|
Post by utility_singer on May 17, 2014 11:55:31 GMT
My husband was installing an update on my laptop the other day, and I had a story up. He paused on that screen, then looked at me, and said, "Don't worry, I won't read any of your smut." I didn't ask if he was referring to my reading or my writing, I didn't want to go there. LOL
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 17, 2014 12:09:49 GMT
But we all love you writing smut so please continue.
|
|
|
Post by utility_singer on May 17, 2014 12:19:47 GMT
Have no fear, my dear. I will. I just want to avoid the relentless teasing I will endure if he ever actually reads anything I've written.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 17, 2014 12:25:20 GMT
I understand. I live in a world of unrelenting teasing and mocking.
|
|
|
Post by utility_singer on May 17, 2014 12:26:16 GMT
At least your kids are too young to get in on the 'let's all mock mom' action.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 17, 2014 12:27:00 GMT
And jokes about harmonicas (and Billy Joel songs on repeat)
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on May 17, 2014 12:30:45 GMT
At least your kids are too young to get in on the 'let's all mock mom' action. Don't worry, my kids get me in other ways. But I have to say, they like my Julie obsession. They kind of have it themselves. They have watched shrek 2 five times this week. Partly because they love Donkey but partly because Julie is in it!!
|
|
|
Post by mireille on May 17, 2014 20:33:02 GMT
At least we all understand each other and do want to read FF!
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2014 4:25:26 GMT
My friends and family know all about my love for all things Julie Andrews and all things TSOM. They do NOT know that I read and especially do not know I write fanfic. And will most likely never know. I'm not ashamed. I'm just private about it.
|
|
|
Post by cass on Aug 14, 2014 0:02:17 GMT
I have been caught up in the world of fanfiction since before I even reached a level of feeling the need to profess apologetics for it (about 14 years old), and frankly, I still don't care. When people ask about my writing, I tell them that the majority of it comprises fanfiction. And far from being embarrassed, I feel more frustration than anything else. I am a nerd through and through, and I believe in the power of the written word. There seems to be an idea that fanfiction isn't "legitimate" writing. This pervasive notion exists that fanfiction isn't true creativity, that it's a crutch, that it's a playground for amateurs. Furthermore, it seems that there is a gross misunderstanding of the focus -- and that all of these things are a BAD thing. General, original fiction-writing, while filled with characters, tends to focus the most on a broader story. Fanfiction tends to allow writers and readers the chance to play with the characters. Fanfiction exists because the broader story was somehow unsatisfactory or overtly inspiring with regards to a character or multiple characters. The characters were somehow compelling enough to warrant a life beyond the page or beyond the screen. The way I see it, nothing could be better. Fanfiction has, in my experience, spawned a community of writers who have turned out things better than any one book on the market could ever be. I largely prefer taking the time to seek out great fanfiction to seeking out great "real" fiction. There is something extremely liberating in writing for the joy of it, the love of it, and for the desire to take specific characters on a great journey. No matter how good or bad a particular fanfiction may be, think about it. You aren't generally going to be questioning the motives of the author with relation to their reading public, the money, and (for me, the most irritating) Hollywood. Fanfiction has no license to ever be something that can be sold, and so it is as pure as it can be in intentions and interest. So, no, I take no shame in telling people that I write fanfiction, and if asked, I will expound. It became an integral part of my identity in that it allows me to reach into issues and scenarios within set parameters, which is far more challenging to me than being able to put something any which way with characters I myself created. Using the foundations set by someone else inherently imposes limits which are not so quickly fixed by what could easily be construed as convenient manipulation. Fanfiction, to my mind, is one big puzzle to be solved and rearranged accordingly as the characters demand. It appeals to my sense of order, if that makes sense. Sorry for the novel, haha. Keep in mind that I make these observations over a broad range of fandoms, Harry Potter, Downton Abbey, My Fair Lady, TSOM, and Law & Order: SVU being only a few of the places where I've found these things to be true and have subsequently discovered truly incredible writers and the stories they've chosen to share. As for divulging the content of my writing, well. I don't hide it. It's public. On the internet. Have fun finding it!
|
|
|
Post by augiesannie on Aug 14, 2014 1:25:36 GMT
Oh, cass, nice to see you here! I love what you wrote here about fanfic, it made me feel proud. It also made me remember how much I like your writing (at least the ones I know about ;-)
|
|
|
Post by cass on Aug 14, 2014 2:31:36 GMT
augiesannie, glad you liked it. It makes me sad to see how many people there are writing fanfiction who feel the need to hide it or keep it on the low-down. While in one way, I can respect that, it's not like fanfiction is something dirty or lesser to other hobbies or endeavours. Sure, I don't share my work with everyone I know, but it's more a matter of lack of interest or appreciation for the particular things I like to work on than it is my own reluctance.
|
|
|
Post by lemacd on Aug 15, 2014 0:50:31 GMT
cass, i'm about to nominate you president of the internet. or would you prefer queen? i love everything you said about the legitimacy of fanfiction. i don't hold it such low regard. i have discovered some tremendous writers on fanfiction.net and it kinda kills me that i don't even know their real names. well, some i do, obviously. but i digress... i don't even care what the people in my life think about it, to be honest. but this is what would kill me if i told them: they blow it off as nothing important. you know, react like i said i just read a book instead of writing one. and then change the subject like i didn't just reveal something hugely personal. and it is just that. it helped me find my joy and it is precious to me. yeah, i feel like a wimp about it but i've always been a wimp so that part doesn't bother me much.
|
|
|
Post by augiesannie on Aug 15, 2014 2:11:02 GMT
"Helped me find my joy." Exactly. I wouldn't feel like writing fanfic is somehow less than writing other fic. I WOULD worry that people would make fun of the TSOM aspect, because people who haven't really watched the movie in a long time tend not to remember its many beautiful strengths. It's not that I care what people think of me for loving TSOM, but I'd have a hard time explaining why I love the story and characters so much.
|
|
|
Post by cass on Aug 15, 2014 2:13:26 GMT
lemacd, queen, please. I don't often subscribe to gender-equalizing terms. Women are powerful as they are! we run the show, guys.Yeah, I get you. That's where my own personal discretion about whom I reveal this stuff to comes in. I'm not going to take my wares where they are not wanted, so to speak. But I don't keep them under lock and key, either, for the reasons I discussed above. I refuse to let the status quo label something so personal and revealing about me myself as a guilty pleasure just because it is comprised of complete idiots. Nothing that brings true joy and helps people find themselves should at the same time make them feel stupid or sheepish or whatnot.
|
|
|
Post by lemacd on Aug 15, 2014 5:02:10 GMT
|
|
|
Post by cass on Aug 15, 2014 5:26:34 GMT
Glad I could help. I'm here to serve.
|
|
|
Post by mie779 on Aug 15, 2014 11:51:11 GMT
I'm still in the closet about my fan fic writing... just to shy to admit it to people around me... but I do find the joy of writing through fanfiction... and still harbors a secret dream of becoming a published writer some day And yes it is sad that some people think that fan fiction is not "real" writing... !!!! :/ In my opinion, every time I jot down a word, phrase, line, sentence, paragraph, page, chapter, story, I'm CREATIVE and thinking/dreaming up a story... okay we borrow the characters... but more often than not we do tend to tweak the characters slightly, some more than others, some like to do it, some don't... we analyze the movie/show/series and think of new possible scenarios/scenes... but we still have our creative freedom to do what ever the h*** we want to, with whatever fandom we're interested in at the moment.... Thus making us just as much a writer as any published writer... So happy to have found you ladies... love you all... so many things/stories would not have happened to me if it had not been for you guys...
|
|
|
Post by utility_singer on Aug 15, 2014 12:30:50 GMT
I think it is also the subject matter that keeps me from sharing. TSOM is so close to my heart I feel the need to protect it from ridicule, if that makes sense. Same feeling I get when someone disses the movie, or Julie, or Chris. And, well the smut part....there are a few people I know that would certainly frown upon that LOL
|
|
|
Post by augiesannie on Aug 15, 2014 13:10:37 GMT
Yes, agree, utility_singer. I don't need to be teased about lonely goatherds or drops of golden sun.
|
|
|
Post by mie779 on Aug 15, 2014 13:22:42 GMT
ah yes, agree w. @utility_singer , the smut is something that I definitely DON'T want other people to read... they would NEVER understand me after reading stuff like that...
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 16, 2014 0:05:12 GMT
ah yes, agree w. @utility_singer , the smut is something that I definitely DON'T want other people to read... they would NEVER understand me after reading stuff like that... This is the EXACT reason I don't share with my real life friends (my online friends know, understand and love it so that's fine)
|
|
|
Post by cass on Aug 16, 2014 1:56:25 GMT
The smut is something I'm far more tight lipped about, myself -- and here's why.
I'm insanely proud of a good deal of mine because it's a reflection of what I think the physical aspect of marriage should entail, and how it serves to deepen that relationship overall. I publish it to begin with because if someone wants to see it portrayed as intended within the given parameters, then who am I to hold back what I have to offer? But going to that level, as I said in my author's note in Harmony, it does indeed strip bare so much of myself. To open myself up to such things as disgust or a cavalier attitude from the people who surround me daily would hurt so much, and it's not worth that agonizing self-doubt.
Some friends are aware that I don't shirk from sex when writing despite a self-proclaimed reputation as a total prude (yes, it's true, and I am one). They know I'm able to expand beyond myself in terms of application and relevance, and just because I feel sexual situations in literature have a place and a time, doesn't mean I'm going around acting like a raving harlot, myself.
Other people in my life happen to be a completely different story. Once, when I was still in high school, I was working on something that, while not explicit, was markedly sensual and suggestive. I left it out in plain sight, and my parents saw it. Thaaaaaat did not go over well. My response was, well God forbid I have an outlet for things I know I am not ready to act on (and would not be approved of, of course). That shut up objection fast. Never came up again. But the reality is that sometimes the people closest to you don't really know you, and when confronted with things like "omg she writes smut," the automatic reaction is that there's something wrong with you.
Not to get all philosophical, but I feel it comes out of this awfully prevalent idea that sex is dirty and inappropriate. Well, this goody-two-shoes, well-behaved little Christian girl begs to differ and says it is not. I don't even understand how such a misguided view, particularly within a marriage context, made its way into the Catholic/Protestant canon. Furthermore, I don't believe in being apologetic for deep-seated, carefully considered views about sex and then expressing them appropriately. And if I can do my part to disabuse such idiotic notions, I will. But at the same time, what I think and feel are a minority simply in terms of how society views and (doesn't) talk about sex to begin with.
Okay I'm getting off my soapbox now.
|
|
|
Post by cass on Nov 4, 2014 2:10:43 GMT
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2014 5:09:53 GMT
Yes, there does seem to be a bit of a difference when announcing to someone that you do creative writing in you past time. That seems quite fine really. But writing Sound of Music fan fiction? Well that's almost in another category but then announcing that not only do you write Sound of music fan fiction, you actually write Sound of Music erotica.... well.... there is a reason why I don't tell anyone in my real life (except for my husband) that I do this stuff, and that's that!
It's almost like "the Sound of Music" and "erotica" do NOT go together to anyone in the outside world, but for us in this forum... well who doesn't like M and G sexy time right?
|
|
|
Post by cass on Nov 4, 2014 8:34:28 GMT
Personally, I think anyone who thinks it makes no sense is absolutely daft. Even if the chemistry between Julie and Chris was lackluster, Chris himself is just... hot, damn.
Like I'm pretty sure that Paul Newman is the sole reason why I thought Torn Curtain fanfiction would be a good idea. It seemed such a pity to me that all that potential was more or less wasted, and not only wasted, but whatever scraps were used were poorly utilized indeed.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 4, 2014 12:41:55 GMT
Honestly, I think most people can't see past the sweetness and the family-time movie that most people believe The Sound of Music is. They don't see the Julie and Chris chemistry, they just see nuns and children and singing.
Take tonight for example. I go to Bible study group every Tuesday night, and every Tuesday night I get teased by the same group of blokes about my love of The Sound of Music (and they did again tonight too, but don't worry, I can hold my own and give it back to them as good as they give me). But one of the guys described the movie tonight as a soppy mush of goo that would send him to sleep. So obviously NOT the type of movie you'd think to write sex scenes for.
The movie for most people is stereotypical of the wholesome family movie (and it is on one level which is great ) but what makes it a sensational film for us here is the extra depth that we go past that surface layer to probe deeper into the characters and the story and the background and the between scenes or after the movie making writing fanfic so awesome and the obvious chemistry of Julie and Chris leads to how we view Maria and Georg and then the sexy time that follows.
|
|
|
Post by utility_singer on Nov 5, 2014 0:03:07 GMT
Taking your comment and going a bit further (as I usually do, ha!) I think a lot of people don't see past the sweet,'family movie' thing because they haven't watched it as adults.
I remember for me, as a kid, the movie might as well have been over once the wedding bells switched to the Nazis marching through Salzburg. And I only lasted that long because I was always obsessed with weddings and wedding dresses and such.
It wasn't until I started watching it with my own kids, through adult eyes, that I recognized the dark parts, and the chemistry between JA and CP, and saw how different my understanding of the film was now that I was more aware of the history (both world and of the real-life family). I had some understanding from having done the stage version and my wonderful director who told us about how horrible the situation was; but my own growth between my teens and my 40s is staggering.
As for probing deeper, I think that is a personal thing. Aidan asked me once when I got interested in history, and I could honestly tell him it was due pretty much to each show I'd done or seen. We did Shenandoah in high school, and I was completely fascinated with the Civil War; 1776 made me go deeper into the American Revolution, etc.
|
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2014 0:10:26 GMT
Well there are three things that have made me go deeper into this film than I have ever gone with any other films.
1. Julie Andrews (goes without saying for me as I love her so much - not further comment). 2. Fanfiction. Discovering TSOM fan fiction about 18 months ago. I was hooked and now I can't stop. I want and I need more all the time. I live and breath (and think about it) so much during my day - no regrets, or apologies. It makes me happy. 3. This forum. I honestly can say I wouldn't have gotten this obsessed about a film unless if I had never joined this forum. As with point no 2., no regrets, no apologies.
|
|
|
Post by paula on Nov 5, 2014 3:33:30 GMT
Even if the chemistry between Julie and Chris was lackluster, Chris himself is just... hot, damn. Couldn't have said it better myself!!!! He is just HOT!!!
|
|