How TV fandom, and fanfic, ruined my perfectly good hobby of reading

[indyhat]

(Yes, I wrote an essay. Weird, I know. Moving on.)

So I have some vacation time. And there are bookstores. And I spend maybe three or four hours of said vacation time just browsing the shelves, picking up books that I've heard of, or whose authors I've heard of, and checking them out: is this the kind of book I'm in the mood for?

Comments

[visiblemarket]

Though thinking about it, isn't there a Heroes novel? Has anyone read it?

I believe lotus0kid did, and I've heard semi-decent things about it. Also that it doesn't so much fit with canon, but eh, canon hardly ever fit with canon on that show, so what can you do.

I kind of felt the same way about fiction for a few years; since high school, especially. I just didn't have time for it. And since I started my own whatever efforts at writing, trying to read real live novels tended just end with me analyzing other people's writing and pointing out what I felt were rookie mistakes. In fanfic world. *laughs*

But lately I've gotten some enjoyment out of the most random novels. I had a really good time with Maurice, by EM Forester, which is old-ish but doesn't read like it; The Picture of Dorian Grey, which was a lot of fun just despite having no characters I actually cared about, and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. What all these have in common is that in my mind they become super slashy. Which I am kind of ashamed of, but hey, it's

[indyhat]

I believe lotus0kid did, and I've heard semi-decent things about it.

Huh. Maybe I should pick it up in a bookstore so I can mock it in a more informed manner know whereof I speak.

Also that it doesn't so much fit with canon, but eh, canon hardly ever fit with canon on that show, so what can you do.

LOL! Indeed. Heroes was retconned up the wazoo in the later seasons. Sad.

And since I started my own whatever efforts at writing, trying to read real live novels tended just end with me analyzing other people's writing and pointing out what I felt were rookie mistakes. In fanfic world. *laughs*Heh, me too. That's not to say that I'm going to write a flawless novel, ever, but when you start thinking about doing it yourself, it does give you a more critical eye

[visiblemarket]

Huh. Maybe I should pick it up in a bookstore so I can mock it in a more informed manner know whereof I speak.

Heh, I don't think it was mocking levels of bad, but again, I haven't actually read it. I think I flipped through it once or twice. Never enough to commit.

LOL! Indeed. Heroes was retconned up the wazoo in the later seasons. Sad.

I figured with canon being so flexible I could just make more stuff up and/or design my timelines the way I wanted them to. If the actual writers didn't care, why should I?

Heh, me too. That's not to say that I'm going to write a flawless novel, ever, but when you start thinking about doing it yourself, it does give you a more critical eye.

I read a couple of teen level novels for recommendation purposes and was shocked at how...bad they were. Like just really shoddy writing. I don't know if that's a new development with YA books or just me caring more.

I'm highly amused by your slashing all these characters in historical novels.

Hey, it's canon in Maurice and...basically canon in Dorian Gray.

[indyhat]

Heh, I don't think it was mocking levels of bad, but again, I haven't actually read it. I think I flipped through it once or twice. Never enough to commit.

Maybe I should do the same ;)

I figured with canon being so flexible I could just make more stuff up and/or design my timelines the way I wanted them to. If the actual writers didn't care, why should I?

Heroes canon is a veritable contortionist ;)

I read a couple of teen level novels for recommendation purposes and was shocked at how...bad they were. Like just really shoddy writing. I don't know if that's a new development with YA books or just me caring more.

My money's probably on the latter. I'm pretty sure that getting in lots of practice at writing makes you a lot fussier about the stuff you read (in a nutshell, my current problem). And I know there's stuff on TV that I've gone back to since starting writing and just thought, "ugh, no."

I have an epic Hyde/Dorian Gray story planned. It makes sense in my head.Awesome. I'd read it (in fact I'm a lot more likely to read it

[visiblemarket]

I don't know if you've heard of cleolinda, but she does hilarious recaps of films over at m15m, and she's also done some stuff with Twilight, which is where I learned everything I need to know about Twilight. Links if you have time to spend, but they're hilarious.

Heroes canon is a veritable contortionist ;)

LOL. It stabbed me in the back and went over my head to do it ;)

Awesome. I'd read it (in fact I'm a lot more likely to read it than I am the original source texts! But maybe you'll pull me into those, too).

Heh. We'll see if I ever finish...anything.

Aww, I'm glad you enjoyed what you read of Extremely Loud. It's very well written and it's wonderfully structured.

[indyhat]

Oh, I know of Cleolinda :) In fact I just went looking to see if the "Titanic in 5 minutes" I read a good 10-15 years ago was one of hers, but the internet doesn't seem to think so. (Don't bother looking it up, I think hers are better; this was before the internet raised the bar on funny.) My brain is mush today so maybe I'll have a little peek.

LOL. It stabbed me in the back and went over my head to do it ;)

One of my favourite West Wing moments :)

We'll see if I ever finish...anything.

I hear that! I have a September challenge deadline (doable, right?) and a challenge deadline in two weeks for which the characters won't shut up and I can't get them to have the scene I want them to have. >.

[visiblemarket]

It might have been, she has one in her book, and a couple of those were on the internet and got pulled.

It's a good one. I'm actually watching an Amy clip right. *laughs* This one.

Ouch. I keep meaning to go somewhere to write, outside of my house, because seriously, all I do here is sleep.

[indyhat]

Ah, okay. This would have been, like, 1997, 98 or so? So who knows? :)

OMG, I love that clip. I can't ever watch it without laughing =) Alison Janney is wonderful.

You say that like it's a bad thing?

[visiblemarket]

I'd go find it right now but I'm lazy ;)

I miss those moments when Alison Janney got to be comedic; they were few and far between the last seasons of TWW. After that I looked up some Ainsely moments. Namely when she's dancing in the office and meets the president, and then when she wants to pee and meets the president.

Heh, the going out or the sleeping? I'd enjoy both things. Except my mother is here at the moment, and, well, this is what it feels like to have her around.

[indyhat]

Pretty much anything involving Ainsley is comedic. I love her!

And, uh, I meant sleeping, but feel free to interpret it whichever way suits ;)

Kitten getting spanked: eep! Sorry ... I hope things run more smoothly!

[visiblemarket]

Speaking of living with my mother, I just got offered the option to rent my apartment for just the semester, which they didn't let me do before, which is the reason I literally just finished moving out of there today. *sigh* And now I have to decide by, like, tomorrow whether I want to move back in.

[indyhat]

Oh man! They live to taunt you. >.

[visiblemarket]

My parents are...letting me decide. But I seriously don't know; I don't really feel like moving all my stuff again, and I'd kind of come around to the idea of moving back here, especially since like a good little Mexican girl I fully expect to live here once I get a job and stuff. So...yeah. I don't know. I'd almost rather that money get saved/spent on law school should I get in or on a car should my crappy one break down.

But if I say no then I'm going to spend forever regretting it, whenever I get impatient with my parents and don't want them nosing around my stuff or my activities.

[indyhat]

*snerk* Just lost several minutes to Cleolinda's various Twilight shenanigans. Much of it had seeped into me from the ether, but there were some things I didn't know. Sparkling? WTF?! *despairs*

[visiblemarket]

You didn't know about the sparkling?! Did you know Edward was a redhead? Because clearly that's the best part.

[indyhat]

I didn't know about the sparkling. (I haven't discussed the book with anyone IRL and it's not a corner of fandom I usually go near ;) Heh, I didn't know about the red hair. Except: whuh?