The Mrs. Bradley Mysteries

[osprey_archer]

As I watched the pilot episode of The Mrs. Bradley Mysteries, articles that I’ve read about Sherlock floated through my mind. Specifically, the articles where people argue that the audience would roundly reject a female character as snarky, immune to social convention, and borderline sociopathic as Sherlock

Comments

[asakiyume]

Definitely post it as a post! It's fascinating and enlightening, and it would be interesting to see what other people think. I could link to it (only if you want).

I don't think there's ANYTHING WRONG AT ALL with writing what people want to read (provided, as you say, that it's also something you feel okay writing). Having an audience **matters**. I don't know why--well, okay, that's silly; I do know why; let me try again--I think it's silly that people attribute more integrity or what-have-you to writing without regard for audience. Art is performative! Writing without regard for your audience is selfish! Unless, of course, your art (taking art in the larger sense, meaning writing, art, music, etc.) is purely for yourself ... in which case some might still say it's selfish, but I'd say no, we all need private things we do to make us healthy beings.

It's very interesting what you say about exchanges and about how things with female characters do well in exchanges. I think you could well be right: somehow in the public consciousness fic may be more associated with slash and so people don't look for the other stuff when they're reading fic. But in exchanges they're looking for stories they've genuinely always wanted--somehow this doesn't count as fic in the usual sense--and a lot of times these may have to do with female characters.

Anyway, very interesting; thanks!