fandom musings (aka psuedo-meta) - HP specific

[wook77]

The following is some fandom musings (psuedo-meta) about recent comments I've seen. Please keep in mind that I use "you" and mean the "general you". If you feel that the statements or actions apply to you... maybe they do but I didn't write this with you in mind. I wrote this with generalities and a population at large in mind...



I've seen the statement of "I'm bored with HP fandom" or "There's nothing good out there", "where are all the new people to reinvent the fandom", "there's no new artists, authors, etc" far too many times in my flist lately. Keep in mind that I have a small-ish flist, which causes me to wonder what's going on.

I see plenty going on in fandom and I have to wonder, are these people looking at the same fandom I am?

I see plenty of people offering up new stories. I see plenty of new artists out there offering up their work. I see plenty of new stories from semi-established writers and plenty of new takes on "old" pairings.

During a recent IM conversation with a friend that I shan't name, we were discussing how people aren't really commenting and it really feels like no one is out there reading and viewing the works.

I see these two issues as connected.

IMHO - The reason that people are feeling bored with HP Fandom is that they aren't giving new people a chance. They aren't reading new offerings by semi-established authors. They are so fixated on their own ennui that they aren't seeking out new things. Instead, it's easier to say "there's nothing new out there" or "I'm jumping ship to a new fandom because HP Fandom is dying".

I'm not saying don't get yourself a new fandom or two. I'm not saying that someone has to be specifically and only HP otherwise you're an adulterous h0r. Personally, I'm in quite a few fandoms that I love and adore.

I still come back to HP. Why? Because there are so many things out there I haven't read yet. There are so many artists that I haven't experienced yet. When I get "bored", I branch out in pairings and look for something I haven't experienced before.

I'm a H/D or D/H shipper by nature. I prefer slash over het. That doesn't mean that I won't read a McGonagall/Riddle if it intrigues me. I subscribe to quibbler_report so that I can get exposed to a variety of pairings. I also read the thegoldenseeker for het and femmeslash.

Basically, my point is that if you're bored with fandom or think it's imploding and/or dying… look to what you actually do with fandom. Do you give new authors a try? Do you give new pairings, new kinks, new experiences a try? Or do you stick with the same BNF's all the time? Do you keep to your corner of fandom and don't ever "leave the house"?

There are wonderful authors out there that I fangirl like mad. My fellow authors over at hd_365 do a fantastic job with various prompts for a series of interconnected semi-PWPs. anael has some wonderful writings of different pairings. coffeejunkii has written some unbelievably fantastic mpreg stories lately. hp_springsmut has some really fabulous rarepair stories and artwork. mayflo does amazing things with h/d art.

I could go on and on about all the people I fangirl (because there are plenty out there) but those are just a few examples off the top of my head.

If you're only reading people in the BNF groups than perhaps your corner of fandom is dying. BNF's can only put out so much as there are only so many of them. Give someone new a try…I think you'll be amazed at what you find.

/wook's musings and psuedo-meta.

In the spirit of my musings - who do you obsess over? Recc me a story or a piece of artwork... any pairing (even Snape), any rating, slash/het, any kink. Help me expand my horizons.

Comments

[wearethestars.livejournal.com]

Awwww. I appreciate how much pimping you do of my fics. And I've seen the same arguments and complaints on my flist too. It's frustrating to be writing stories and feel like they're not being read but I know I've been cruising by stories that probably deserve reading and appreciating... so I'm guilty of the same thing.

XXXOXOX

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I pimp cause it's true. You have some amazingly poignant stuff that deserves recognition.

I cruise past some stuff, I click randomly on others. Sometimes, I'm rewarded, sometimes I'm not.

My whole point is that fandom is what you make of it. If it's dying, look to yourself. You're not saying fandom is dying so I don't think you're guilty...

[coffeejunkii.livejournal.com]

aww, you are too kind! i nearly fell out of my chair when i saw that snapshots had been recced at hogwarts_today because let's just say that fluff and mpreg [esp. in that combo] doesn't usually get recced there. so that was a very nice experience.

i agree with what you say to a certain extent, in that there are probably a ton of people who write fantastic stuff and it doesn't get noticed. i think anon exchanges like smutmas are a really good antidote to that and a way for a new writer to get noticed.

i think some of the people who don't feel the hp love anymore are just not interested in exploring that world anymore, so it's not really a matter of not wanting to seek out new fic or art. i don't know. i do know, however, that i feel just as excited about hp and h/d as i did two years ago, and i can't see that changing any time soon :).

[wook77.livejournal.com]

That was amazing! I squee'd when I saw it there because you're right... mpreg is rarely recc'd let alone mpreg WITH fluff.

And your continuation of Precipice?! *ded*

I do love anon exchanges. It's instant exposure to people that you wouldn't read otherwise. That's why I'm enjoying springsmut so much. There are tons of pairings I otherwise wouldn't read but they're all there and begging for attention.

I'm with you on the excitement thing. I'm still in love with H/D - even when I find other pairings. I'm not so "focused" on h/d but I will always be a h/d OTP person...

[lusiology.livejournal.com]

Before the reccing, let me have a little moan first. What's really pissing me off at the moment is this new trend of not responding to readers comments. It seems to be happening more & more and I don't mean not responding in the first 24 hours after a post, I mean never - it's so rude. I'm actually at the point now where I check to see if an author responds before I'll leave a comment. I think I may post about this to get it off my chest.

Moan over and on to the good stuff. You know I adore this artist but I'll say again go and check out lillithium's website Harry Potter and the Planetarium (http://lillithium.azile.net/frame.html) and drool over pictures, comics and doujinshi's.

Have you read any of nimori's fics? I did rec 3 of her HP/LM fics a few posts ago. Did you read them? And there is also the wonderfully funny The Pandora Complex in which Snape discovers the internet, then slash, then HP slash with him in it. Brilliant. If you like dark!fic there is Memoirs of a Death Eater Whore in which the DE's get more than they bargained for. You need to get a code word to read her NC-17 stuff on her website but it's definitely worth it. She's also a damn good artist too.

[coffeejunkii.livejournal.com]

this new trend of not responding to readers comments.

that's my number one fandom pet peeve right there. i can't stand it! i don't think it's a new trend, though. maybe it's been happening more recently, but i hadn't noticed. i do the same thing you do--i check if someone responds before leaving a comment. i tend to leave more than "awesome!" in my comments, so i don't want to take time to craft a response that gets ignored anyway.

[emeraldpen.livejournal.com]

As a new author, I agree with your statement about responding to comments 100 percent. I think it's so important to respond to every comment, even if it's just 1 or 2 words. It's an acknowledgement.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I'm with you on the commenting stuff (for me - it's both ways...) I get so annoyed when authors don't even just drop a note back saying "thanks for letting me know". As CJ says below - I try to leave coherent concrit and commentary (unless I'm so amazed that I leave gobblygook but that's another topic) and I'd like, at the very least, a comment back letting me know it's been acknowledged.

I also don't like the trend of readers not commenting, even if it's just to say "I read this and liked it" or "I read this and didn't like it". Otherwise (at least for me) I feel a bit like I'm talking to an empty room.

I'm on my way over there for both of those. I hadn't read the hp/lm stories but I'm there...Thanks for pointing them out!

[annella.livejournal.com]

I agree... it's a bit distressing to me to see so many on my flist slowly abandoning the HP fandom. It's not dying! It's as alive as ever!! At least in my corner it is. :D

I confess to being a bit narrow in my reading, especially lately. I just don't have time to read every new story like I used to. I tend to read something if I know the author, it's a story I'm following, or it's been recced. Real life has really encroached on my involvement in fandom, and it's not by choice that I'm less involved. *sigh*

There are a HEAP of fantastic stories out there. I lose track of all the works in progress I'm reading. *clings to HP fandom*

I obsess over wtf_drarry. Soooo cracky. Bit angsty at the moment, though.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

Exactly! It's not dying! It's here!

Everyone is allowed to be narrow in their reading. My point was really... fandom is what one makes of it. (you're still reading me, though, right????? *winks*)

I've been slowly getting into wtf_drarry. I used to obsess over hogwarts_bound but no one is active there... at all.

(btw - totally off-topic - the icon keeeeeelllllsssss me)

[acidpop25.livejournal.com]

Hm, well, Triptych (http://antoshevu.livejournal.com/8738.html) by antoshevu is a cool Harry/Ginny/Luna piece. I'd never read the pair before, but I quite liked it. Also a piece called "Pray It Never Fades," by crimson_stained (the link for which I can't find at the moment) which is a really beautiful H/D. I'd also reccomend Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others (http://ofscarletwoman.livejournal.com/41381.html) by ofscarletwoman, which is a really cool Millicent-centered piece.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

Harry/Ginny/Luna is my OT3 at this point. (although I'm still hoping for H/D/Blaise over at hp_bb)

I'll have to look those up... THANKS!!!!

(how are you, btw?)

[emeraldpen.livejournal.com]

*clings to HP*

It can't be dead yet, I just got here. *clings more*

I told someone I was having a jazz funeral when or if it does die. Heh.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

It's not dead... we're here! and see, you made my point! New blood into fandom when people are saying there isn't any!

(in honor of your *heh*... I'm using one of my new favorite icons...)

[jehnt.livejournal.com]

I'm obsessed with helenish, who may well be the funniest person in existence. She's by no means new in fandom (in fact, I think she's pretty much no longer in HP fandom, having abandoned it in favor of SGA) but I see that she's not on your flist so maybe she's new to you. I read everything she writes, even the stuff she writes in fandoms that I know nothing about. My favorite of her HP stories is A Soft Spot for Lost Causes, which is pretty much one of my favorite fics ever. If you haven't read it you totally should.

I'm sure there are newer stories/authors I obsess over, but I'm too lazy to go through my bookmarks right now.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I'll have to go look her up. I've never seen SGA but I'll give it a try.

I have about 30 people I fangirl so I didn't want to list them all... I just really posted the highlights and who I thought of off the top of my head.

Anyway - rambling aside... thanks for the link! She is new to me.

[yaycoffee.livejournal.com]

You are so right! I'd noticed some grumbling as well, and it surprised me, too. I'm still working through writers' block that makes fandom a little less fun for me, because I'm not ALL UP IN ITS BUSINESS these days, but I'm still finding fabulous art and fic from both familiar and new people.

I love you, HP fandom! :-D

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I understand the writer's block (*smites writer's block*).

Exactly on finding the new stuff. I've also found some of the greatest people in the world through HP Fandom. It's not dead and it's not dying.

*loves on the fandom and you*

[brockssnow.livejournal.com]

The first author that really got me hooked on the whole HP fandom is starflowers. Her stories are here: http://www.fictionalley.org/authors/cinnamon/. Sorry I don't know how to put up links yet. She wrote Harry/Draco, Draco/Ron and Draco/Ginny stories. I really enjoyed them all. HP fandom is not dead to me since I just started reading about six months ago. I am still finding stories that get me excited.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I started reading a little over a year ago, so it's not dead for me either. That being said... I've read all the "classics" and I'm constantly finding new people to read as well. There are some amazing new additions to the fandom.

I adore cinnamon's stuff. She's amazing and fabulous! Thanks for reminding me!

[incapricious.livejournal.com]

Hmm. You know, I do agree that it is likely that many people aren't looking for new stuff, hence feeling like the fandom is 'dying.'

However, I think another explanation (for some of the cases) is that people just aren't very self-aware (I will explain, bear with me). Interest in things varies over time, based on a lot of things like real life and the weather and plus there is the fact that most obsessions have a finite lifespan*. So, a person's perception of various fandom offerings will change. It seems to me that some people simply don't realize that fandom has not changed (okay, it has but not in a negative 'death throe' kind of way), but they have. Perhaps they are trying to express the fact that fandom does not excite them the way it used to, and mistakenly attribute it to the fandom itself and not to themselves. Which is why I said they weren't being self-aware. I'm not sure that's the right way of putting it though. But for lack of a better word/phrase.... All I mean is that the exact same fic will seem better to a person if they are in the right frame of mind or are feeling the obsession. If they aren't, it won't seem interesting. As interesting.

*I am sure there are some people who can be into something for long periods of time. I am not one of those people. I definitely notice that my interest has waned. I still like fandom things, but I don't obsess at the same level (not even close). And it's only been 6 months since I became obsessed, so I think my attention span is on the short side (goldfish on crack and omg I never made that icon). That doesn't mean I'm leaving or anything, because I still lurve fandom to an unholy degree. It does mean that I read way less than what I used to, and if I don't read fics for days I don't get the shakes. (Heh.) I still love most fics when I read them, I just don't feel the urge to read them, if that makes sense. It's like a diversion rather than a compulsion. ...I would so much rather talk to people than read. I suppose that's partly because of my own RL situation though.

... I had another point, where is it? Oh yes. It may be that for some people, reading new authors or finding new artists will perk up their interest again, which will make the same things seem better than before. So it's still definitely worth urging people to give new people a chance. I know for me though, it's not like I am going "oh, I have never heard of this person, I am not reading" it's more like I just don't even look because I don't want to. But then I am not one of the ones saying that fandom is dying. (I think there are a bazillion things going on and I know I will never ever get a chance to see a fraction of it, even if fandom was my job.) Fandom is changing because it is a complex network of people and groups and therefore it has to change, because things always change. But change != death. I guess if people are attached to the way things were, then they will be unhappy with change...

Um yeah, babbling. I know, how unlike me. *shuts up*

♥

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I ♥ your babbling. You're right along the same flight pattern I am.

(also - make the icon... *uses jedi mind tricks*)

I really think that either people are disenfranchising themselves or just not looking beyond their own little niche. There's plenty going on in fandom.

I had other thoughts but I'm really tired so I'll leave it there tonight.

[masterofmystery.livejournal.com]

I think a good portion of the fandom relies on the same artists and writers and such, and those people have moved on the other things, or at least have found interest in more than Harry Potter. So it's basically a problem of people not going outside of a particular circle, and if enclose yourself in one area, how are you ever going to find new talent? If you're bored, then surely you'd look around a bit more thoroughly in search of what you're looking for, no? There's no problem with finding and enjoying other fandoms, but if, with any fandom here, not just Harry Potter, you only read and admire the same things, then of course you'll find nothing new. That doesn't mean it's not out there, just that you refuse to give it the time of day.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

exactly! I would hope people would actually look before saying "fandom is dead!!one1!!" Even if your comfortable niche is just h/d - there's a ton of communities that new authors post in.

I'm all for finding new fandoms. Hell, HP was a new fandom to me about a year and a half ago. I had no sodding clue until I went searching ff.net for an x-men story and saw "harry potter" there. Thankfully, I've moved away from ff.net for hp stuff cause the quality, err, lacked. But,back to the point - I just don't think people can be pantsed to look any more for new stuff. That's what really bothers me.

[drusillas-rain.livejournal.com]

So true! I've recently discovered Percy/Oliver. You can find some recs that I'm putting together on drus_recs. Most is H/D or Snape/Lupin, but there are some other pairings there too. Or check out my memories (drusillas_rain).

[wook77.livejournal.com]

I'll have to head over there. I don't think I've ever read Percy in a story other than a brief "then percy died cause he was teh evil". Most of the time, people ignore him (me included... I like to pretend he doesn't exist as I can't figure out how to write him becuase I'm unsure how I feel about him).

Thanks for the recs!

[chaeldub.livejournal.com]

AMEN, sister.

I was reading a rant by (blank), actually it wasn't a rant to start with but I think it sorta turned out that way. They basically said, that they don't read almost any fic whatsoever asthey don't have the time. I find this sorta hard to swallow when teh journal is usually updated eveyday with long talks about this and that and they find the time to write long stories which every one reads and recs. A kind word from some of the core writers can mean alot to an aspiring author. To be ignored on the other hand is just *grrr argh - Mutant Alien*.

I'm not saying i'm perfect I sometimes forget to say something. But itf a fic was good, and a lot of them are, I will defintiely comment. If the core group drifts off and leaves the "newbies/untried authors/artists/comms/whatever" then who is that going to leave. Is everyone afraid that when Book 7 comes and goes the Fandom will end? Crazy talk, I say. Star Trek (original) - still being written, Firefly/Serenity - still being written and many others.

I know I write just because... well, becasue I have stories to be told and so I do. So someone dropping by and reading and commenting occasionally would be really nice. Lets you know your not alone, someone is reading and liking or hating your work (there's no such thing as bad publicity). I don't want to whore my work on every Comm because some people on my small f/list area alos on those Comms and I don't want to spam them so to speak. So I write H/D... nothing. SO I wander off and write Nott/Finnegan... silence. What do they want? Tell me and I'll write it? Where they want it posted, I'll post.

Just irks me that people say don't read fic cause so much of it is bad - "How the hell would they know? They don't read any!!!!!"

This is when I realise that I have been consumed by the Dark Side. I tend to rant on and on... Every survey I take I come up as Snape or Voldemort or Dark Elf or in this case...... so what the hell would I know? Gets in Slave One and flys of to go kill some of those pesky Jedi.

[wook77.livejournal.com]

exactly and exactly! It seriously frosts my nuggets when people go on and on about having no time to read but they always seem to have time for writing and listening to their own accolades.

As I said to imadra_blue the other day... I feel less like a ho when I pimp once a day for a story. That way... I'm not spamming the lists and it's a "gentle" reminder to my flist as well. Just my opinion on that, of course.

I'm having that same argument over on a board regarding teh "i don't read it cause it's all bad" mentality. How would you know unless you read every single piece?

*likes your result*

[best-of-five.livejournal.com]

see, i meant to write to this last night and then totally fell asleep :">

wookie!! *hugs*

there's always something or the other going on in HP, i think as far as fandoms go, it's definitely in contention for being one of the most active. maybe it's a wave of fandommers who just feel fatigue from being over-involved? i'm speculating of course, but sometimes you have to take a step back to get back a level of interest. i think a lot of ways work to accomplish this -
a) to read beyond OTP (omg, no harry/anyone else!!)
b) to read new authors - i agree, anon exchanges are a good way to do this. but so is sometimes just clicking and reading. i mean i've read bad fic by established writers too, so i really don't see why it's a big deal to just take a chance. but i'm new to fandom :)
c) go explore other fandoms and maybe realize how much you miss hp. or just come back with some fresh ideas. better yet, come back with fics!

i'm sure there's other ways but i agree, it's like anything else in life. there's a lot of options out there :)

[wook77.livejournal.com]

bingo... I may read other pairings (h/d/b no matter what you say *pphhlltt*) but H/D is my OTP.

I like taking a chance on new authors. That's one of the ways I've found so many wonderful people on my flist.

There are established authors that don't tweak my interest... I move on. It's hit or miss sometimes. but I love hp fandom and I'll be here for quite a long time...

[mayflo.livejournal.com]

I'm feeling like a big, fat schmuck for missing this entry O_O

You're too kind, honestly! *blush blush*

But you're too true about it. I've noticed even in myself and perhaps that's what's happening to other as well but after you're honed into fandom, you stop reading fics randomly cos you want only the good stuff. You start relying on recs by BNFs and unless you don't see them there, you're not risking. Too much fics, too little time... :/ So you don't explore for yourself anymore. Well, that's what's happening to me but I'm sure I'm not the only one. That's why you don't see much action, because you're being passive.

This was a great wake-up call, you know? When fandom was getting stagnant and all. So thanks for the heads-up! *huggles*