Fannish year in review!
This was the year I began seriously writing fanfiction. I also vidded in three new fandoms, not to mention an IJVP to kick the year off. It's going to be hard to top 2006 in quantity; but I am hopeful that 2007 will be better in quality.
The Vids
Insane January Vidding Project '06 (Multi) - The post I link to here pretty much covers my thoughts on the subject. Looking back, "Jesus Walks" is still my favorite.
Moving Right Along (Farscape) - I loved making this vid. It was entirely a product of fannish love and devotion and it came out exactly as I'd hoped. This vid took me back to when I made my first vid, and how I felt making it. I wasn't trying to tell a story or make an argument or try a new technique, just squee with my perfect song for the subject.
Anodyne (Scrubs) - I never thought I'd make a Scrubs vid, but I'm really happy I made this one. It was a fun vid to make, pretty light and really joyful.
A Day Like Today (BSG) - Made for the Lee-and-Laura Fixathon. I made this vid with specific people in mind, while still trying to incorporate my own feelings on the subject into it and make it something my recipient would enjoy. I'm still pretty happy with how it turned out, even if the process of making it was tough.
Fix You (BSG) - Oh, this vid. Made for the Vividcon Premieres show. I worried and worried and worried about it, that people wouldn't engage long enough to get it, that if they did it would still suck, but I was really gratified by the response it got. This is definitely the vid I'm most happy with this year. Especially how shiny it is after the remaster. Heh.
Kick In The Head (ST:TNG) - Made for and with greensilver for the Vividcon Auction show. This was my first ever real fannish collaboration and it was a blast. The best part about making this vid was that it was made for an audience of two, and we both laughed so it was a success. *g* My love for ST:TNG went through a bright, brief resurgence. I mock with love!
Fast Cars (Life On Mars) - This vid was a really good exercise for me in trying to cut with purpose, to use clip length and timing to evoke emotion in addition to using the lyrics and the sound of the music, and I also threw in some color work, too.
Valencia (Due South) - One of the first vids in ages that I released without having anyone at all look it over. I tried to release it to very little fanfare for just that reason, and when people seemed to be responding all right to it, I posted it over at the DS music video comm. It was a lightning strike of "I must make this now," and it was just the one episode (mostly) so I managed to get it done really quickly. It is what it is.
Satellite (Due South) - Another vid made out of pure fannish love. My boys! I've really got nothing beyond that except that I'm SO HAPPY people liked the car!porn section. Hee.
Overall Thoughts - This was the Year of Vidding Emotionally for me. Lots of vids from places of "OMG LOVE" or just a much lighter approach. The subject matter/vid theme wasn't as intentionally complicated. And I made one less vid this year than last year (unless you count my uncharted_elves gift, which I don't because I *technically* made it in 2005). This is also the first time I've ever made a vid and then not shown it to anyone, because it was, literally, made just for me (so I guess I did make the same number of vids, heh). It was refreshing. A very interesting year for me, in that regard; sort of me owning my own fannishness and fannish feelings, and embracing the things I love and that I want to produce. I remastered Take A Chance On Me and Cold Cold Water with new source, and wrote up several vid commentaries. Also of note, this is the first time since I started vidding that I did not make a new Buffy or Angel vid. So, to sum up, the Vid-Year-In-Review meme:
My favorite of my own vids this year:
Right now it's "Satellite" because it's the newest and the subject matter is currently most dear to my heart.
My best vid this year:
"Fix You"
Vid of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
"Fast Cars"
Most fun video:
"Kick In The Head." Just the credits were fun for me, not to mention the collaborating.
Video with single sexiest moment:
Ooh. Hm. "A Day Like Today," I think. Back when Lee and Laura would actually, you know, look at each other!
Hardest video to make:
"Fast Cars" and "Fix You." Fast Cars benefitted immensely from VVC and post-VVC learning curve, IMO, because prior to VVC I was utterly, totally stuck on what to do with it. Fix You just intimidated me.
Most unintentionally *telling* video:
Hm. I think it was "Satellite," but by the responses I got to it, I think it was actually "Valencia."
The Fic
Regret (Due South; Vecchio; rated PG) - I've written fanfic before this, but I really consider this the start of fanfic writing as a serious fannish endeavor and not just something I do every few years when the odd story strikes me. I used to place an enormous amount personal identification and self-worth on the fact that I was A Writer, and then about four years ago, I suffered a shattering blow to my writing self-confidence and stopped writing entirely. Vidding came along at a great time for me, a time when I'd been many months without writing and didn't know what the hell else I was going to do creatively. When I started vidding, I considered myself a writer who vids. Then about six months into it, I considered myself a vidder and a vidder only. When I wrote this ficlet, I considered myself a vidder who writes. Now I don't know what the hell am I, except happier. So much happier. I missed writing, and if fandom gives me nothing else, it's given me back the joy of having stories in my head again.
And that whole paragraph is about the entire length of the fic that spurred it. Heh. The other awesome thing about taking up writing again is that vidding has made me a better writer, because I actually enjoy editing now, and I'm much less destructively protective of my work. But this is leading into a whole different post, so let's move on.
Leis My Mountie Sold Me (Due South; Vecchio & Fraser; rated G) - A silly little piece written for the ds_closet fic challenge when I was in the throes of despair over my work travel schedule. Inspired by being in Hawaii. Total nutritional value of 0.
The Shortest Distance (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser implied; rated PG) - I am still so happy with how people responded to this fic. I don't remember how I got the idea, but it was written fairly quickly once I started. I'm grateful that I wrote this fic when I did, because I was still walking the line at this point of not knowing if this was going to be something I regularly wanted to do. But it came out fairly well and shored up the very nervous writer in me and I pressed on.
A Common Pulse (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser; rated NC-17) - Written for the fraser_vecchio ficathon, which I almost didn't join. I'm really glad I did, because my recipient asked for one of my all-time favorite storytelling kinks: I thought you were dead! Best. Ever. Hee. A bit slow to get started, I think, but once the kid plot comes in, I'm pretty happy with it. My favorite part is Ray sitting in the ambulance in shock while the EMT patches him up and Fraser stands next to him.
Sign Language (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser; rated R) - Prompted by the Fraser/Vecchio plot generator, this story started out life as a post-"North" story, but after writing the first page, I had absolutely nowhere to go. Instead I wondered why else they'd be wet, and worked backwards from there, which is a large part of why the story was written in the back-and-forth timeline, too. The hardest part with this story was remembering that giving exposition early in the story didn't mean that that was actually when the characters would give that exposition, so I had to do some reshuffling to fit the actual timeline of events instead of the way that the story laid them out (I hope that makes sense).
Take Me Out To The Black (Tell Me When I Can Come Back): Part 1 (Due South/Firefly crossover; Vecchio & Fraser & Frannie; rated PG) - I still have little vignettes I need to get together and post for this. Written for fun and as an exercise in throwing together characters I love, I consider this fic (and what else I've got for it) to really be writing exercises: low-key and non-reliant on plot. Which is a nice change for me; I get really caught up in plot.
Be Careful, With Me (Due South; Vecchio/Angie; Vecchio/Irene; Vecchio/Fraser; rated PG) - Written for vecchiofest. This story was conceived as being a post-"Juliet Is Bleeding" fic that showed different ways that people responded to Ray's grief, but it wasn't coming out right. So instead I brainstormed on the prompt and came up with the finished product. Much angstier than I normally like, but I'm happy with how it turned out. (A secret? In my head there is a K/V coda to this fic; I didn't write it because it wasn't ultimately where I wanted to go in the finished version, but it starts with something along the lines of "Ray's relationship with Kowalski wasn't any sort of shape at all, and that was probably why it worked.")
Heart Held Out Like A Tin Cup (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser; rated NC-17) - Written with brynnmck. My second fannish collaboration, and my first writing collaboration, this was insanely fun to write and I will long remember our chats while we wrote it, as well as Google Docs and it's crazy, crazy ways.
Overall Thoughts - I don't have much to say; I think the content of the fics speaks to where my fic-writing interest lies right now, although I do have two BSG fic ideas, but one is really full of crack and the other is incredibly long and plotty and not shippy at all so I'm not sure I'm motivated enough by BSG love right now to write a fic that almost no one will want to read. Although the idea really intrigues me, so there's a good chance. Once I finish my ds_harlequin prompts. (Apparently, 2007 will be the Year of Crack Fic!)
My favorite of my own stories this year:
"Sign Language." I'm really happy with how that one turned out, and I think for how long it is, it's pretty strong all the way through.
My best story this year:
Um, I don't know. "The Shortest Distance" received the most comments.
Story of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
"Heart Held Out Like A Tin Cup."
Most fun story:
To make would be "Heart Held Out" but I think fun in the story itself would either be "Leis" or "Take Me Out."
Story with single sexiest moment:
Either Fraser telling Ray how he'd make his move in "Sign Language" or Ray telling Fraser to lick his palm in "Heart Held Out."
Hardest story to write:
"Be Careful, With Me."
Most unintentionally *telling* story:
"A Common Pulse." That story hit a lot of kinks for me with the "I thought you were dead" and the happy relationship and everything.
Total number of words written (including half of the collab):
30,530. Wow. That was unexpected. I had no fic-writing designs when I started the year. Heh. That also doesn't count the 5k or so words on fics that I've been toying with for months.
And happy belated birthday wishes to all of the December birthdays that I missed (at least according to LJ's birthday list): lozenger8, themonkeycabal, sugargroupie, mesascaper, and _jems_!
The pets are coming home today. Yay! I've missed them.
The Vids
Insane January Vidding Project '06 (Multi) - The post I link to here pretty much covers my thoughts on the subject. Looking back, "Jesus Walks" is still my favorite.
Moving Right Along (Farscape) - I loved making this vid. It was entirely a product of fannish love and devotion and it came out exactly as I'd hoped. This vid took me back to when I made my first vid, and how I felt making it. I wasn't trying to tell a story or make an argument or try a new technique, just squee with my perfect song for the subject.
Anodyne (Scrubs) - I never thought I'd make a Scrubs vid, but I'm really happy I made this one. It was a fun vid to make, pretty light and really joyful.
A Day Like Today (BSG) - Made for the Lee-and-Laura Fixathon. I made this vid with specific people in mind, while still trying to incorporate my own feelings on the subject into it and make it something my recipient would enjoy. I'm still pretty happy with how it turned out, even if the process of making it was tough.
Fix You (BSG) - Oh, this vid. Made for the Vividcon Premieres show. I worried and worried and worried about it, that people wouldn't engage long enough to get it, that if they did it would still suck, but I was really gratified by the response it got. This is definitely the vid I'm most happy with this year. Especially how shiny it is after the remaster. Heh.
Kick In The Head (ST:TNG) - Made for and with greensilver for the Vividcon Auction show. This was my first ever real fannish collaboration and it was a blast. The best part about making this vid was that it was made for an audience of two, and we both laughed so it was a success. *g* My love for ST:TNG went through a bright, brief resurgence. I mock with love!
Fast Cars (Life On Mars) - This vid was a really good exercise for me in trying to cut with purpose, to use clip length and timing to evoke emotion in addition to using the lyrics and the sound of the music, and I also threw in some color work, too.
Valencia (Due South) - One of the first vids in ages that I released without having anyone at all look it over. I tried to release it to very little fanfare for just that reason, and when people seemed to be responding all right to it, I posted it over at the DS music video comm. It was a lightning strike of "I must make this now," and it was just the one episode (mostly) so I managed to get it done really quickly. It is what it is.
Satellite (Due South) - Another vid made out of pure fannish love. My boys! I've really got nothing beyond that except that I'm SO HAPPY people liked the car!porn section. Hee.
Overall Thoughts - This was the Year of Vidding Emotionally for me. Lots of vids from places of "OMG LOVE" or just a much lighter approach. The subject matter/vid theme wasn't as intentionally complicated. And I made one less vid this year than last year (unless you count my uncharted_elves gift, which I don't because I *technically* made it in 2005). This is also the first time I've ever made a vid and then not shown it to anyone, because it was, literally, made just for me (so I guess I did make the same number of vids, heh). It was refreshing. A very interesting year for me, in that regard; sort of me owning my own fannishness and fannish feelings, and embracing the things I love and that I want to produce. I remastered Take A Chance On Me and Cold Cold Water with new source, and wrote up several vid commentaries. Also of note, this is the first time since I started vidding that I did not make a new Buffy or Angel vid. So, to sum up, the Vid-Year-In-Review meme:
My favorite of my own vids this year:
Right now it's "Satellite" because it's the newest and the subject matter is currently most dear to my heart.
My best vid this year:
"Fix You"
Vid of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
"Fast Cars"
Most fun video:
"Kick In The Head." Just the credits were fun for me, not to mention the collaborating.
Video with single sexiest moment:
Ooh. Hm. "A Day Like Today," I think. Back when Lee and Laura would actually, you know, look at each other!
Hardest video to make:
"Fast Cars" and "Fix You." Fast Cars benefitted immensely from VVC and post-VVC learning curve, IMO, because prior to VVC I was utterly, totally stuck on what to do with it. Fix You just intimidated me.
Most unintentionally *telling* video:
Hm. I think it was "Satellite," but by the responses I got to it, I think it was actually "Valencia."
The Fic
Regret (Due South; Vecchio; rated PG) - I've written fanfic before this, but I really consider this the start of fanfic writing as a serious fannish endeavor and not just something I do every few years when the odd story strikes me. I used to place an enormous amount personal identification and self-worth on the fact that I was A Writer, and then about four years ago, I suffered a shattering blow to my writing self-confidence and stopped writing entirely. Vidding came along at a great time for me, a time when I'd been many months without writing and didn't know what the hell else I was going to do creatively. When I started vidding, I considered myself a writer who vids. Then about six months into it, I considered myself a vidder and a vidder only. When I wrote this ficlet, I considered myself a vidder who writes. Now I don't know what the hell am I, except happier. So much happier. I missed writing, and if fandom gives me nothing else, it's given me back the joy of having stories in my head again.
And that whole paragraph is about the entire length of the fic that spurred it. Heh. The other awesome thing about taking up writing again is that vidding has made me a better writer, because I actually enjoy editing now, and I'm much less destructively protective of my work. But this is leading into a whole different post, so let's move on.
Leis My Mountie Sold Me (Due South; Vecchio & Fraser; rated G) - A silly little piece written for the ds_closet fic challenge when I was in the throes of despair over my work travel schedule. Inspired by being in Hawaii. Total nutritional value of 0.
The Shortest Distance (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser implied; rated PG) - I am still so happy with how people responded to this fic. I don't remember how I got the idea, but it was written fairly quickly once I started. I'm grateful that I wrote this fic when I did, because I was still walking the line at this point of not knowing if this was going to be something I regularly wanted to do. But it came out fairly well and shored up the very nervous writer in me and I pressed on.
A Common Pulse (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser; rated NC-17) - Written for the fraser_vecchio ficathon, which I almost didn't join. I'm really glad I did, because my recipient asked for one of my all-time favorite storytelling kinks: I thought you were dead! Best. Ever. Hee. A bit slow to get started, I think, but once the kid plot comes in, I'm pretty happy with it. My favorite part is Ray sitting in the ambulance in shock while the EMT patches him up and Fraser stands next to him.
Sign Language (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser; rated R) - Prompted by the Fraser/Vecchio plot generator, this story started out life as a post-"North" story, but after writing the first page, I had absolutely nowhere to go. Instead I wondered why else they'd be wet, and worked backwards from there, which is a large part of why the story was written in the back-and-forth timeline, too. The hardest part with this story was remembering that giving exposition early in the story didn't mean that that was actually when the characters would give that exposition, so I had to do some reshuffling to fit the actual timeline of events instead of the way that the story laid them out (I hope that makes sense).
Take Me Out To The Black (Tell Me When I Can Come Back): Part 1 (Due South/Firefly crossover; Vecchio & Fraser & Frannie; rated PG) - I still have little vignettes I need to get together and post for this. Written for fun and as an exercise in throwing together characters I love, I consider this fic (and what else I've got for it) to really be writing exercises: low-key and non-reliant on plot. Which is a nice change for me; I get really caught up in plot.
Be Careful, With Me (Due South; Vecchio/Angie; Vecchio/Irene; Vecchio/Fraser; rated PG) - Written for vecchiofest. This story was conceived as being a post-"Juliet Is Bleeding" fic that showed different ways that people responded to Ray's grief, but it wasn't coming out right. So instead I brainstormed on the prompt and came up with the finished product. Much angstier than I normally like, but I'm happy with how it turned out. (A secret? In my head there is a K/V coda to this fic; I didn't write it because it wasn't ultimately where I wanted to go in the finished version, but it starts with something along the lines of "Ray's relationship with Kowalski wasn't any sort of shape at all, and that was probably why it worked.")
Heart Held Out Like A Tin Cup (Due South; Vecchio/Fraser; rated NC-17) - Written with brynnmck. My second fannish collaboration, and my first writing collaboration, this was insanely fun to write and I will long remember our chats while we wrote it, as well as Google Docs and it's crazy, crazy ways.
Overall Thoughts - I don't have much to say; I think the content of the fics speaks to where my fic-writing interest lies right now, although I do have two BSG fic ideas, but one is really full of crack and the other is incredibly long and plotty and not shippy at all so I'm not sure I'm motivated enough by BSG love right now to write a fic that almost no one will want to read. Although the idea really intrigues me, so there's a good chance. Once I finish my ds_harlequin prompts. (Apparently, 2007 will be the Year of Crack Fic!)
My favorite of my own stories this year:
"Sign Language." I'm really happy with how that one turned out, and I think for how long it is, it's pretty strong all the way through.
My best story this year:
Um, I don't know. "The Shortest Distance" received the most comments.
Story of mine most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
"Heart Held Out Like A Tin Cup."
Most fun story:
To make would be "Heart Held Out" but I think fun in the story itself would either be "Leis" or "Take Me Out."
Story with single sexiest moment:
Either Fraser telling Ray how he'd make his move in "Sign Language" or Ray telling Fraser to lick his palm in "Heart Held Out."
Hardest story to write:
"Be Careful, With Me."
Most unintentionally *telling* story:
"A Common Pulse." That story hit a lot of kinks for me with the "I thought you were dead" and the happy relationship and everything.
Total number of words written (including half of the collab):
30,530. Wow. That was unexpected. I had no fic-writing designs when I started the year. Heh. That also doesn't count the 5k or so words on fics that I've been toying with for months.
And happy belated birthday wishes to all of the December birthdays that I missed (at least according to LJ's birthday list): lozenger8, themonkeycabal, sugargroupie, mesascaper, and _jems_!
The pets are coming home today. Yay! I've missed them.