Fandom meme
Hooray for holidays! I barely ever take time off work, but I'll be home for the next couple of weeks, which should be really nice.
I thought I'd take the opportunity to grab this fandom meme from
themightyflynn. It's quite long, but since I'm still technically a Dreamwidth newbie, it seemed like a good 'get to know me, fandom-style' meme :)
1. Ships that you currently like a lot. (They don’t have to be OTPs because not everyone has OTPs.) Friendships, pairings, threesomes, etc. are allowed.
Snape/Harry, Twelve/Clara, Twelve/Missy.
2. A pairing -platonic, romantic or sexual- that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.
I disliked the idea of Drarry for years, mainly because I find it difficult to like characters who are school bullies, and had never read any Draco fic. Then I thought I'd just take a tiny peek at
writcraft's Little Compton Street, so I could leave a comment and be supportive etc… aaaand, that was probably a mistake :D Between Writcraft's extraordinary writing, and
dicta_contrion posting snippets of Drarry fics every day on Tumblr, I found myself being very quickly converted.
3. A ship you have never liked and probably never will.
It took me a very, very long time to stop hating Oliver/Felicity from Arrow, and move to grudgingly tolerating the ship.
4. A pairing you wish you liked but just can’t.
Honestly, (please don't hate me) Destiel. I totally get it, and can see all the UST on screen, but I've just never been able to actually ship them. See question #9 for why.
5. Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom? If so, what?
Sadly, no!
6. What’s the longest you’ve ever been in a fandom?
Supernatural has been 14 years, and HP & Doctor Who would be roughly the same. There are shows I've loved for longer, including XF, but aren't really in the fandom for.
7. Have you ever had an OTP? If so, do you remember your first one? Who was in it?
I tend to fall for characters rather than ships, and wasn't really a MSR shipper during X-Files. So I think my first real ship was Jack Bristow/Irina Derevko from Alias ♥ But even then, I was more focused on the father/daughter Jack & Sydney relationship. That was the core of the show for me.
As for later, I suspect Snarry is my all-time OTP, and the only one I regularly read fic for. I fell pretty quickly for Doctor/Master/Missy too.
8. What is your favorite source text for fandom stuff (e.g., TV shows, movies, books, anime, Western animation, etc.)?
I was a huge movie buff growing up, but for some reason I tend to be drawn more to TV show fandoms.
9. Has Tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why?
I wouldn't really say it was Tumblr, but the Supernatural fandom drove me away from the Supernatural fandom. Not all fans, of course, just a minority of extremely devoted Misha/Cas fans who decided that they, and Cas, were more important than fans of the Winchesters. Even people who proudly proclaimed they only started watching the show in s4 or 5 after seeing Cas gifs on Tumblr. They delighted in lecturing fans who had been around from day one, telling us the show was only still on air because of Cas and his fans, so us oldies should get out of the way and realize SPN "isn't our show" anymore. And basically, we owe them and should be thanking them because they're the ones who keep getting the show renewed. Whenever Cas wasn't in an episode, they'd threaten to stop watching to deliberately affect the ratings and demonstrate that Cas fans had all the power. I just… ugh. It wasn't everyone, of course, but they were really vocal and made me and others feel unwelcome in a fandom we'd been in from the beginning. I still watch the show and have never missed an episode, but I rarely do more than lurk in the SPN fandom these days.
Honourable mention: the Torchwood fandom, for hurling so much abuse at writer James Moran after That Character Death (in an episode he didn't even write) that he had to step away from social media and permanently turn off comments on his wonderful blog. I also vaguely remember reports of a so-called fan bringing a knife to comic con, in search of Russell T Davies. I mean, FFS.
10. Name a fandom you didn’t think about until you saw it all over Tumblr. (You don’t have to care about it or follow it; it just has to be something that Tumblr made you aware of.)
I haven't been on Tumblr long enough. Although, not sure if this counts but... I didn't realize there was a whole Asexual community out there in the world until I started seeing posts on Tumblr. I also didn't realize how much vitriol there was towards Ace people. So Tumblr was enlightening, and scary/depressing in this area.
11. What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?
Ooh, this is a tough one. Can I say fanon!Snape? :D
I'm sure there are plenty I'm forgetting, but because he's on my mind right now, I'll say Oliver Queen from Arrow. The show can be a total mess at times, but I keep watching because out of all the superhero shows/movies, Arrow is the one most keenly focused on the man under the mask. The psychological journey they've taken him on, spanning nearly 15 years when you include the flashbacks, has really been quite extraordinary. And they're not afraid to let him grow and change, and leave behind some of the darkness he once considered vital to being a vigilante. Arrow really is quite a sophisticated character study wrapped in a CW mess :)
Some other lesser known ones - Ted Jr from Rectify has one of the most extraordinary arcs I've ever seen, and Shane Vendrell from The Shield has one of the most heartbreaking. Also, the amazing Sara Lance from Arrow, and Alex from Nikita, who were both broken in the most devastating ways, but managed to still be survivors.
12. Say something genuinely nice about a character who isn’t one of your faves.
I'm not a huge fan of Ron Weasley, but he's loyal and has a big heart.
13. Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.
Oh dear. I'm thinking about my favourite characters and they're all some variation of 'damaged, morally questionable asshole' :D Hmm… Jane, from Jane The Virgin? Oh wait, duh: The Doctor ♥
14. Name three things you wish you saw more or in your main fandom (or a fandom of choice).
1. On Tumblr, more thoughtful discussion, less 'shitposting'.
2. People being allowed to like the characters they like, and not having to spend all their fandom time defending the character and/or themselves.
3. *whispers* A return to angsty fic.
15. Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?
Paralyzed - by NF. Right now, it reminds me of Snape, but it's pretty much the perfect fandom song and could apply to so many characters.
16. Invent a random AU for any fandom (we always need more ideas).
I'm tired... stop making me think...
17. A fandom you’ve abandoned and why.
Hannibal, I'm kind of ashamed to admit. I was a very devoted Fannibal, and loved the fairly unique level of Twitter interaction with the show's creatives (Fuller, Slade, DeLaurentiis etc.) But the show lost me a little as it went on, because I felt it became a bit too much style over substance. I stuck with the fandom until the show ended, I just haven't really participated since then.
18. Which friendship/platonic relationship is your favorite in fandom?
Alan Shore & Denny Crane, anyone? ;) Ok, I really can't limit this to just one: Sam/Dean Winchester, Neal/Peter (White Collar), House/Wilson, Buffy/Giles, Nikita/Alex, Toby/CJ (TWW), does Twelve/Clara count? I also adored Kara & Cat on Supergirl. Female/female mentor relationships are so, SO rare. That one was really important to me for the brief time it lasted.
19. Show us an example of your personal headcanon (prompts optional but encouraged)
This is probably pretty common but, I think Snape had the means to save his own life, and would have done so had Harry not appeared in the Shack. In my mind, once his mission was complete, he probably didn't think he had any reason to stay.
20. Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending?
Severus Snape does, and always will, sound like Alan Rickman :P
21. Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.
1. Severus Snape - because his journey is an absolute tragedy. Because while his flaws were constantly highlighted, neither his traumas nor his strengths were ever really acknowledged. Because he's complex and human, and deserved so much more. And because of how brilliantly fic writers have explored and developed him over the years.
2. The Doctor - because the Tenth Doctor's humanity, heart, and love of life made me want to live, at a time when I didn't.
3. Dana Scully - because when I was a young girl, Scully showed me what kind of woman I wanted to grow up to be.
22. Which character do you relate to most?
I see parts of myself in a lot of different characters. I should probably just leave it at that :)
23. A trope which you are virtually certain to hate in any fandom.
I have zero interest in creature!fic. (So naturally, the first fest I entered was the HP Creatures Fest!)
24. A trope which you are almost certain to love in any fandom.
Hurt/comfort; angst.
25. What are your secondhand fandoms (i.e., fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)?
I see a bit of the 1D fandom pop up on my flist. Other than that, I'm kind of... in... All Of The Fandoms.
26. Just ramble about something fan-related, go go go! (Prompts optional but encouraged.)
Can we take a moment to acknowledge fest mods? I've written three fics this year that I never would have written without fest and prompts. Mods play a huge role in keeping fandoms alive, and it seems like so much work, all just done out of love for the characters and the community around them. You all deserve so much respect and appreciation! ♥ ♥ ♥
Tagging anyone else who wants (and has time) to do it :)
I thought I'd take the opportunity to grab this fandom meme from
themightyflynn. It's quite long, but since I'm still technically a Dreamwidth newbie, it seemed like a good 'get to know me, fandom-style' meme :)
1. Ships that you currently like a lot. (They don’t have to be OTPs because not everyone has OTPs.) Friendships, pairings, threesomes, etc. are allowed.
Snape/Harry, Twelve/Clara, Twelve/Missy.
2. A pairing -platonic, romantic or sexual- that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.
I disliked the idea of Drarry for years, mainly because I find it difficult to like characters who are school bullies, and had never read any Draco fic. Then I thought I'd just take a tiny peek at
writcraft's Little Compton Street, so I could leave a comment and be supportive etc… aaaand, that was probably a mistake :D Between Writcraft's extraordinary writing, and
dicta_contrion posting snippets of Drarry fics every day on Tumblr, I found myself being very quickly converted.
3. A ship you have never liked and probably never will.
It took me a very, very long time to stop hating Oliver/Felicity from Arrow, and move to grudgingly tolerating the ship.
4. A pairing you wish you liked but just can’t.
Honestly, (please don't hate me) Destiel. I totally get it, and can see all the UST on screen, but I've just never been able to actually ship them. See question #9 for why.
5. Have you added anything cracky/hilarious to your fandom? If so, what?
Sadly, no!
6. What’s the longest you’ve ever been in a fandom?
Supernatural has been 14 years, and HP & Doctor Who would be roughly the same. There are shows I've loved for longer, including XF, but aren't really in the fandom for.
7. Have you ever had an OTP? If so, do you remember your first one? Who was in it?
I tend to fall for characters rather than ships, and wasn't really a MSR shipper during X-Files. So I think my first real ship was Jack Bristow/Irina Derevko from Alias ♥ But even then, I was more focused on the father/daughter Jack & Sydney relationship. That was the core of the show for me.
As for later, I suspect Snarry is my all-time OTP, and the only one I regularly read fic for. I fell pretty quickly for Doctor/Master/Missy too.
8. What is your favorite source text for fandom stuff (e.g., TV shows, movies, books, anime, Western animation, etc.)?
I was a huge movie buff growing up, but for some reason I tend to be drawn more to TV show fandoms.
9. Has Tumblr caused you to stop liking any fandoms, if so, which and why?
I wouldn't really say it was Tumblr, but the Supernatural fandom drove me away from the Supernatural fandom. Not all fans, of course, just a minority of extremely devoted Misha/Cas fans who decided that they, and Cas, were more important than fans of the Winchesters. Even people who proudly proclaimed they only started watching the show in s4 or 5 after seeing Cas gifs on Tumblr. They delighted in lecturing fans who had been around from day one, telling us the show was only still on air because of Cas and his fans, so us oldies should get out of the way and realize SPN "isn't our show" anymore. And basically, we owe them and should be thanking them because they're the ones who keep getting the show renewed. Whenever Cas wasn't in an episode, they'd threaten to stop watching to deliberately affect the ratings and demonstrate that Cas fans had all the power. I just… ugh. It wasn't everyone, of course, but they were really vocal and made me and others feel unwelcome in a fandom we'd been in from the beginning. I still watch the show and have never missed an episode, but I rarely do more than lurk in the SPN fandom these days.
Honourable mention: the Torchwood fandom, for hurling so much abuse at writer James Moran after That Character Death (in an episode he didn't even write) that he had to step away from social media and permanently turn off comments on his wonderful blog. I also vaguely remember reports of a so-called fan bringing a knife to comic con, in search of Russell T Davies. I mean, FFS.
10. Name a fandom you didn’t think about until you saw it all over Tumblr. (You don’t have to care about it or follow it; it just has to be something that Tumblr made you aware of.)
I haven't been on Tumblr long enough. Although, not sure if this counts but... I didn't realize there was a whole Asexual community out there in the world until I started seeing posts on Tumblr. I also didn't realize how much vitriol there was towards Ace people. So Tumblr was enlightening, and scary/depressing in this area.
11. What character has your favorite development arc/the best development arc?
Ooh, this is a tough one. Can I say fanon!Snape? :D
I'm sure there are plenty I'm forgetting, but because he's on my mind right now, I'll say Oliver Queen from Arrow. The show can be a total mess at times, but I keep watching because out of all the superhero shows/movies, Arrow is the one most keenly focused on the man under the mask. The psychological journey they've taken him on, spanning nearly 15 years when you include the flashbacks, has really been quite extraordinary. And they're not afraid to let him grow and change, and leave behind some of the darkness he once considered vital to being a vigilante. Arrow really is quite a sophisticated character study wrapped in a CW mess :)
Some other lesser known ones - Ted Jr from Rectify has one of the most extraordinary arcs I've ever seen, and Shane Vendrell from The Shield has one of the most heartbreaking. Also, the amazing Sara Lance from Arrow, and Alex from Nikita, who were both broken in the most devastating ways, but managed to still be survivors.
12. Say something genuinely nice about a character who isn’t one of your faves.
I'm not a huge fan of Ron Weasley, but he's loyal and has a big heart.
13. Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.
Oh dear. I'm thinking about my favourite characters and they're all some variation of 'damaged, morally questionable asshole' :D Hmm… Jane, from Jane The Virgin? Oh wait, duh: The Doctor ♥
14. Name three things you wish you saw more or in your main fandom (or a fandom of choice).
1. On Tumblr, more thoughtful discussion, less 'shitposting'.
2. People being allowed to like the characters they like, and not having to spend all their fandom time defending the character and/or themselves.
3. *whispers* A return to angsty fic.
15. Choose a song at random. Which ship or character does it remind you of?
Paralyzed - by NF. Right now, it reminds me of Snape, but it's pretty much the perfect fandom song and could apply to so many characters.
16. Invent a random AU for any fandom (we always need more ideas).
I'm tired... stop making me think...
17. A fandom you’ve abandoned and why.
Hannibal, I'm kind of ashamed to admit. I was a very devoted Fannibal, and loved the fairly unique level of Twitter interaction with the show's creatives (Fuller, Slade, DeLaurentiis etc.) But the show lost me a little as it went on, because I felt it became a bit too much style over substance. I stuck with the fandom until the show ended, I just haven't really participated since then.
18. Which friendship/platonic relationship is your favorite in fandom?
Alan Shore & Denny Crane, anyone? ;) Ok, I really can't limit this to just one: Sam/Dean Winchester, Neal/Peter (White Collar), House/Wilson, Buffy/Giles, Nikita/Alex, Toby/CJ (TWW), does Twelve/Clara count? I also adored Kara & Cat on Supergirl. Female/female mentor relationships are so, SO rare. That one was really important to me for the brief time it lasted.
19. Show us an example of your personal headcanon (prompts optional but encouraged)
This is probably pretty common but, I think Snape had the means to save his own life, and would have done so had Harry not appeared in the Shack. In my mind, once his mission was complete, he probably didn't think he had any reason to stay.
20. Do you have any hard and fast headcanons that you will die defending?
Severus Snape does, and always will, sound like Alan Rickman :P
21. Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.
1. Severus Snape - because his journey is an absolute tragedy. Because while his flaws were constantly highlighted, neither his traumas nor his strengths were ever really acknowledged. Because he's complex and human, and deserved so much more. And because of how brilliantly fic writers have explored and developed him over the years.
2. The Doctor - because the Tenth Doctor's humanity, heart, and love of life made me want to live, at a time when I didn't.
3. Dana Scully - because when I was a young girl, Scully showed me what kind of woman I wanted to grow up to be.
22. Which character do you relate to most?
I see parts of myself in a lot of different characters. I should probably just leave it at that :)
23. A trope which you are virtually certain to hate in any fandom.
I have zero interest in creature!fic. (So naturally, the first fest I entered was the HP Creatures Fest!)
24. A trope which you are almost certain to love in any fandom.
Hurt/comfort; angst.
25. What are your secondhand fandoms (i.e., fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)?
I see a bit of the 1D fandom pop up on my flist. Other than that, I'm kind of... in... All Of The Fandoms.
26. Just ramble about something fan-related, go go go! (Prompts optional but encouraged.)
Can we take a moment to acknowledge fest mods? I've written three fics this year that I never would have written without fest and prompts. Mods play a huge role in keeping fandoms alive, and it seems like so much work, all just done out of love for the characters and the community around them. You all deserve so much respect and appreciation! ♥ ♥ ♥
Tagging anyone else who wants (and has time) to do it :)