Changes Over Time - Fanfic

[keket_amunet]

I've noticed what seems to be a common trait in fanfiction over time, and that's the change of taste. When a reader first discovers a pairing or fanfiction, the reader is hungry and eager to get as much as he or she can of the stories. The reader leaves squeeing reviews all over the place and keeps up a voracious pace. I know I've left reviews for

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[harmony_bites]

I can remember the very first fanfic I ever read. I was going to law school, and looked Trek up online the way someone would grab at a teddy bear. The most interesting convos about characters weren't on the discussion groups, but the creative groups, and I noticed this link at the bottom of a post. I clicked on it, and it took me to a personal fanfic site.

I was in heaven. Just the whole idea that people were writing about characters that I loved but had been pushed off a cliff, and the stories were filling in canon gaps (in Trek it's called spackle) and taking characters places no staid authorized profic would dare to go. I dedicated my second story ever written to that writer and basically gushed in my reviews to hir.

A year later I was making up a rec list for Trek on my site. I couldn't think of one story of hirs I wanted to include. Not one. I'd read better by then. Hell, I'd written better. And the novelty had worn off.

To some extent the same has happened with HPfic, Snapefic, and SS/HG, though to a lessser extent. But yes, with favs lists I'm reluctant to remove stories an authors. Its usually visible to an author exactly how many and who lists them as a favorite, and I know from the bitchin' that's gotten back to me that people notice. And I don't want them to. Either because I don't want to hurt feelings or because having had a falling out with the person involved I don't want to escalate hostilities or seem petty.

But yes, some fics are still special to me, particularly those that made me see a character in an entirely new light.

Snape: KazVL's Falling Further In, duj's, Everything I've Ever Done, Caria's Pet Project, SnarkyRoxy's "What I Know You've Done". Quillusion's Soul Searching, Helga's two abandoned stories, "Meeting of the Minds" and "Out of Time" and Textual Sphinx's "Letter from Exile"

Other authors are favorites for Snape--Melisande88 and LotM for instance--and other's have written Snape or SS/HG that are favorites--like bloodcult and E.M. Snape--but the above helped from my own vision or prefered version of Snape.

Hermione: Bambu's Calling Card, Dyce's Survivors, Abby/Anne's The Fire and the Rose, Anne's Midnight, April Grey Happy Christmas

Draco: pir8fancier's "Room Serviced"

Percy: RaeWhit's "Prodigal Son"

Ron: KavVL's Falling Further In again, and FriendlyQuark's "A Terrible Temptation"

Lupin: Snegurochka "Alpha Wolf"

[keket_amunet]

I don't remember reading my first fanfic, but I'm sure I did quite a bit of gushing myself. I'm also certain if I went back now, I wouldn't find the work so squee-worthy. And really, the work hasn't changed: I've changed, and that makes all the difference.