brightknightie | Here! Really!

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Here! Really!

I've been reading every post on my f-list/r-circle for the past month and a half, truly, even though I've only rarely had anything to say in reply. I don't think that I've noticed any FK-relevant material for monthly bulletins, except tangentially that someone was researching historical topics that coincidentally swirl around FK's Seline (AMPH), and that a few people included FK in their Yuletide offers or requests.

When I disappear from my fannish journal, it's not because I don't love you guys in specific and fandom in general! (I do! Oh, my, yes! ~grin~) We just all have Real Life. You know the drill.

I have today to myself, though, just the rainy Saturday, household chores and my journal here! Would any of you like to discuss something fannish in one of our shared fandoms? I managed to rewatch FK's "Dying for Fame" last weekend! My best beloved fandoms are FK, HL, YB and BSG'78, of course, but all the rest are happy targets, too. (The '80s Dungeons and Dragons cartoon leaps to mind. Or, you know, still-in-production: OuAT, PoI, Grimm, The Paradise (although the BBC pulled the plug there, it's still "in production" until the finale airs everywhere, I figure)... I'm way behind on SH, so, please, no spoilers for it.) I very rarely fall out of love with a story, even when I don't raise it as a subject anymore.

I wish I could commit to the Daily December posting meme, but I know I won't make it, so I'd like to come up with a less demanding alternative. Perhaps one episode rewatch and post per week, with you guys choosing the episodes? Perhaps trading fannish discussion posts 1:1 ("tag! you're it!") with you guys?

I've also been toying -- just a little, lightly -- with the idea of somehow reviving the old 15-minute challenge game (although that has significantly different implications in today's fandom environment than it did in the waning days of email lists).

I have some "gift certificate" pledges from last year's Fandom Stocking yet to fulfill, but aside from those, I've been thinking that if I can ever get back to fanfic writing, I may want to return all the way back to the days of writing my own ideas and hopes, rather than only other people's in exchanges. Exchanges have deadlines, publicity and community, and can be tremendous fun! But, sometimes, exchanges can also be lonely and dispiriting, trying hard to satisfy a requester with different interests and tastes. In email list days, all our games were challenges and round-robins, never exchanges... hmmmm.

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Re: your last paragraph .... yeah, I've actually cut waaayyyy back on exchanges in the last couple of years. I was starting to find them stifling; I always had too many assignments, it felt like, to work on my own projects, and while I wrote a number of stories that I was really proud of, I was starting to feel like everything I was writing was for other people rather than me.

The bingo-card challenges are really fun. I've been having a blast with hc_bingo, and there are a bunch of other ones too, like

cottoncandy_bingo. There's even a custom bingo card generator where you can input your own set of options and get a custom-made bingo card.

But yeah, it seems like exchanges and gift fic have largely taken over from the prompt-based challenges that were more widely circulating when I first got into LJ fandom (and I know the mailing lists had their own things, although I was never part of that).

I notice you listed Grimm in the shows you're currently watching .... it's not one of mine, but

trobadora is really into Grimm right now and has been making sad noises that she doesn't have anyone to talk to about it, since most of her flist doesn't watch it! If you would also like more people to discuss it with, perhaps you could check out her journal and see? You can say I sent you.

I had just started replying to your comment when I spilled my Diet Coke all over my PC's ergonomic keyboard. For real. It's drying now, and I'm on my Chromebook.

:-) I'm glad to see that the reply suddenly full of ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffs didn't actually post. :-)

I shall return!

Oh no! Your poor keyboard! I hope it's okay.

My first iBook got both a cup of (sweetened!) tea and a glass of wine poured into it, so I can relate ...

Thank you! Yes, I drained it, toweled it and took a hair dryer to it. Now, I'm letting it sit for a while to be 100% sure.

(I've found a match for it on Amazon, if it comes to that. It used to be that you could pick up an ergonomic keyboard almost anywhere, but the last time I wore one out, they were no longer standard stock in brick-and-mortar stores.)

Did your iBook survive its dousings? I suppose that it must have survived the first incident, at least!

It did survive! It had to be taken apart, cleaned and dried out both times, though, and it never quite went back together right (the case always bulged a bit). Also, the CD drive was always a bit sticky ...

After helping me take it apart the second time, my husband sensibly installed a sheet of plastic wrap underneath the keyboard (the old-style iBooks had a keyboard that popped out and lifted up; you wouldn't be able to do this with the newer ones, where the keyboard is part of the frame) to prevent liquids from getting inside the body of the computer, since it was becoming obvious that I had a recurring cup-to-mouth problem. Luckily I have managed not to repeat the performance!

Your husband sounds prudent and perceptive. :-)

My old keyboard succumbed.

I'm typing now on a new keyboard, and it's different.... aargh. :-) I'm sure that I'll get used to it, but for the moment, all I can perceive is that the pressure needed and the sounds generated are not the same.

I'm not sure whether bingo card challenges may be right for me. Without ever looking deeply before, I've had a vague impression that in most, the only commonality among players is the generation of the cards, and then the players don't generally read each others' stories. Is that a misperception, perhaps from the all-purpose card generator you linked and not from actual games with communities and moderators?

I am still fond of the idea of old-fashioned challenges, where everyone is writing to the same prompt, on the same timeline, but with their own choice of characters, preferences, plots, genres and angles.

For my well-loved FK, at least, I feel that I still have plenty of story ideas (though perhaps most are quite vintage now, and just never written yet). It's not that I've run short or lost interest, but that they rarely fit other people's requests in exchanges. Like you, I've written some things that I've hugely enjoyed and am greatly proud of for exchanges! But I've also sometimes struggled and been sad in ways that I think wouldn't happen if I were writing for myself and the characters in the old way.

Of course, I might never finish fanfic stories without the deadline and community supplied by games, in today's circumstances! In the old days, many people were in the same fandom still. It made a difference.

Thank you for the ideas!

No, you're right about that -- the bingo challenges are mostly an individual thing, without much collaboration or community. Which works fine for me because I'm mostly in it for the prompts and inspiration, but if it's the community aspect you're looking for, then yeah, it's probably not what you're after.

I see

fan_flashworks was recommended below -- that might be something to look into! Other multifandom prompt communities I know of are

fic_promptly and

comment_fic.

Yep, games are about community for me. I enjoy playing together, sharing the fun and the love of the common canon... and the hope that someone will read my story, in the end. This can be very difficult to find or raise in long-canceled fandoms.

I'll look into all the communities that you and

argentum_ls recommended, with hope and the most open mind I can muster!

(I'm not actually fond of commentfic, though, I'm afraid.)

Seconding the suggestion for bingo games. They're low pressure because there's no penalty for not winning, but they can help if you like the challenge of working to a prompt. There's also

fan_flashworks, which I keep trying to get back into and can't quite work up the speed on since the prompts change every 10 days.

Exchanges can certainly be fun, until they're not. Then there's no shame in cutting back.

If you have any interest in talking Highlander and have the time/interest to help me with my shortcuts story, let me know. It's gen. Beyond that, I can't say here, just in case.

I'd be happy to chat about HL and to help if I can! (Sometimes, the person with the most absurd ideas can be the best muse. ~grin~) Would you prefer email, PMing, locked DW post...?

I have time to myself tonight -- although I'm suddenly on a backup device due to a classic beverage accident -- but I'm afraid I'm booked up again tomorrow (including a fencing tournament, for HL relevance), and expect long work hours through Wednesday. (I do have a 4-day weekend for US Thanksgiving, though! ~bright anticipation~)

I'm glad to read from you again.
We just all have Real Life.
I can totally relate to that. I haven't accomplished anything fannish-wise for the same reason in months.

But I just got back from one of our twice-annual FK meetings where we watched and chatted about FK among other things. We picked Father's Day, Capital Offense, and Hunted.

I don't participate in Yuletide, but I plan to do Fandom Stocking again. Although I'm not sure, I get anything written on time with my current schedule.

During my vacation I had the chance to see a couple of episodes from Forever, which I enjoyed a lot!

Other currently airing shows I watch regularly are Castle, Arrow and Dracula. Although I found the latter mostly disappointing after eagerly awaiting it.

It's good to read you, too! ;-)

I haven't seen any of Forever yet, but my good friends

batdina and

leela_cat highly recommended the first two episodes, and I hear that Jane Seymour will be turning up in a possibly recurring role. I'm planning on trying the series as soon as my schedule opens up.

I didn't watch Dracula at all, at first because I don't get that particular channel over the air here (it has the weakest broadcast tower you could imagine for a region with so many hills; you almost have to have line-of-sight to receive that channel here, unless you have cable, of course) but then later I didn't catch up by streaming because the reviews were so poor.

I've seen many episodes of Castle over the years, but only erratically; I usually catch it in reruns or odd "filler" timeslots, rather than on purpose. (It's a very pleasant show! Just not the kind that often captures my heart.) I gather that the lead characters have at last gotten married?

I hope to be able to participate in Fandom Stocking, at least a little! But I don't know yet whether I'll be able to get any lull at work (besides the national holiday days, of course!).

I'd reommend Forever, too. The father-son dynamics are very well done. Last week's episode was hilarious.

The schtick is essentially the same as New Amsterdam, of course. (Did you see that one?) But then I liked New Amsterdam, and was sorry to see it cancelled. And I think Forever is doing it better!

Yes, I watched and enjoyed New Amsterdam. I was sorry to see it go.

From what I've heard about Forever, it's much lighter and breezier than New Amsterdam, which doesn't appeal to me. But, again, I haven't yet seen it, so I truly don't know. I will find out.

I hear that Jane Seymour will be turning up in a possibly recurring role

She appeared in a recent episode. I don't know whether she will return. Would be good though.

I gather that the lead characters have at last gotten married?

As we are here one year behind, and I'm currently catching up with yet another year behind, it's safe to say that at that stage they're not. As to the one episode I watched on my vacation, which happened to be the season pilot, I won't give any comments unless you want to be spoiled.

I hope to be able to participate in Fandom Stocking, at least a little!

I've posted my wishlist yesterday. I hope you'll find the time to participate as well.

"Exchanges have deadlines, publicity and community, and can be tremendous fun! But, sometimes, exchanges can also be lonely and dispiriting, trying hard to satisfy a requester with different interests and tastes. In email list days, all our games were challenges and round-robins, never exchanges... "

There should be a place in the world for both. One of the interesting things about

fkcommentfic is the fact that one has the option of picking a prompt or not. (And I never did necessarily limit myself to mere comment-length, though several of the things I wrote were drabbles.) Like Yuletide Treats: you are free to pick and choose the one(s) that appeal.

Apropos of which, I'm doing Yuletide again this year. That gives me the all-too-necessary kick in the pants. I'm sadly not the self-starter I was in days of yore. And yet, like you, I do still have ideas. The problem is the whole seat-of-the-pants-to-the-seat-of-the-chair thing.

Which is where the gift exchange format does have a plus: you know that someone out there is counting on you to come up trumps, and don't want to disappoint them. Within the community setting, prompt challenges work much the same way: you don't want to fail that sense of community; so you strive to come up with something in order to participate in the group activity.

I'm sorry that it looks as though we won't have a Dead Dog Party this year. You said "delayed" back last summer; but I've heard nothing (and a p.m. got no response).

I'm sorry that it looks as though we won't have a Dead Dog Party this year. You said "delayed" back last summer; but I've heard nothing (and a p.m. got no response).

I was wondering about that.

The 'fest and dead-dog party are the writing-related things I really look forward to every year. Maybe an additional mod is needed for

fkcommentfic or something? *shrugs* I dunno. I'm just tossing ideas into the aether, here.

>Maybe an additional mod is needed for fkcommentfic or something?

May I recommend bringing your good ideas for FKCommentFic directly to Amilyn? (I doubt that she'll happen to bump into them here. ~grin~) Especially if you'd like to volunteer, or know someone who might!

Yes, I must refer questions on the after-party event to Amilyn and Twilight2000. I don't have any updates.

Especially if you'd like to volunteer, or know someone who might!

Actually, I was thinking of volunteering, but I didn't want to sound so... um, forward? :)

I do have plenty of comment-ficcing ideas, too, some more nebulous than others (not just the dead-dog party, although that's fun too). But I'm definitely willing to shoulder some of the weight if they need a third mod.

fkcommentfic is too good a thing to let fall by the wayside.

I have no insight into how an offer might be received, but I have to think that as you would make the offer with both thoughtfulness and enthusiasm... "nothing ventured, nothing gained"?

Good luck!

>"You said "delayed" back last summer; but I've heard nothing (and a p.m. got no response)."

Yes, I'm afraid that my last update was truly the last direct information that I had. I can only refer you to Amilyn and Twilight2000. I believe that they've both been very busy, but I really don't know.

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