straightforwardly (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
straightforwardly) wrote2015-11-12 05:17 pm
straightforwardly) wrote2015-11-12 05:17 pm
091 | in which I reveal what I wrote for Trick or Treat 2015, & start rereading Homestuck
► Trick or Treat reveals happened! ...almost a week ago. In total, I wrote three fics in three different fandoms!
In Her Imprisonment Rises (862 words) by straightforwardly
Fandom: Labyrinth (1986)
Relationships: Jareth & Sarah Williams
Characters: Sarah Williams, Jareth (Labyrinth)
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence
Summary: Sarah lost, but is not lost.
This was my main assignment! And, coincidentally enough, it was also for the letter that made me decide to offer Jareth and Sarah in the first place, so that was a nice coincidence.
I’m...mostly happy with this fic? I really like how the first section turned out, and I’m really happy with the ideas about it, but I’m still unsure about how I handled the pacing of the ending. Still, my recipient seemed happy with it, and other people seemed to have enjoyed it too, so I think it was a success overall.
That Comes Nightly (849 words) by straightforwardly
Fandom: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II
Characters: Isabela (Dragon Age), Merrill (Dragon Age)
Additional Tags: Partial Fusion, Vampires, Extra Treat
Summary:
The man turned to them, and Merrill let out a soft gasp. Golden eyes gleamed under ridged brows— a wide-set mouth, filled with bloodied fangs—
Demon, Isabela thought, though it was unlike any other demon she’d seen, and gritted her teeth.
(Or, the one in which Merrill and Isabela run into a Buffy-esque vampire.)
The first treat I wrote! And it’s the one that I also spent the most amount of time on, though I don’t think it shows. This one actually went through multiple versions— including one that centered around not only Merrill and Isabela, but also a f!mage!Hawke and Aveline— before it became what it is now. I'm...still not entirely happy with it, to be perfectly honest, but I hope that at least some people garnered some enjoyment from it.
the only ritual I am acquainted with (544 words) by straightforwardly
Fandom: Hamlet - Shakespeare
Characters: Horatio (Hamlet), Ophelia (Hamlet)
Additional Tags: Post-Canon, Extra Treat
Summary: After the dust settles, Horatio stays. This is why.
This is probably the most popular fic that I wrote this year, which is funny, because it’s the one that I spent the least time on— hours rather than days/weeks. I’d noticed within_a_dream’s letter way back when sign-ups were first happening, and noted it for a potential treat, but it wasn’t until I saw their name on
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fail_fandomanon’s list of people who still didn’t have a second fic that I decided to go for it. And I’m happy that I did! I’m pleased with the result, and, like I said above, people really seemed to like it. Plus, it gave me a chance to introduce my favorite Hamlet-related poem to people, which is always great! I was ridiculously excited when I realized that one of the phrases in that poem worked perfectly as the title for this piece.
► In other news, I’ve fallen back down the Homestuck rabbit hole recently. Looking back through old entries, I don’t think that I’ve talked about it on this journal before? I marathon-read it for the first time earlier this year, back in March or April, and, for the most part, liked it quite a bit. I read a few fics every once in a while, and that’s pretty much the extent of my fannish history with it.
Which brings me to my point! Last week, on one of my days off, I decided to start reading Midnight on the Demon Patrol, a Dave/Karkat fic where the trolls are demons, and Dave summons Karkat. It’s also 200K WIP. I’d fully intended on just reading a few chapters while I took a break from whatever it was I was doing...and then ended up spending the rest of the day reading this fic instead, whoops.
Along the way, it reminded me of how much I like Dave/Karkat, so I bounced around and read a few more (canon-compliant) fics about them, which was fun! But then I got hit by the urge to reread Homestuck, resisted it for a day or two, and then gave in. And that is the story of how I found myself reading Homestuck for the second time in the same year.
So far, I’m really enjoying it! I’m pacing myself better this time around, since I’m not in such a rush to know what’s going to happen. And I understand so much more now, omg. There’s so many little things that I missed, or didn’t understand, or otherwise flew over my head the first time around! I’m finding this really rewarding, actually, and it’s making me pretty happy. ♥
Which brings me to the second part of the rabbit hole. After I got through the section about the trolls’ SGRUB session (I think it’s in Act 5, Part 1?), I found myself wanting to read some troll-centric fic. I’d seen Land of Regrets and Second Chances in quite a few people’s bookmarks, and while none of the pairings particularly appealed to me, it looked like a really promising plotty fic, and exactly what I was looking for.
And it was! Barring a few minor quibbles, I really liked it. But it did have one unexpected side-effect: it made me really fond of Eridan/Karkat. And it somehow fueled my newfound interest in Eridan? Which is odd, because Eridan and Eridan/Karkat isn’t even the focus of that fic (though it is an important subplot).
The thing is: the first time I read Homestuck, I was vaguely interested in Eridan (mainly because I liked his character design, and incompetent megalomaniac schemes appeal to me), but I didn’t care particularly deeply about him? I basically liked him in the same vague way I liked Nepeta and Feferi, and his death wasn’t even (and still isn’t, honestly) the one that I was the most sad about when everyone started getting murdered.
But this time around, I found myself paying a bit more attention to him, and… I was weirdly charmed? And then I found this interaction between him and Karkat really adorable. And then I read aforementioned fic, and that settled it. I’m not saying that he’s a favorite character— that spot is reserved for Rose, Dave, and Karkat— but he’s definitely shot up pretty high on the list.
Another thing— Gamzee. Strangely enough, I… think I actually like him a bit better this time around? I hated him pretty much instantly the first time I read Homestuck, mainly because I found it really annoying to read his typing. (This is also the sole reason why I don’t like Sollux very much. Terrible reasons are terrible.) Now, while he’s never going to be a favorite— and while I still feel pretty “ugh” when I remember some of his later scenes that I haven’t gotten to yet in this reread— I found that he didn’t bother me half so much as he did before. Hopefully that continues, because it’ll make rereading certain sections much more enjoyable.
Anyways. Right now, I’m at the beginning of… Act Six, I think, when the Alpha kids are first being introduced. I’m kind of torn between taking a short break to read more fic, or continuing on, and haven’t quite decided which I’ll do. We’ll see.
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I'm 2000% an alphabeta kids fan, with only passing interest in the trolls, but if you want fic—especially of my most beloved kid, Jake English—I probably have you covered. (I wrote some troll stuff too, but not as much, and I'm not as proud of it.) I can rec you other people too, if you end up liking the alphas. They were my specialization when I was in homestuck fandom.
(No seriously. I love Jake English.)
I actively recommend staying away from the fandom—its high point is long gone, and all those that remain are actually horrible humans. You know I run a lot of stuff, and the homestuck fanwork exchange I ran for two years was the worst modding experience I've ever had. I've gotten death threats while running exchanges before and this was worse than that, which should give you an indication of how awful the fandom is. Please for your own good, admire the fanwork, but don't engage too closely. I wish it wasn't that way.
GOOD LUCK, I'm here if you want to talk more about homestuck.
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Though: I've gotten death threats while running exchanges before and this was worse than that, which should give you an indication of how awful the fandom is. DDDDD: I'm not sure what's worse than death threats, but that's absolutely horrifying.
Thank you for the author recs! I've seen roachpatrol's name around (though I haven't read anything by them yet), but all of the other ones are brand new to me. ♥
And the link to your meta blog, because I love meta so much, you have no idea.Ha, our main interests in this fandom are a bit flip-flopped! I'm definitely mostly interested in the trolls (or, well, some/most of the trolls + the cultural stuff attached to them), and Rose and Dave. But I do genuinely like pretty much all of the human kids (which isn't something I can say about the trolls)! Alpha kids included. :D They're just not my main focus. But if you have recs, I'll still take them! Right now I'm definitely in a troll-mood, but that doesn't mean that I won't ever have the urge to read alpha kids fic, and it'd be nice to have some stockpiled for if/when that happens.
(And, wow, you wrote quite a bit for this fandom! I was aware that you were into Homestuck, but I didn't realize how much fic you wrote for it! This is excellent news. ♥)
Also— I read your Jake meta in that first link, and I was curious. You mentioned that Jake was your second favorite at the time of writing that, though he's your favorite now, and I was wondering— who was your original favorite character? (And who's the third character you mentioned?)