Meme catchup!

[essbeejay]

Because I am WAAAAAAAAAAAAY behind.

Top Five Fic Recs

This was really tough. I wanted to try and do PpG, but I tend to share when I've read good PpG/RrB and it's actually been a while since I read outside of that fandom. So basically, I'd be re-posting links. Then I tried to think of fics from other fandoms that I'd loved and I came up with lots of HP and some Digimon. It still didn't feel quite right, or true. Finally, I thought, “Look self, this is your writing journal. First pick the ones you always come back to, then, of those, pick the ones that have had some impact on your own writing.”

I'm sorry to say that the majority of these are HP recs, and half of them aren't even accessible anymore. (Also, all the HP recs are slash, which I know isn't everybody's cup of tea.) But here are my recs.

1. Still Life, by amalin. H/D. I've probably mentioned a few times before that this is the first fanfic I read that... uh, well, it basically “taught” me that fanfic isn't always about wish-fulfillment and crappy writing. I read this on the bus back from uni and was just blown away by how poetic and moving and bittersweet and lovely fanfic could be. It probably seeps into melodrama a tad these days, but I still love it, most of all for the ending (and the heartbreaking little nods to Hermione/Ron). I was moved to become a better writer because of this fic.
2. Tied Up Between the Lines, by amalin. Sirius Black. Another one among the first fanfics I read that showed me they don't all range from suck to mediocre, blah blah blah. I know it's even the same writer; stfu b/c her stuff is excellent. What stuck with me most about this one is how effectively she wrote in 2nd-person POV. The tone conveyed in this is what I'm striving for whenever I myself write in 2nd person POV. (Not sure to what degree I actually succeed.) This is the one I sent to all my rl friends to show them how awesome fanfic was. The one posted there is very slightly different from the version originally posted (the original had a couple more allusions to slash as well as some poetic repetitions). That's how often I've read these, that I know these fics inside and out. /nerd
3. Dancing Queen, by Maya. H/D. If amalin showed me how moving fanfic could be, Maya showed me how fun it could (and should!) be. This is the other fic I would send to rl friends (who could take slash, that is) to show them how hilariously awesome fic is (or could be). The lighthearted fun, snappy dialogue, and snarking galore in her fics really inspired me to make my own romps as much fluffy fun as possible. (Her fanfic has since been taken down as she has achieved that much-strived-for-dream of becoming a professional author.)
4. Your Every Wish, by Maya. H/D. Dark!fic. (Boy, is it ever.) Maya went deliriously dark at times. Crazy dark. Who-turned-out-the-lights-oh-my-God-there-is-no-light-what-the-fuck-are-we-going-to-do kinda dark. This one (about desire and control in a relationship) was super heavy and haunted me for days after reading it. What I took away from this one was how... characters, it's about characters, and how damaged they often are (like people), and that really needs to play into their actions and wants, and even though you can hate them for the damage they are doing to themselves and others, you can still sympathize with them because what they do fits, and because it's human. And because you really do wish they could be happy. We try and try and try, and sometimes that's all we can really do.
5. A Difference in Kind, by Powerprof. Reds. Finally! The one, sole, obligatory PpG fic on the list. The first (and only) PpG fic that ever moved me to tears. (Granted, I was also a hormonal teenager at the time.) Significant, because this was the first PpG/RrB fic I read that showed me 1) It isn't always about putting the characters in crazy situations, 2) Love can be subtle and shown, not told, and 3) Using big words in fics is not a crime! (I am totally serious about that too; this fic and a lot of HP fic I read really expanded my vocabulary. The English language has a ton of beautiful words in it that are severely underutilized; there's no reason they can't show up in fic occasionally!) This fic, in fact, is probably what planted the Reds seed in my brain and made them my favorite PpG/RrB pairing for all eternity. I was devastated when I discovered that Powerprof had taken down all his fics before I got the chance to read his highly recommended multi-chaptered fic “Flip-Flop.” I beg of you—if anyone out there has that fic, please send it to me. I will love you forever. I will write you fic forever. I'm dead serious. That is how much I want to read it.

Honorary mentions go to philosophicwax's Nothing Personal and Elleoquent's Origins. Both PpG fics, and excellent in that regard. Ultimately, they didn't make the actual list because I took away less from those fics than I did from the others (at the time I read them I was less prone to influence as I was older and writing more on my own).

Comments

[ms-mercurial.livejournal.com]

I got into PPG so very late that I never got to read ANY of Powerprof's fics, so my thanks to you for pointing one out to me :D

[xjabooo.livejournal.com]

ORIGINS AND A DIFFERENCE IN KIND <333