30 Days of Fic Writing: Days 21 -25
In anticipation of having very little time to do this daily, I will do a few more in one day.
21. Sequels - Have you ever written a sequel to a fic you wrote, and if so, why, and if not, how do you feel about sequels?
Generally speaking, I am not a sequel-writing person. I have, on occasion written one-shots that developed into multi-chaptered stories, but those were always by accident. I started them thinking I had a finite amount of words to say only to have the characters nagging away at me that they were not, in fact, finished. Lately, I have been writing a series of fics (a trilogy of multi-chaptered stories) that I didn't anticipate at first, but that naturally grew from what I created in the first. But again, I never intended it. It's not like I don't like sequels--I read sequels, and watch sequeled movies, too, but it's just not typically the way my mind works.
22. Have you ever participated in a fest or a Big Bang? If so, write about your favorite experience in relation to one. If not, are there any you’ve thought about doing? And if not, why not?
I did a Big_Bang a few years ago and it was a wonderful, but time consuming experience. One I don't intend to ever repeat just because of the time and energy that went into it. I used to participate in fic exchanges (in Prison Break fandom I did that three? maybe four? times; in Glee fandom, I did it two or three times, and once in TVD fandom, I think?) and they are so much fun...when you have a big enough group.
23. When you post, where do you post to? Just your journal? Just an archive? Your own personal site?
When I first started writing fic, back in 2000, I was posting to a revolving board, so eventually the story rotated right off into the ether. I had friends back then who archived the stories to websites, but they are long since gone now. In 2006 when I started writing for PB, I posted to all-PB related archive that is now defunct. About halfway through my time in that fandom I started posting on LJ. I don't know why it took me so long to do it; possibly I wasn't LJ savvy for a long time, like how to do cuts and links and stuff like that. Now I post every story on my LJ and on my AO3 account. I never got into fanfic.net, and I never will. They call it The Pit for a reason, and I just can't bring myself to post there. I've had people over the years insist that I should, but it's just not for me.
24. Betaing - How many betas do you like to use to make sure there aren’t any major flaws in your fic? Do you have a Beta horror story or dream story?
I never used a beta, LIKE EVER, until I was writing for a fic exchange. I think part of the rules of participation was something like you had to have a beta, so I found someone, now I can't even remember what fic or who served as beta, but it must have been in PB fandom, anyway, I was ASTOUNDED at how much early feedback helped me make my story better. After that I was converted whole-heartedly to using betas, and I try to use one for especially any fic I'm writing for someone as a gift, or any time I'm venturing into new territory. Sometimes, though, I'm just too excited and impatient and I end up posting without a beta.
25. Music - Do you listen to music while you write? Do you make playlists to get into a certain “mood” to write your fic? Do you need noise in general? Or do you need it completely quiet?
I mentioned previously how I use music as inspiration--for when I'm away from the fic. I don't listen to my playlists while writing, I usually like it quiet, but if it's really flowing I can write in chaos, too. The point of music, for me, is to keep the flow going even when I'm not where I can write.
21. Sequels - Have you ever written a sequel to a fic you wrote, and if so, why, and if not, how do you feel about sequels?
Generally speaking, I am not a sequel-writing person. I have, on occasion written one-shots that developed into multi-chaptered stories, but those were always by accident. I started them thinking I had a finite amount of words to say only to have the characters nagging away at me that they were not, in fact, finished. Lately, I have been writing a series of fics (a trilogy of multi-chaptered stories) that I didn't anticipate at first, but that naturally grew from what I created in the first. But again, I never intended it. It's not like I don't like sequels--I read sequels, and watch sequeled movies, too, but it's just not typically the way my mind works.
22. Have you ever participated in a fest or a Big Bang? If so, write about your favorite experience in relation to one. If not, are there any you’ve thought about doing? And if not, why not?
I did a Big_Bang a few years ago and it was a wonderful, but time consuming experience. One I don't intend to ever repeat just because of the time and energy that went into it. I used to participate in fic exchanges (in Prison Break fandom I did that three? maybe four? times; in Glee fandom, I did it two or three times, and once in TVD fandom, I think?) and they are so much fun...when you have a big enough group.
23. When you post, where do you post to? Just your journal? Just an archive? Your own personal site?
When I first started writing fic, back in 2000, I was posting to a revolving board, so eventually the story rotated right off into the ether. I had friends back then who archived the stories to websites, but they are long since gone now. In 2006 when I started writing for PB, I posted to all-PB related archive that is now defunct. About halfway through my time in that fandom I started posting on LJ. I don't know why it took me so long to do it; possibly I wasn't LJ savvy for a long time, like how to do cuts and links and stuff like that. Now I post every story on my LJ and on my AO3 account. I never got into fanfic.net, and I never will. They call it The Pit for a reason, and I just can't bring myself to post there. I've had people over the years insist that I should, but it's just not for me.
24. Betaing - How many betas do you like to use to make sure there aren’t any major flaws in your fic? Do you have a Beta horror story or dream story?
I never used a beta, LIKE EVER, until I was writing for a fic exchange. I think part of the rules of participation was something like you had to have a beta, so I found someone, now I can't even remember what fic or who served as beta, but it must have been in PB fandom, anyway, I was ASTOUNDED at how much early feedback helped me make my story better. After that I was converted whole-heartedly to using betas, and I try to use one for especially any fic I'm writing for someone as a gift, or any time I'm venturing into new territory. Sometimes, though, I'm just too excited and impatient and I end up posting without a beta.
25. Music - Do you listen to music while you write? Do you make playlists to get into a certain “mood” to write your fic? Do you need noise in general? Or do you need it completely quiet?
I mentioned previously how I use music as inspiration--for when I'm away from the fic. I don't listen to my playlists while writing, I usually like it quiet, but if it's really flowing I can write in chaos, too. The point of music, for me, is to keep the flow going even when I'm not where I can write.