I'll go with 'Sound the Bugle' by Bryan Adams. A song about pulling yourself out your darkest hour and to keep moving forward.  With the specific mentions to being soldiers, it can refer to the ikesen boys trying to establish peace within their warring state, but also makes me think of Ikevamp Jean and Napoleon (though him and Viva la Vida by Cold Play? Hi, can we make amvs a thing again without copyright claims taking all the fun away?)

-------

10) How do you decide what to write?

It's super random and inspo can happen at any moment of the day. Sometimes an idea will sit with me the entire day until I can get a chance to write it down or at least expand on the idea. This is how Reunion and Second Glance came about initially.

And I do mean it when it can happen at any moment of the day. I have OneNote on my phone and have woken up in the middle of the night and jotted down ideas when I couldn't go back to sleep. That's how Family and The Red Shawl happened.

---------

12) Are there any tropes that you used to dislike but have grown on you?

Maybe not tropes specifically, but I have grown a lot softer when it comes to including smut in my stories, it becoming more lighthearted or fun than how I used to write it. Pre my Haikyuu days, I usually didn't depict sexy times in.. a positive light, to put it gently. In my baby days of writing, it was usually depicted as something the bad guys did to have power over my heroines and heroes and it was never a good time. But as I have gotten older and have more writing experience (and as an RPer on Livejournal and Dreamwidth), I started depicting sexy times in more positive ways, sometimes explorative, something to show love and affection, heightened emotions, hints of something more that happens off screen, and just in general got more comfortable depicting sexy times as something positive rather than the negative blanket that I used to use it for.

---------

36) Do you visualize what you read/write?

For writing, I try to. It's also one of the reasons I don't do smut very often because I keep forgetting where I put which limb, particularly hands. Not uncommon for me in the middle of writing to go 'wait, where are his hands again?' then scroll back up to find where I had placed that person's hands.

----------

41) Link a fic that made you think "wow, I wanna write like that."

Yesha's To Honor and Protect fic. Or really pretty much anything of Yesha's, I wanna write like that. He doesn't do as much for IkeSen/Cybird properties anymore, but they have a special place in my heart.

Ythmir is also another fic writer I look up to. Their Comte fic still gives me chills, even after all these years. I wanna write like them too

#meme thingys #krys's adventures in fanfiction #looking for songs made me realize all my favorite songs all have some sort of sad flavor #whoops #fun fact #used to be an amv maker back in the 2010s #so sound the bugle was one of the songs I used #for ygo of course #fragileshipping specifically (Atem and Ryou) #so it has a special place for me #the song does at least #tho don't go looking for it as it's privated now #plus copyright claimed #and not so proud of the fact that it used uncredited art #other songs I would use as fic writing inspo #(even tho most of my favs are sad as previously established) #down once more from Phantom if I could have a love triangle between Shakes Vincent and MC/an oc maybe #empty chairs at empty tables for Comte because tears damn it #still have not seen hamilton but did get an animatic in my playlist for 'First Burn' and #can see Nokto and Clara vibes #maybe Arthur too #another from my youtube playlist was White Wolf from the Witcher series and it very much screams Licht #probably more I'm not thinking of #eh

[hangon-silvergirl]

🤡✨💋🙋‍♀️❌📚 (i have a Normal amount of interest in u and ur process) ((full disclosure i included the ❌ in an attempt to determine whether or not i can trust u with my consistently fragile emotional state))

Haha, Maj I love you. (Asks from this post.)

🤡 What's a line, scene, or exchange you've written that made you laugh?

In Marigold, the 7/11 scene (Chapter 2), I enjoyed a lot. It actually hit all the notes on paper that it did in my head, which is, you know, pretty rare; I could hear GVDs voice whispering 'oh crumbs' when Eddie turns around and recognizes Chrissy, and it just. Sent me, when I was editing, lil leg kicks and all. My husband thought I was nuts. But, also, the buzz, and Eddie in the backroom exploding ketchup all over himself and snorting red bull out of his nose, and then the conversation between him and Mike (Chapter 3). I dunno, it just killed me. Another scene that translated well from brain wave to the written word.

✨ Give you and your writing a compliment. Go on now. You know you deserve it. 😉

I did this here, but I will do it again, because gosh darn it, I should be nice to myself. I set a scene well. I like to create immersive experiences, and make readers feel like they are wherever I've set the story, and can see it as close to the way I do as I'm able to convey.

💋 First kiss fics. Love em or hate em?

Big sucker for 'em, in fact. And gimme a little tension along with it, please and thanks. I want that build up.

🙋‍♀️ Do any irl people know you write fanfic?

They do, yes! My husband does, and most of my friends are aware. One person I used to write with (RP and fic, back in the Greatest Journal days, oi), is actually the reason I met my husband; we were online friends first, then I moved to her home city, and well, the rest is history. She was even my maid of honor when I got married.

❌ What's a trope you will never write?

Sex magic, enemies-to-lovers, crack and dark fic.

📚 Would you ever want to turn writing into a career?

*Sigh* Yeah. It is a challenge with the demanding nature of the work I do professionally, in addition to raising two little people. Life is really busy. Fanfiction is a hobby, so it's less demanding, more relieving. I have a number of partially finished novels that I've been plucking away at since university, and maybe someday I'll make something out of them.

#dash games #ask alie #hellcheer fanfic: the buzz #hellcheer fanfic: marigold #writing #majicmarker

[alynnl]

for the writing asks: 2, 10, 11, 12,

2. Talk about a favorite comment you received.

Ya mean I have to pick just one? Alright, I'll go with one of the first comments I received clear back in my fanfiction.net days. I wrote a hurt/comfort "Character A taking care of Sick Character B" and it was so much domestic marshmallow fluff. The comment said I did well with both characters. Also that they were a huge fan of Character B, and they liked my interpretation of him! I was so honored!

10. Why do you continue writing fics?

Honestly? It's my imagination. For as long as I can remember I have always gone on to tell more stories with the characters I am familiar with. As a child this means imagining what married life must be like for my favorite Disney Princes and Princesses. But now it means writing my OTP in danger, in recovery, or in a completely low-stakes setting where they just get to talk to one another. As long as my imagination keeps going, I will keep writing fic. Simple as that.

11. Who is your favorite character(s) to write about and why?

The main guys from Octopath Traveler! I love Olberic, Cyrus, Therion and Alfyn. I am rather attached to all four of them because of their banters and their individual tales. I love the ladies too but I got just a bit more attached to the TACO boys, and I see them as a starting team of sorts, or a Fellowship as I've dubbed them.

12. What is your favorite theme/subject matter/trope/ship to write about? Why?

My favorite trope of all time is Angst with a Happy Ending, or as it's called on TV Tropes, Earn Your Happy Ending. Because sometimes our dear characters must suffer, but let them be happy at the end of it all, for goodness sake! Let it show that their efforts meant something and their choices mattered! That's all we could hope for, yes?

#happy writer's ask game #ask game #replied

[mrsmess]

I was tagged by @jojoblessed365 to answer these. Thank you for asking <3

Fanfic Writer Asks

Which tropes do you like tackling the most in your fics? I try to give each main narrative trope a go at least once but the long suffering hero in love always seems to be present for it. Also ”only one bed” is a simple fave.

Do you read your own work while you're publishing? Or after publishing? Or not at all? I read my own work after publishing it repeatedly. Any time a sweet comment is left on it on Ao3. I like my own stories, I wouldn’t have written them otherwise.

Comments or kudos? I appreciate kudos and celebrate and honor my fics reaching a certain amount of them, but there’s nothing quite like a comment, it’s slightly more elaborate as communication goes and it’s lovely to receive.

Oneshots or multi chapter fics are your preference? Whenever I start reading fic for a new ship I almost always go for shorter fics, and when I’m writing I try to start out small and let the story grow as many parts as it needs, sometimes one, sometimes five, sometimes fourteen.

Do you write for endgame couples or those who should've been endgame? I’ve only ever written for two ships. Both of them should’ve been endgame. I guess frustration, friction, is inspiration-fuel.

Do you write fics with OCs? Yes. If they’re needed I write them. It’s a different kind of fun.

Do you imagine actors when writing these OCs? I don’t imagine actors, more like outlines, sometimes folks I know. But I often feel like they’re shapeshifters.

Do you create a music playlist before, during or after you write a fic? I create my playlists once I’ve gotten started writing, then they take continuous shape along with the story.

Do you get inspired to change/tweak your story from a comment? Rarely. My stories are more or less done when I begin publishing. Sometimes I'll add a detail, a line, when some brilliant reader points something out that I haven’t thought of.

What do you consider as T material and as M content in a fic? T for me is lighter in themes and sexual content, my M ratings are usually applied because of detailed sex scenes and/or dark themes like death or violence.

Tagging @mimilind @weepynymph @ksfd892 to answer any and/or all of these.

#asks #tag game

[deiliamedlini]

27, 34 and 38 :) you have brought crazy amounts of joy to my life through your writing, hope everything's going well for you!!

😭😭😭😭AWW THANK YOU I'M SO GLAD TO HEAR THAT!!!! ❤️❤️❤️ I hope they keep bringing joy!!

27. What time of day do you prefer to write?

Oh dear, we're starting with a call-out bahahhaha!! So, I'm a bad insomniac and sometimes can't fall asleep until 6-7am, so my favorite time to write when I have the most inspiration is usually 1am-3am kind of area lol! So short answer, after midnight. Unless I'm REALLY going in the zone with something, I rarely write during the day (or I can only write a very small bit).

34. Have you felt emotional while writing a scene before? What scene was it?

YES! I do this often because I try to feel what a character might be feeling. So I'll put sad scenes on in a movie I know I'll cry to, or music that has that "emotional" vibe to it. So yes, several times lol! Most notorious one that sticks out to me though is when I wrote my "For Zelda" oneshot, and since that was all about dealing with grief and loss after a life well-lived, I had Me Before You on, and To the Moon OST on, and I was just WEAPING through that whole oneshot bahahaha!!!! Like, went through several tissues level of sobbing! Admittedly, it was just a few months after a personal loss, so it was probably cathartic, but I look back and crack up with just how emotional I got writing that fic. You'd have thought Zelda was MY wife!!

38. What story of yours are you surprised that people liked as much as they did? 

Easily "Alone With You". I wrote it immediately after Unbroken because I wanted a different vibe, and I was missing two modern AU school fics that hadn't updated in a while at that point (Sweet Dreams, Princess by yourenotacat, and The Roommates by MeBeKiki, which are both great fics, and I'm only sad that The Roommates isn't on AO3). So it was more of a comfort fic than something I took seriously. I threw tropes in it that I like without mercy, I made silly errors and didn't bother to go back and fix them. I mean, in my mind, it was really a story that only I was going to enjoy. And now it's my most popular fic, and I am still surprised whenever I look at its stats. Surprised and honored, but surprised nonetheless lol!

#ask game #THANK YOU FOR THE ASK ❤️❤️❤️

[the-dreadful-canine]

Absolutely not belated Six Sentence Sunday 👀

Thank you for the tag @oxygenforthewicked and @emerald-amidst-gold 💕

Snippet of a future chapter. Because person A taking care of sick person B is my favorite trope. [uhhh, spoilers ahead?]

Worry buds and spreads in my chest like wild vines the closer I get to the edge of the village, my eyes not finding Solas in any of his usual spots. He isn't not at the herbs garden, nor is he sunning in front of his house, he isn't even at the battlefields where he occasionally stops by to silently judge the recruits.

Maybe he's at my cabin, we are supposed to train today so it would make sense for him to fetch me there" I try to reason with myself, not believing my words for a second and already picking up my pace. Solas is a creature of habit, he would not change his routine out of the blue.

I step inside my cabin long enough to grab my staff and dart back the way I came, this time reaching out for him and getting only a weak echo back. Please be sleeping, I repeat like a mantra as I make my way to his house.

The last ember of hope for his well-being is doused by the way his aura, always a solid presence is now giving in like the slush under my boots and oozing from underneath the door.

I raise my fist to knock, but as soon as I touch the wood the door opens, unlocked. And with no wards. I push it open and it catches on something that keeps the door from opening all the way, but the gap is enough for me to squeeze trough.

The sight at the other side of the door makes me bite back a colorful stream of words: the weight pushing back at the door was no one else than a sweat-covered, panting and worryingly red-faced Solas. His body was bent in an odd angle on the floor like he barely made it to the door before passing out.

I know it's supposed to be six sentences but it's Monday and therefore I refuse to math 😌

Can we even tag if we're late to the party? If you're reading this and wanna do it too, I just tagged you to a Six Sentence Whenever 🌟

#six sentence sunday #let's all pretend there's only six sentences here aight? #oc: elizabeth montes #solas #character: solas #yes your honor i'll write tropes in my fic #next thing you know they will share a room but there's only one (1) bed #my writing #dragon age inquisition #modern girl in thedas

[shezzaspeare]

Pilot/Episode 1: Patching Things Up With Pastiche & Fanfiction

Hi, hello, and the wait is finally over! My name is Blessie, and welcome to the first episode webisode log installation I've decided to call these things an episode for now because why not also let me know what do you actually call these things episode of The Science of Fanfiction, where we take a closer look into our beloved works of fanon because we've all got plenty of time to spare till Season 5. Before I continue, I would like to thank everyone who's liked and reblogged the last few posts before this one. It means a lot for a small and growing Tumblr user like me, and your support is something I cherish more than my modules. You guys rock!

Anyways, like with most things, we have to talk about the boring and bland stuff before we proceed with the fun stuff. For today, we are going to settle the difference between a couple of things: first being the confusion between pastiche and fanfiction; then the distinctions between tropes, clichés, and stereotypes, which we'll tackle the next time. It's important for us to establish their true meanings in order for us to really understand what fanfiction truly is, even if it's merely just a work done for the fandom. I know – it's boring, it's something that shouldn't be expounded that much, but I believe that all forms of writing (unless it's plagiarised) is a work of art — and fanfiction is not something we always talk about. I hope that by the end of this, you'll learn about what they really are as much as I did. Let's begin to talk about the—

[Image ID: A flashback of John (left) and Sherlock (right) finding an elephant (not in the screen) in a room in The Sign of Three. End ID]

. . . I did say that this GIF will always have to make an appearance here, didn't I?

So, just as with Sherlock Holmes, all other works of fiction have their own pastiches and fanfiction, and many more original works out there have taken inspiration from them to create their own books. Although they've gained popular attention, this will not be possible if they did not have taken inspiration from the materials their writers had at the time.

[Image ID: Various actors as Dracula. Jeremy Brett in 'Dracula' (1978) (upper left), Adam Sandler in a voice role for 'Hotel Transylvania' (2012) (upper right), Gary Oldman in 'Dracula' (1992) (lower left), and Bela Lugosi in 'Dracula' (1933) (lower right). End ID]

For instance, Bram Stoker's 'Dracula' (the second most adapted literary character, next to the consulting detective himself) has been portrayed on the screen over 200 times — from Gary Oldman to Adam Sandler — and has spawned off numerous books and pastiches of its own such as Stephen King's 'Salem's Lot'. Its cultural impact served as a basis of how we see vampires today, since some characteristics of the Count were made by Stoker himself. Stoker's creation is the brainchild of his predecessors and inspirations.

[Image ID: Vlad the Impaler (left) and a book cover of 'Carmilla' by J. Sheridan Le Fanu (right). End ID]

Other than the ongoing hysteria over dead back then and the existing vampire folklore, Stoker also took his inspirations from the published books on vampires he had at hand. He is said to have taken inspiration from Vlad the Impaler, a Romanian national hero known allegedly for having impalement as his favourite method of torture. He is also said to have been inspired by the J. Sheridan Le Fanu's 'Carmilla', a Gothic lesbian vampire novella that predates Dracula by 26 years. I could go on, but hey, we're going back to Sherlock Holmes now before I deviate any further. However, if you want to know about Dracula's literary origins, I suggest you watch Ted-ED's videos about the subject matter such as this one or this one.

Very much like Stoker, ACD didn't just conceive Holmes on his own. He took his own inspirations from what he had available at the time.

[Image ID: Dr Joseph Bell (left) and Edgar Allan Poe (right). End ID]

As we all know, ACD's biggest inspiration for Sherlock Holmes was one of his teachers at the Edinburgh University, Joseph Bell. He was famous for his powers of deduction, and he was also interested in forensic science — both characteristics which Holmes is greatly known for. He also drew inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe's sleuth, C. Auguste Dupin ('The Purloined Letter' & 'Murders in Rue Morgue'). As ACD himself has said at the 1909 Poe Centennial Dinner: "Where was the detective story until Poe breathed life into it?" Some other writers he took after are Wilkie Collins, Émile Gaboriau, and Oscar Wilde.

Now, what does this say about us Sherlockians/Holmesians (depending if you're the coloniser or the one that was colonised)? Basically, ACD laid the groundwork for us with Sherlock Holmes: his humble abode 221B that he shares with his flatmate Dr. John Watson, his adventures, memoirs, return, casebook, last vow, and all that. Now that we have this material at hand, we can now make our own versions, takes, or even original stories featuring the characters of the Canon. Our inspiration comes from ACD's Sherlock Holmes, and we now get the chance to make our very own stories/conspiracy theories about them.

As I have mentioned earlier, Sherlock Holmes is the most adapted literary character in history. He has been adapted in over 200 films, more than 750 radio adaptations, a ballet, 2 musicals; and he's become a mouse, a woman, a dog, even a bloody cucumber. On top of all that are numerous pastiches and fanfics, and finally, we have arrived at the main topic of our post!

Fanfiction and pastiche are often confused together since they have three common elements: they take after the original work, they usually use the characters in that original work, and more often than not do are they set in that same time frame/period or not long after that. The common misconception is that pastiche are printed fanfiction, which is only partly true. While pastiche is definitely fanfiction in some ways and vice versa, there are fanfictions out there that aren't necessarily classified as pastiche that have been published.

Let's get on with our definition of terms to clear up the confusion a little more. Pastiche, according to Literary Terms, is:

. . . a creative work that imitates another author or genre. It’s a way of paying respect, or honor, to great works of the past. Pastiche differs from parody in that pastiche isn’t making fun of the works it imitates – however, the tone of pastiche is often humorous.

A good example of a pastiche is Sophie Hannah's 'The Monogram Murders', which is her take from Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot.

[Image ID: A book cover of 'The Monogram Murders' by Sophie Hannah. End ID.]

Although this was a commission from Christie's estate, it's still considered as a pastiche as:

It's takes after Christie's writing style;

It is set in the early years of Poirot's career (1929), which is still within the time frame that the author wrote him in;

It features Poirot and;

It pays respect to Christie in a sense that it stays true to her (Christie) characters and way of storytelling.

Meanwhile, our good and slightly unreliable friend Wikipedia defines fanfiction as:

. . . is fictional writing written by fans, commonly of an existing work of fiction. The author uses copyrighted characters, settings, or other intellectual property from the original creator(s) as a basis for their writing. [It] ranges from a couple of sentences to an entire novel, and fans can both keep the creator's characters and settings and/or add their own. [ . . . ] [It] can be based on any fictional (and sometimes non-fictional) subject. Common bases for fanfiction include novels, movies, bands, and video games.

To avoid any copyright infringement issues if I ever use a popular fanfic in the fandom, we'll use my (unfinished and unpopular) Sherlock Wattpad fic, 'Play Pretend'. You can read it here.

[Image ID: The second self-made book cover of Blessie/shezzaspeare's 'Play Pretend'. End ID]

Why is it considered a fanfiction and not a pastiche?

It takes after an adaptation of Sherlock Holmes (BBC Sherlock) which is a TV show, not the ACD canon itself;

The author (in this case myself) uses her own writing style and does not take after the original story's style;

Although it is set well in modern-day London and after Season 4, it also features scenes decades before the actual fanfic is set and outside of London;

I added a considerable number of characters, i.e. siblings to canon characters;

I had my own take some of the canon characters' personality especially after the events of Sherrinford;

It is written by a fan – myself. It is a work of fan labour and;

It is only a work of fanon, and isn't likely going to be considered by the show as its writing style is different from the actual show.

To put it simply, you can have more freedom in a fanfiction as it does not necessarily restrict you to follow or take after the original stories. Alternate universes (AUs) such as Unilock and Teenlock are perfect examples of this thing.

So can a pastiche be classified as fanfiction? Yes.

Can a fanfiction be classified as pastiche? Not all the time.

What's the difference? While yes, they share the basics, pastiche is technically leans more onto the original work's fundamental elements whereas fanfiction is a broader range of works inspired by the original work but doesn't necessarily follow all or any of its fundamental elements.

In order for us to understand it more, I'll give another example.

[Image ID: The 'Enola Holmes' title card (upper left) and Henry Cavill as its Sherlock holmes (upper right). Underneath it is a a scene from the opening titles of BBC Sherlock (lower left) and Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes in A Scandal In Belgravia. (lower right) End ID]

Most of you are familiar with these 21st-century adaptations of Holmes: the 2020 adaptation of Nancy Springer's Enola Holmes books and BBC Sherlock, which needs no further explanation – but for those who don't know, it's basically Holmes and the gang if they were alive today. I specifically chose these two as they are the ones that I believe would get my points across best. Though both are considered as wonderful pastiches with a well-rounded cast and awesome visuals, if we break them down bit by bit, we'll see which one is more of a pastiche and which one is more of a fanfic. (Yes, I know they're both screen adaptations. However, as Enola Holmes was based on the books and BBC Sherlock's fanfiction has the show's scenes written out in most fanfics, hear me out.)

They share these characteristics of a pastiche:

They feature characters from the Canon (Sherlock Holmes, Mycroft Holmes, and Lestrade);

They have additional characters added by the writers (Including but not limited to Molly Hooper, Eurus Holmes, and Philip Anderson for BBC Sherlock while Enola Holmes has Lord Tewkesbury, Eudoria Holmes, and Enola herself) and;

They pay respect to the original Canon as their stories are based on the cases (BBC Sherlock) or simply what was going on around them (Enola Holmes).

They also share these characteristics of a fanfic:

They are made by enthusiasts of Sherlock Holmes (Moffat has called himself and Mark Gatiss 'Sherlock Holmes geeks', while Nancy Springer's Enola Holmes books are not just one or two but six);

They follow a common trope (we'll discuss these tropes in the following episodes) that goes on in the fandom (Sherlock's Sister & Modern AU)

They are based on a fictional subject (Sherlock Holmes);

They used characters and story elements that are copyrighted by the author/author's estate (fun fact: prior to the production of Enola Holmes, the Conan Doyle Estate filed a lawsuit against Springer & Netflix over Sherlock's emotions since he was more 'sympathetic' than he was portrayed in the Canon – this was later dismissed by both parties) and;

Their writing styles don't necessarily follow ACD's.

Despite these similarities, there are very obvious differences between the two that separates them from being a pastiche and a fanfiction.

Enola Holmes embodies pastiche more as it doesn't stray far away from the original elements of the Canon. It's still set in Victorian England. While Springer added characters of her own and definitely twisted the Canon to suit her series, she didn't necessarily place them out of the social construct that was going on around the characters. It follows ACD's writing style more as Enola Holmes' setting still remains within the Canon's original setting.

Meanwhile, we can safely say that BBC Sherlock is a work of fanfiction. While it did give us The Abominable Bride, the main series focused on Holmes and Watson in 21st-century England, which is drastically different from Victorian England. There are phones, black cabs, and cellphones — things which ACD Sherlock Holmes doesn't have. It also diverted from the Canon in the characters themselves, which is mostly seen in the names: Henry Baskerville became Henry Knight, Charles Augustus Milverton became Charles Augustus Magnussen, the H in Dr Watson's name stood for Hamish and Sherlock's full name is actually William Sherlock Scott Holmes. They also changed the personalities of some Canon characters: Mary was actually an ex-assassin, Mrs Hudson was an exotic dancer who drove a kick-ass sports car, Irene Adler is a dominatrix, to name a few. Moffat and Gatiss created a world of their own featuring the characters of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which is really what most of us fanfic writers do with Mofftiss' rendition of Holmes.

In conclusion: while pastiche and fanfiction could have been the same thing, they're actually not. There's more to them that just printed fanfiction or pastiche e-books, and we all should take some time to see and observe them in a closer perspective.

And that's it for our first episode! I hope you enjoyed it. It was a lot fun for me to write this, especially now that I'm only starting. I would also like to note that while intensive research has been done on this series, some parts of this comes from my own observation and opinion, which may vary from yours. I am very much open to criticism, as long as it is said in a polite and civil manner. I'm still young, and to be educated as I go is something that could really help me with this series.

Like and reblog this you like it. It helps out a lot. Be sure to follow me as well and the tags underneath if you want to see more of TSoF.

See you soon!

Blessie presents – The Science of Fanfiction: A Study In Sherlock (2021) • Next

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SOURCES • Pinterest, Google Images, Wikipedia, Literary Terms, Conan Doyle Estate, Definitions, The Sherlock Holmes Book, and Google

#the science of fanfiction #sherlock #sherlock holmes #johnlock #bbc sherlock #dracula #enola holmes #lord tewkesbury #jeremy brett #shezzaspeare #bram stoker #acd #canon #fanfiction #pastiche #holmes #adlock #sherlolly #molly hooper #greg lestrade

[eleanorbloom]

Marry My Lover (Bryce x Eleanor Proposal Headcanon)

A/N: Well, I thought I wouldn't do it because I was too invested with this fic, but I've been thinking adult life is so fucking hard that maybe I'll never find the time and inspo to finish this fic, so... well, why not realease it to the world as headcanon/very-poorly-written-fic. If later I find the inspo, maybe I'll write it, maybe not, but I think posting this will lift a heavy weight off me.

Please forgive me my grammar mistakes and poor english, I mean, I know it's not poor, but I went really basic here, other way I would've never finished writing this lol

Tagging my WYR readers, in case you're interested in reading this @curiousconch @romereadingshop @utterlyinevitable @lahellacute @chocopeppermintcake

Also this is sumbission for @openheartfanfics Weekly Trope Challenge, week 2: Weddings & Proposals (@openheartheadcanons)

Marry My Lover

Bryce had wanted to propose to Eleanor for a while, considering both spontaneous and prepared ways to do it.

One of the first ideas was proposing on a visit to the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, as it was the place of their first date. But none of their shifts let them assist for a couple of weeks, so he decided to look for something less complicated.

As he saw their annual meeting with the gang was coming, he decided he would propose on that occasion. Surrounded by friends, the people who helped them get together and supported them in the most difficult times both personally and as a couple.

So he would propose at Donahue’s. With a song, no less. Marry Me by Bruno Mars. A cheerful song, Eleanor loved Bruno Mars and simply matched with the tone he wanted to have on the proposal. Happy and spectacular. He wanted to make her feel the luckiest, most loved woman on earth.

So when he decided what he would do, he shared the news with Sienna so she could help him orchestrate the event. He would arrive a bit later than Eleanor, Sienna would keep her distracted, and then whoop, Bryce would appear at the center of the bar singing the song.

On the day of the meeting, Bryce was in the locker room when he received a text from Sienna: “All set, B! We’re waiting for you”. He breathed deeply, excited and a bit nervous at the same time.

They had talked about marriage, about a life together thousands of times, but it was different just taking the step and doing it, of proposing marriage. Marriage. Damn.

But at the same time, it was just a confirmation of the love they had for each other. Their love that had grown exponentially, to unknown highs and depths in the three years they had been together, and he was sure that their love would keep growing and getting stronger with each day.

After getting ready, he texted Keiki: “Hey Keiks, are you there already?” “Oh, yeah, hidden in the parking lot, super spy.” “Awesome, I’m coming out of the locker room I’ll be there in five” “Okay”

Bryce didn’t want her to miss it for the world. Keiki would kill him if he let that happen. Luckily for both Bryce and Keiki, she was studying close to home, more than close. Cambridge. BS in Physics at MIT, so as she was living just a few minutes away from Boston, they saw each other pretty regularly, once a week or once every two weeks depending on how busy the three were.

Keiki was excited about it, but there was just this strange smirk on her. Bryce thought it was just the fact that her brother would propose to Eleanor at last.

Once at the bar, he greeted their friends, Elijah, coming from Chicago, Jackie, from Baltimore, and Sienna coming from New York. Aurora was the only one living in Boston, working at Brigham and Women’s Hospital as attending and part of the new Diagnostic Team there.

Everyone was happy but at the same time with this strange smirk, like they were hiding something.

“And Elle?” he asked.

A few moments after the question was made, a guitar started to play. He looked at the center of the bar, and found Eleanor, on a yellow dress, and matched hatband playing guitar and singing: We could leave the Christmas lights up 'til January And this is our place, we make the rules And there's a dazzling haze, a mysterious way about you, dear Have I known you twenty seconds or twenty years?

Bryce couldn’t believe his eyes. His ears. His skin. How a shiver ran down his spine, making tingle every inch of him; how his stomach fluttered at the sight of her there, beautiful and singing and… Surprising him.

It was Lover by Taylor Swift, because, how not, his girlfriend was a Swiftie since High School, so once a Swiftie, always a Swiftie.

Bryce knew almost every song of the last two albums she had released in the last couple of years because they had blasted the speakers of their home for weeks. Can I go where you go? Can we always be this close? Forever and ever, ah Take me out, and take me home You're my, my, my, my lover

After singing the chorus, Eleanor handed the guitar to Rafael, who continued with the melody, and took the mic in one hand, singing the second verse as she started walking slowly towards him. We could let our friends crash in the living room This is our place, we make the call She took his hand on hers and softly pulled him to the center of the bar

And when Eleanor sang “And I'm highly suspicious that everyone who sees you wants you”, both chuckled knowingly, because they knew how true that was, wherever he goes, he enchants.

I've loved you three summers now, honey, but I want 'em all

It had been three summers indeed and nor he or she couldn’t imagine a summer without each other.

Eleanor kept singing, every word with meaning, it was like the song was written for them, especially “I take this magnetic force of a man to be my lover” Because who else on this planet was a magnetic force but him?

Bryce was beaming the whole song, smiling, laughing, biting his lip, showing how happy, flattered, incredulous and in love he was.

He couldn’t believe his luck. To this day, after more than three years, sometimes he still couldn’t believe he had the chance to love so much and be so loved. So happy, so free, so understood. And he would probably live this luck, this love, forever and ever with her.

When the song ended, Eleanor took out something from the pocket of her yellow dress. A velvet box. When she opened it, a silver ring with a diamond at the center shined under the multicolor lights of the bar. Eleanor took his hand in hers and kissed his knuckles softly before asking: “Bryce Lahela, mi amor, we both know we want to spend the rest of our lives together. In these three years you have made me nothing but happy. The happiest luckiest woman alive. I want that for the rest of our lives. Would you marry me?”

“Yes,” he said, eyes sparkling, shining so bright with emotions, with love, with adoration, with happiness, “Yes, babe, yes! The only thing I want is to spend the rest of my life with you!”

Everyone cheered, Sienna was crying, Kyra too, and even Keiki had shed a tear.

Eleanor put a ring on his finger and both kissed sweetly in the middle of the bar.

After a few moments, Bryce kissed her hand and chuckled, “Well, now it’s my turn.”

Eleanor stared confused at him, and when she heard him shouting “Música maestro!” she understood.

Eleanor couldn't believe it either. When the notes of Marry Me by Bruno Mars started playing, she covered her mouth with her hands just like Cecilia Bolocco when she won Miss Universe in 1986. “No way, love!” she squealed.

After a few verses, Bryce took her hand and turned her to the wall, where a video was playing. Videos of colleagues, nurses, even patients, with thumbs up singing along “Don't say no, no, no, no, no, Just say yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah” Then, her parents showed up in the video, beaming as they sang along too. Even her grandparents from Chile, Ricardo and Ofelia, appeared in the video asking the same.” “Oh my god,” Eleanor couldn't hold it anymore and simply let the tears fall. Tears of joy, of happiness.

Then Bryce started to walk around the bar, singing with a persuasive tone, asking the patrons to join him in his singing, as if he had to convince her to marry him. Friendly patrons would nod and show their thumbs up and sing along for a couple of seconds.

Once the song ended, Bryce bend on one knee and took the velvet box out of the pocket of his pants, where a beautiful rose gold ring was there, with a round diamond at the center and smaller at the sides. “Well, you won me. This was my idea too, but you were faster, or maybe you had friends who took your side and decided to help you instead of me.” Everyone chuckled. “Or maybe she just asked before you did,” Jackie teased. “Either way, I’m honored and flattered, but I couldn’t miss the opportunity to propose to you. I mean, I’ve dreamed about this day practically since I met you.” “Awww, mi amor.” “I want all summers with you and all winters, especially winters so you can keep me warm on snowy nights.” Eleanor giggled, her eyes full of tenderness, “Of course, my love. Summer, fall, winter, spring, all of the seasons and all of the years I have left on this planet.” “Good. And you, Eleanor Andrea Bloom, would you marry me?” “Yes, my love, mi amor, sí, sí, yes!” Bryce put the ring on her finger, and again, people cheered and clapped. Keiki and Jackie whistled.

When Bryce and Eleanor got off the stage, the gang approached them, filling them with congratulations and hugs, and just love for the happy, recently-engaged couple. they disclosed how everything had happened -Eleanor indeed had asked help first, she had been practicing guitar for more than a month with the help of Rafael.

After a while, Bryce took Eleanor’s hand and led her to a quiet place so they could have a moment for themselves. They smiled and laughed without saying anything, still processing what had happened and trying to understand the happiness they were feeling. their hearts were simply overflowing with happiness and love. “You know? I can say people, mostly women, have asked me a lot of things in my life, some of them shocking, some of them rather cute, but never had a woman proposing to me, so this is a first. You're definitely a keeper.” “Oh, that's why you're agreeing to marry me?” she asked, feigning offense. “One of the four hundred million reasons, babe.” Eleanor smiled pensively, earnest, “You deserve everything, my love, everything. And that includes being proposed, because, damn, we’re too far from gender stereotypes and toxic masculinity.” “I agree.” “And because I really wanted you to know that I wanna marry you, and spend the rest of my life with you, just as much as you do.”

Completely spellbound by the sincerity of her love, now and always, Bryce simply bit his lip and leaned to plant a sweet kiss on her lips.

There was nothing else to do but be happy.

____

Ps: Here pics of Bryce and Eleanor engagement rings. I had the idea of a collage, but it would've also taken me a day to finish it, lol sorry

Thank you for reading! ❤

#bryce lahela #bryce lahela x mc #bryce x mc #open heart #playchoices