Fanfic musing

[shapinglight]

I don't know why I said I needed an icon for my fic writing whinges when I have this one. Not that this post is a whinge. More of a muse.

So, the other day, brutti_ma_buoni said that she's written 300+ fics in the last five years, which got me to wondering how many fics I've written in my eight years of fanfic writing (I think it's eight anyway). I haven't counted them, though, but instead got to musing about Buffyverse fanfic and fanfic writers in general.



When I think how much Buffyverse fanfic there was around in the early days compared to now it makes me a bit sad. There used to be so many websites out there -slash, het, yet more slash - whereas now - well, there are an awful lot less. I actually came into fic writing myself rather late in the day. I didn't post anything until after AtS ended. There was still a lot of fic being posted then. Those writers who'd survived the various shocks Joss had doled out along the way - like hiving Angel off into his own show at the end of season 3, or changing his mind about who sired Spike, or killing Tara, or lumping Spike (and thus Spuffy) with the AR - weren't ready to let go just yet.

So when I first dipped my toe into the Buffyverse fanfic writing waters, it was a pretty big pool with a lot of fish in it. Now, though, the pool has shrunk to more like a puddle, though -perhaps fortunately, perhaps not - there are a lot less of us to fill it. I can't think of many fic writers still in the fandom who've been active longer than I have (there are probably more still around than I realise as I'm not, for instance, friended to any Bangel writers), and not many who still only write Buffyverse stuff.

Which leads me to wondering why it is that the Buffyverse is still the only fictional world invented by other people that I want to fanfic? Am I just hidebound and complacent, do you think? Or are there still lots of meaningful things to say about the Buffyverse and its characters? Or, if not meaningful (because it's fanfic, after all) novel and interesting?

This post partly brought to you by my having fiddled with my rekindlespangel fic after all, even though I told myself to leave well alone, but ending up still thinking the premise pretty much smacks of desperation.

Hmm, this post sounded better in my head. Thoughts? Are there still new stories worth telling? Does it matter if there aren't? Is this post really whinging after all?

Comments

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

BMB has written 300+ fics in the last year? DAMN.

To your questions - I've only written in two fandoms - Moulin Rouge (why does that still embarrass me to admit? IDK) and Buffy. writing fanfic or meta is something I can't imagine for any other movie or tv show (other than one not-bad effort for the movie The Hours, come to think of it.) And I came into fandom SWEARING I wouldn't write in this one. Hah.

As a newbie I'm not so aware of whose old, whose new - to me the library is just beginning to expand in terms of fics in this 'verse - from LJ to fanfic.net - which is where I got my start writing fanfic, but it never occured to me to look there for buffyverse fics until I found some recs - AoL, plus a variety of older websites, etc. And quite a few tend to be undated; I rarely glance at dates anyway. So for me, or I would think any other newbie, there's a great deal of richness yet to explore - this is the candy shop and here's the key.

None of which gets back to what you are saying, but - maybe there are only so many stories that can be told? As a writer I want to say something different, or say the same thing in my own particular way, and a lot has already been said. This applies to writing meta as well, of course. How many variations of Buffy and Spike reunite post-Chosen can there possibly be? And also, I'm not so much with the shippiness. That is, I love the late seasons, love Buffy and Spike S7, but the show wasn't exclusively about the romantic 'ships, but the majority of fanfic is.

I'm trying to expand my reading outside of spuffy but Bangel really doesn't float my boat, even when it's well-writing. Although I read two rather good, multichapter AU-ish ones yesterday that had some really original ideas and settings; and one had even very well-developed original characters. (Of course I've misplaced the link to it.)

And the overall level of writing is so high, at least what I've found, compared to the other fandom I was in (admittedly that's an apples to oranges comparison) that for my own part, I feel awed and more than a bit inadequate, looking at the quality that already exists here.

[rahirah]

Last FIVE years. Otherwise we'd have to kill her. *g*

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Oops. My bad. Still - that's pretty amazing, or at least it is to me.

[rebcake.livejournal.com]

Oh Hell Yes it is! That's like a fic every five days, or 6 every month. I just...whoa.

[spikesjojo.livejournal.com]

I so much agree with you on the standard of writing in this fandom! I've read stories in other fandoms - including the TOS fandom, and nothing competes with Buffyverse fandom. In fact, this was one of the huge draws toward expanding my interest beyond the shows.

Snicker - did anyone else think - wow, 200 years, and if you hade only two dates a year that would be..." ;)

[brutti-ma-buoni.livejournal.com]

In my defence, many of them are under 250 words... But still, I am a little o_O at myself.

[brutti-ma-buoni.livejournal.com]

*bows*

Thank you. But they are mostly *really* short, you know. And I like to noodle around with things as well as sometimes writing something actually worth keeping.

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Oh stop with the modesty, you.

[brutti-ma-buoni.livejournal.com]

*eyes you*

Challenge?

...Nah.

*diez*

[shapinglight]

Who, me?

No way. I concede the floor. :)

[kikimay]

I do want the effort for The Hours! That movie makes me cry so damn much and, generally, it's one of my all the time favourites. Also I pretty much agree with everything you just wrote.

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

If I still have a copy of that story maybe I'll send it to you - or maybe I'll post it here on my journal? I kept sending messages to the admins of ff.net to create a catagory for The Hours (other friends said they'd be interested too) but I never got one damn reply. Meanwhile they created a category for the waste-of-my-time crap movie Hidalgo. WTF?

And yes, the Hours was one of my favorite movies - probably still is, I haven't watched it for a while. (the commentary track on the DVD is one of the few commentary tracks I actually enjoy.) It was the second or third movie I ever saw in which I felt like I was not quite the same person going out as I was coming in. (Previous honors go to The Piano and possibly Sophie's Choice, although I watched the latter on TV.) I literally buried my face in my hands and sobbed at the end of it because I felt like I'd been ripped down the center.

My friend who came with me was understandably a bit thrown by my behavior, poor dear.

[kikimay]

Is it a fanfic? I'll read it, surely! I really love the movie (I didn't see The Piano and Sophie's Choice!) Generally Daldry's movies are beautiful - I also adored Billy Elliot and The Reader - but this one was so intense for me. I also cried like there was no tomorrow. And, you know, I also quoted the final soundtrack piece (Choosing Life) in a very emotional and "now I mix Buffyverse with my life" ficlet.

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Is your ficlet in English? I'd like to read that.

You definitely should watch The Piano and Sophie's Choice. The Piano was one of the best movies of the '90's - I watched it again about ten years afterwards, expecting to feel very differently about it (ie as I get older my understanding and experience changes me and how I relate to a film etc) but I felt like I was the same person or it was the same film; it still stunned me, like an Old Testament god whom you hope is pleased with your offering, lest they smite you down. (I'm exaggerating for effect, but still....) And have hankies at the read when you watch Sophie's Choice, its utterly heartbreaking.

I really enjoyed Billy Elliot quite a bit but haven't seen The Reader. I was suprised he made another film; his comments after The Hours were very bitter in terms of the Weinstein brothers and all the game-playing that went along with promoting the film, etc.

BTW- pretty new icon! It's Buffy in S4, isn't it?

[kikimay]

Yes! It's Buffy in "The Yoko Factor". I think she's beautiful. <3
And, of course, my ficlet is in Italian. But eventually I'll translate that one too - I really wrote too many fanfics!
You know, actually everyone told me how beautiful was The Piano and, maybe, because of that I'm hesitating. I feel like it's too much the "you should watch" rather than "I'd like to watch". Am I making any sense here? My brain works in mysterious ways.

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

I feel like it's too much the "you should watch" rather than "I'd like to watch". Am I making any sense here? My brain works in mysterious ways.

I understand completely! At my last workplace everyone went on and on and on about "March of the Penguins" and what I heard made me decide to be utterly contrary and not see it. (Also, the descriptions brought back memories of those silly Disney nature documentaries I watched as a little girl on tv.) So my sweetie and I went to see The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, instead - also a documentary and it made me bawl like a baby (happy tears) at the end. It's about love and devotion of very unconventional sorts.

On the other hand, overhearing strangers rave about Shakespeare in Love is what made me see it. I guess it's all to do with whether or not the thing sounds interesting to me or not.

[shapinglight]

I'm not quite totally mono-fandom myself, but my experiments with other fandoms are so far in the past as hardly to count. I wrote a few Bladerunner fics back in the 80s. They only exist as handwritten hard copies and I don't even know where those are. I also wrote a couple of X-Men fics a little more recently (but still pre-dating any of the X-Men movies), but those only exist on an old 16" floppy disc. ;)

Re: what you say about only just discovering the candy shop, to be fair, some of the old fics I enjoyed when I first came into the fandom now seem quite unreadable to me (if they're still available). Sometimes it's because they were written while the show was on air and they got Jossed, or because they're prime examples of the use of tropes that just don't work for me. But anyway, not all of the old stuff was good by any means.

At any rate, as rahirah says, it's always possible for a new writer to come along and say something new and different, even if older writers run out of steam. So no, though I might think there are only so many stories I personally can tell, I don't think there are only so many stories too tell.

Re: 'shippy fics - I don't know if there was more gen back in the day. I don't really think so. 'Shipper fics of whatever pairing were always in the majority. There used to be a lot more m/m slash, though. Spike/Xander is still fairly popular, but there was a hell of a lot more Spike/Angel back then, and Giles/Ethan too. And Angel/Wesley. I don't think I've seen any of that for a long time. Not saying I miss all these things necessarily (well, Giles/Ethan, I miss) but there was more variety.