*taps LJ* Is this thing on?

[agilebrit]

So...I posted a fic the other day. The only one who's feedbacked me (other than over IM *smooches jerib_78*) is appomattoxco (who I thanked over IM *smooches her*).

And that makes me wonder. And cringe a bit. Does it suck? Were people put off by the "threesome" aspect (although there's nothing explicit and it's not really a threesome as such)? Was it just missed among the general hoo-rah? Or was it something else?

Dear flist, if something I write sucks, PLEASE for the love of God, tell me so. I'm a grownup, I can take it--as long as you tell me why. Apparently there's something going around where feedback that's not completely positive is looked down upon or screamed at or something. Please know that I will never, ever scream at someone or get mad at someone who gives me concrit. Because if you see something wrong with something I've written, and you don't tell me...I might do it again. If my characterization is off, or my dialogue is clunky, or my action scenes are confusing--I need to know.

Comments

[soundingsea.livejournal.com]

At least in my case, I've been too damn busy to think about *anything* except my to-do list from hell. This means that I haven't read the recently-completed stuff from my own ficathon. Nothing to do with you.

*back to paper-writing*

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

Ah, yes, that annoying thing called "real life." *pets you*

[dragonflymuse.livejournal.com]

I didn't read it because I didn't see it :/ Sometimes LJ ignores large segments of my F-list when I am doing a full days worth of reviewing.

But I just read it and commented :)

And there is NOTHING wrong with any loving/comforting based threesome. Even if it was more explicit, in a lot of cases it goes beyond sex and is more of a bonding experience. JMO tho ;)

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

Thanks, sweetie! And I pretty much agree with you about the threesome thing, oddly enough for me, even though writing such is out of my comfort zone. I was just wondering if some on my flist were put off by it.

[dragonflymuse.livejournal.com]

For some reason, the thought that some folks on your f-list might've been 'put off' by that bit strikes me as odd. Writers have a need to be creative, and to follow their characters where they (organically) would go. An extreme interpretation of that pseudo-threesome would be a sort of creation metaphor: Angel only received the Shansu because he survived the battle, and one reason he survived the battle was due to the efforts of Spike and Illyria. Their physical (emotional/spiritual) coupling paired with pulling Angel between them and discovering his 'rebirth' meshes nicely with what Angel learned in relation to Connor: Family is everything.

Writers need to be free to dare and break with whatever conventions they (or their readership) feel they believe or adhere to. I'm not gay, but I like slashfic, mostly because the well-written fics show that real love transcends gender or taboo sensualities: my Spike and my Wesley in my fics aren't gay, but they love each other. They choose to be with each other despite what convention expects. It's a meeting of souls, not simply body parts looking for physical release.

[ludditerobot.livejournal.com]

I started it. My position? The shanshu started in "Chosen" and finished when Spike could pick things up again. Angel gave up his Shanshu when he set up the second front in LA, and a fat lot of good it did anybody. Now, going in with this interpretation of canon, having a fic where shanshu is a real, now proposition doesn't really appeal to me. I suppose the right writing might've kept me hooked. That's a possibility. But I've taken the best genre books of my generation and thrown many of them aside, and my patience for a premise I think is wrong isn't what it could be. So, while there was nothing wrong with the writing, I hit a point and couldn't go on. I'll give it a try later.

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

Fair enough. Thanks! :-)

[speakr2customrs.livejournal.com]

The shanshu started in "Chosen" and finished when Spike could pick things up again.

Intriguing. Yes, that would fit the criteria; it would satisfy Spike (who likes being a vampire) and piss off Angel no end, and that's good too. It's not an interpretation that I've ever seen before, but it's certainly logical.

[speakr2customrs.livejournal.com]

I didn't read it at the time because I'm so short of time during my five days at work; that word "threesome" caused me to flip past it, whereas during my days off I'd have given it a try anyway.

And then it turned out that there wasn't really a threesome anyway.

I liked it.

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

And then it turned out that there wasn't really a threesome anyway.

Nope, just all three of them nekkid on a bed together.

Glad you liked it anyway. :-)

[whirligigged.livejournal.com]

Sorry, have been skipping past most anything on my flist with an lj-cut lately. ^^; I did actually read the first half, up to when Illyria punches him, but I haven't finished it yet. I shall try to find some time tomorrow. :)

But before I forget to ask - I figured Gunn's body being "bloodless" just meant he bled to death, as was implied in the finale, but when I read She grieved for him, even as she did what she had to do..., my first thought was that she gave some of his blood to Angel and Spike to strengthen them. Was this meant to be implied, or am I jumping to conclusions again?

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

Huh...no, I didn't mean that at all. What she has to do to ensure she doesn't lose anyone else is just get Spike and Angel into the Hyperion.

*beats back plot bunny with a baseball bat*

[whirligigged.livejournal.com]

Ah, thanks for the clarification. ^_^

(XD Go, plot bunny, go!)

[nodrogg.livejournal.com]

I'd be more than happy to read it. My problem is, I don't know from any of this. BtVS fandom gets as, uh, enthusiastic as Trekkies, and just as immersed in little teeny tiny details known only to them - what got targeted so hilariously in Galaxy Quest (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0177789/) could just as easily be made as Buffy Quest. [It's not unlike the people who get, ah, a little too heavy into White Wolf's Vampire: The Masquerade role-playing game. It often seems like someone needs to have a little talk with them...]

So if I read it, I'd only be looking for grammatical or structural errors. If that's of any use to you, swell. As for characterization or plausibility, well, for all I know, 'Illyria' looks like Linda Hunt (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001373/) and speaks with a heavy Brooklyn Yiddish accent - doesn't she?

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

LOL I don't expect anyone not familiar with the fandom to read anything I write (and it's actually Angel the Series for this one, which is a darker, more complex, and more mature ball of wax than Buffy). The character dynamic between the three, um, not-quite-people in this fic would probably mystify anyone not familiar with the show...and I can just hear you going "WTH is this Shanshu thing?"

So, you get a pass on this one. :-)

Oh, and this is Illyria:

That sure ain't Linda Hunt.

[nodrogg.livejournal.com]

Those are some far out eyes (http://www.babyharp.net/Illyria%20and%20Fred%20copy.jpg).

Re: That sure ain't Linda Hunt.

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

I probably overuse the phrase "eerie blue stare" when I describe her...

[nodrogg.livejournal.com]

Y' know, I took a page from your book (as it were) and put fanficrants into my friends listing. Now my Friends page is constantly flooded with entries.

Was this a stupid thing to do?

[It could be far worse - I could have added metaquotes as well...]

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

I like seeing the various rants. If it's fandom-specific, I can generally just pass it on by. Definitely tells me what to avoid in my own fic, though, assuming I agree with the poster.