Meta: What My Fandoms Taught Me
I was thinking (again, yes, I know, it will get me into trouble some day) about various fandoms I have participated in and what sorts of things I gathered from each, that I am bringing along with me.
Not all of these things are good things to have, I think. But there are there.
(For the purposes of this post, I'm using "fandoms I have participated in" in it's broadest, not-internet-or-con-going, most encompassing meaning.)
More or less in chronological order:
Dragonriders: You can (and likely will) grow out of an author with a particular audience or style.
Star Trek: The Next Generation: The good guys always win. Pay attention when Shakespearian actors are on-screen, even if they're old and bald. Utopias are boring and stories about them are pointless.
The Uncanny X-Men (comics): Romance is a perfectly fine thing to build a story on, but it doesn't work for every character or pair of characters. Also, women are kick-ass characters. Also, "soul-bonded" pairs are boring. Sweet, but boring.
The X-Files: RSP is fucked up, sick, and wrong. Story arcs rule. There are limits to TV's story-telling abilities. And that's where fan-fic comes in.
Firefly: That I *can* write *good* stuff. That good, in terms of tv shows, doesn't have to mean "perfect". And that TV shows are willing to go places I would not.
Battlestar Galactica: That tv can be this damn good. That it's not too much to ask, or demand.
Not all of these things are good things to have, I think. But there are there.
(For the purposes of this post, I'm using "fandoms I have participated in" in it's broadest, not-internet-or-con-going, most encompassing meaning.)
More or less in chronological order:
Dragonriders: You can (and likely will) grow out of an author with a particular audience or style.
Star Trek: The Next Generation: The good guys always win. Pay attention when Shakespearian actors are on-screen, even if they're old and bald. Utopias are boring and stories about them are pointless.
The Uncanny X-Men (comics): Romance is a perfectly fine thing to build a story on, but it doesn't work for every character or pair of characters. Also, women are kick-ass characters. Also, "soul-bonded" pairs are boring. Sweet, but boring.
The X-Files: RSP is fucked up, sick, and wrong. Story arcs rule. There are limits to TV's story-telling abilities. And that's where fan-fic comes in.
Firefly: That I *can* write *good* stuff. That good, in terms of tv shows, doesn't have to mean "perfect". And that TV shows are willing to go places I would not.
Battlestar Galactica: That tv can be this damn good. That it's not too much to ask, or demand.