Somebody please talk me out of signing up for the
white_lotus fanworks exchange. On the one hand, it's due after the Christmas rush (seriously, December is going to be, uh, rather busier than I'm used to) so it's viable. On the other hand, argh, I'm terrible about sticking to deadlines. But on the third hand, it might be the kick in the pants that I need to get vidding again. Plus, you know, AVATAR. Argh.
Also, these astronaut photos are awesome and make me regret, yet again, that I was talked out of trying for a career with NASA by my silly careers advisor in high school. I ♥ our Pale Blue Dot.
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
Also, these astronaut photos are awesome and make me regret, yet again, that I was talked out of trying for a career with NASA by my silly careers advisor in high school. I ♥ our Pale Blue Dot.
Tis the season...
Nov. 13th, 2010 11:05 am...to think about teeny tiny fandoms.
So despite my bemoaning in my last post it seems I haven't missed Yuletide after all (due to it being late this year, not due to me being awesomely on top of things, because, well, I'm not). I appear to have found my squee, or at least enough squee to carry me through Yuletide, and I really don't want to miss it this year; it's often my sole fannish output in a year and it just wouldn't feel right not doing it. This is complicated, this year, by the fact that the new WoW expansion comes out December 7th, which means I might be trying to write Yuletide with one hand while steering my way through a very crowded Azeroth with the other, but whatever. I'll just not sleep for the fortnight or something.
The trouble is, due to the fact that I was disengaged from about August onwards, I kind of haven't been planning for YT this year and so I don't have my usual shortlist of fandoms to request or nominate -- usually throughout the second half of the year I go through and write down stuff that I want to request, especially. This year, not so much.
So I'm currently going through the fandoms list with a fine toothcomb identifying the stuff I know well enough to offer, and trying to think about what to ask for. This is harder than I thought!
...hmm. I was sure I made a "for next Yuletide" reminder post for myself at the start of the year. Maybe I should go look for that.
So despite my bemoaning in my last post it seems I haven't missed Yuletide after all (due to it being late this year, not due to me being awesomely on top of things, because, well, I'm not). I appear to have found my squee, or at least enough squee to carry me through Yuletide, and I really don't want to miss it this year; it's often my sole fannish output in a year and it just wouldn't feel right not doing it. This is complicated, this year, by the fact that the new WoW expansion comes out December 7th, which means I might be trying to write Yuletide with one hand while steering my way through a very crowded Azeroth with the other, but whatever. I'll just not sleep for the fortnight or something.
The trouble is, due to the fact that I was disengaged from about August onwards, I kind of haven't been planning for YT this year and so I don't have my usual shortlist of fandoms to request or nominate -- usually throughout the second half of the year I go through and write down stuff that I want to request, especially. This year, not so much.
So I'm currently going through the fandoms list with a fine toothcomb identifying the stuff I know well enough to offer, and trying to think about what to ask for. This is harder than I thought!
...hmm. I was sure I made a "for next Yuletide" reminder post for myself at the start of the year. Maybe I should go look for that.
So, I've just finished Festivids, which was an interesting experience. Yuletide - and being more involved in the Yuletide community - meant that I left the majority of the work on my vid until after New Year's. Which was a tactical error, albeit - knowing me - an entirely predictable one.
I was matched to my recipient on the Galaxy Quest fandom, which amuses me, as Galaxy Quest is something of a fannish text itself. The recipient asked for 'Don't Stop' by Fleetwood Mac as the song, but didn't give any further details, prompts, or ideas - and didn't post a Dear Vidder letter, either, at least not that I could find.
( thoughts about vid creation and process and stuff )
I don't know whether I succeeded with the vid in its current form, although I'm happier with it than I expected to be. Looking back, I can see a few things I'd do differently now. I learnt a lot while making this vid, particularly in terms of storytelling and story construction, and I hope it worked for other people.
I was matched to my recipient on the Galaxy Quest fandom, which amuses me, as Galaxy Quest is something of a fannish text itself. The recipient asked for 'Don't Stop' by Fleetwood Mac as the song, but didn't give any further details, prompts, or ideas - and didn't post a Dear Vidder letter, either, at least not that I could find.
( thoughts about vid creation and process and stuff )
I don't know whether I succeeded with the vid in its current form, although I'm happier with it than I expected to be. Looking back, I can see a few things I'd do differently now. I learnt a lot while making this vid, particularly in terms of storytelling and story construction, and I hope it worked for other people.
Galaxy Quest - Yesterday's Gone
Music: "Don't Stop (Thinking About Tomorrow)" by Status Quo (Fleetwood Mac cover)
Content: Gen, ensemble.
Footage: Galaxy Quest movie.
One thing made the good old days great: teamwork. In which the cast learns that nobody can go it alone, and together they’re unstoppable.

Download: MP4 file (55.6 MB) or Zipped AVI (51.1 MB).
Streaming: here.
( Lyrics behind the cut. )
This vid was originally posted for Festivids, and you can see all the pre-reveal comments on that post.
Music: "Don't Stop (Thinking About Tomorrow)" by Status Quo (Fleetwood Mac cover)
Content: Gen, ensemble.
Footage: Galaxy Quest movie.
One thing made the good old days great: teamwork. In which the cast learns that nobody can go it alone, and together they’re unstoppable.

Download: MP4 file (55.6 MB) or Zipped AVI (51.1 MB).
Streaming: here.
( Lyrics behind the cut. )
This vid was originally posted for Festivids, and you can see all the pre-reveal comments on that post.
I finished my Festivids vid! Despite procrastination, lack of inspiration, and (for the last few days) a worsening case of conjunctivitis that's left me unable to see the screen for many hours a day, I got that sucker done. Thirty hours before deadline, too, and I am a lot happier with it than I expected. :)
Now to get the draft uploaded, and then sit somewhere with a wet cloth over my eyes for a few hours. The exciting life I lead...
Now to get the draft uploaded, and then sit somewhere with a wet cloth over my eyes for a few hours. The exciting life I lead...
Yuletide Reveal
Jan. 2nd, 2010 03:38 amWell, it's Reveal Day, so I can now say publicly that I wrote The Blue Door and The Green Wood, in The Swish of the Curtain fandom, and But Where Are All The Splash Fights?, a Questionable Content storylet for Yuletide Madness.
Interestingly, the latter got twice the hits of the former, but half the comments.
And yes,
helens78, I did guess that A Few Of My Favorite Things was your creation. The note at the bottom of the story was what gave it away. Thankyou so much :-)
Interestingly, the latter got twice the hits of the former, but half the comments.
And yes,
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Yuletide: The Stories - Part 2!
Dec. 27th, 2009 06:10 pmHooray, the Yuletide Madness stories have gone live! I've been waiting eagerly for this; my Madness treat is, I think, likely to be a lot more popular/accessible than my main story, and I was on tenterhooks to see whether my recipient liked it or not. Thankfully, it went over well. :)
And I was lucky enough to get not one but two treats:
Season of Goodwill (het, general), a Castle story about Castle and Beckett and their families at Christmas. The voices are just right, and I love it when Beckett manages to surprise Castle.
To Be Known Across A Thousand Lives (femslash, teen), an utterly gorgeous Fifth Element story about Leeloo and Plavalaguna across the endless cycle of Leeloo's lives. It's so easy to forget that Leeloo has lived many times before, and this story shines a lovely light on them.
SO HAPPY.
And I was lucky enough to get not one but two treats:
Season of Goodwill (het, general), a Castle story about Castle and Beckett and their families at Christmas. The voices are just right, and I love it when Beckett manages to surprise Castle.
To Be Known Across A Thousand Lives (femslash, teen), an utterly gorgeous Fifth Element story about Leeloo and Plavalaguna across the endless cycle of Leeloo's lives. It's so easy to forget that Leeloo has lived many times before, and this story shines a lovely light on them.
SO HAPPY.
Yuletide: The Stories - Part 1!
Dec. 25th, 2009 05:33 pmFirst up one must acknowledge the huge amounts of work done by the Yuletide mods,
elynross and
astolat, without whom we wouldn't even have Yuletide. ♥
Also owed thanks are the coders and volunteers from the AO3, who built the platform in time for this year and wrangled every bug into submission. ♥
And the good people of #yuletide, hippos and non-hippos alike, for the awesome support and company. ♥
...this is starting to sound like an Oscar acceptance speech, so on with the show.
I was lucky enough to get four stories this year, and I have a sneaking suspicion that at least one of them is written by someone I know. My signup actually went up for pinch-hit (along with 300 others, heh), so I'm not sure which is my 'official' story, but they're all awesome. I haven't commented yet because the Archive server is sadfacing all over the place (as someone said in chat, BEST BETA TEST EVER) so I thought I'd squee about them here. :)
I got:
When We Meet (gen, general), a Fifth Element story about one of Korben's less-than-perfect fares. I love The Fifth Element so very much, and yet I've always been totally unable to produce any fanworks for it - seeing another slice of the world is very, very cool.
The One With No Pants (het, mature), a Castle story about the morning after the night before. I love the banter between Beckett and Castle, and the characterisation felt very true to both of them.
Years Gone (gen, general), a Bugs Potter story about where Bugs is in ten years' time - and it's not where one might expect. A very interesting concept about the future, and I didn't see it coming. Plus, hey, Bugs Potter - a Korman fandom that does not get enough love. :)
A Few Of My Favorite Things (gen, general), a Castle story full of Christmas and laughter and awesomeness. This is the one that I think was written by one of you lot (or at least someone who knows me) and oh, it's delightful. The characters are all note-perfect and it's a lovely Christmassy slice of Castle.
Thankyou, wonderful writers, thankyou so much! ♥
Plus I've got two more gifts waiting for me when Yuletide Madness opens, which will hopefully be soon!
Now I am going to eat dinner, and when I come back I will brave the servers to leave grateful comments for my lovely generous Yuletide writers!
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
Also owed thanks are the coders and volunteers from the AO3, who built the platform in time for this year and wrangled every bug into submission. ♥
And the good people of #yuletide, hippos and non-hippos alike, for the awesome support and company. ♥
...this is starting to sound like an Oscar acceptance speech, so on with the show.
I was lucky enough to get four stories this year, and I have a sneaking suspicion that at least one of them is written by someone I know. My signup actually went up for pinch-hit (along with 300 others, heh), so I'm not sure which is my 'official' story, but they're all awesome. I haven't commented yet because the Archive server is sadfacing all over the place (as someone said in chat, BEST BETA TEST EVER) so I thought I'd squee about them here. :)
I got:
When We Meet (gen, general), a Fifth Element story about one of Korben's less-than-perfect fares. I love The Fifth Element so very much, and yet I've always been totally unable to produce any fanworks for it - seeing another slice of the world is very, very cool.
The One With No Pants (het, mature), a Castle story about the morning after the night before. I love the banter between Beckett and Castle, and the characterisation felt very true to both of them.
Years Gone (gen, general), a Bugs Potter story about where Bugs is in ten years' time - and it's not where one might expect. A very interesting concept about the future, and I didn't see it coming. Plus, hey, Bugs Potter - a Korman fandom that does not get enough love. :)
A Few Of My Favorite Things (gen, general), a Castle story full of Christmas and laughter and awesomeness. This is the one that I think was written by one of you lot (or at least someone who knows me) and oh, it's delightful. The characters are all note-perfect and it's a lovely Christmassy slice of Castle.
Thankyou, wonderful writers, thankyou so much! ♥
Plus I've got two more gifts waiting for me when Yuletide Madness opens, which will hopefully be soon!
Now I am going to eat dinner, and when I come back I will brave the servers to leave grateful comments for my lovely generous Yuletide writers!
Yuletide Madness!
Dec. 24th, 2009 10:20 pmHooray, it's Madness time :)
(For those of you who may or may not want to write to my prompts, they're in my letter here. :))
This year, for the first time, I actually wrote a treat! I feel very proud of myself.
(For those of you who may or may not want to write to my prompts, they're in my letter here. :))
This year, for the first time, I actually wrote a treat! I feel very proud of myself.
HELP HELP IT'S TWO DAYS TIL YULETIDE HELP HELP.
(I'm at two thousand words and the story shows no signs of stopping any time soon. Send help.)
Edit: 2700 and counting, and I reckon I'm about 2/3 of the way through. Which means, in reality, I'm probably about halfway through. :D
Which means I might actually have time to write a stocking stuffer or two, too!
(I'm at two thousand words and the story shows no signs of stopping any time soon. Send help.)
Edit: 2700 and counting, and I reckon I'm about 2/3 of the way through. Which means, in reality, I'm probably about halfway through. :D
Which means I might actually have time to write a stocking stuffer or two, too!
Dear Festividder...
Nov. 22nd, 2009 08:32 amFirst of all, I'm sorry this letter is so late! I have been rather under the weather lately, and thinking intelligently was a bit beyond me. I hope this is better late than never. And now - on with the show!
Thankyou so much for vidding for me! I'm really looking forward to seeing what you produce. :) Everything I list below is completely optional; the most important thing to me is that you create what you're inspired to create -- that said, I know guidance is helpful in gift exchanges, so here's some feedback about what I really love:
( Music Choices )
( Fandom Specifics )
Thankyou so much for vidding for me! I'm really looking forward to seeing what you produce. :) Everything I list below is completely optional; the most important thing to me is that you create what you're inspired to create -- that said, I know guidance is helpful in gift exchanges, so here's some feedback about what I really love:
( Music Choices )
( Fandom Specifics )
Dear Yuletide Writer!
Nov. 9th, 2009 02:05 amDear Yuletide Writer,
First, and most importantly, thankyou very much for signing up to write a story in one of the fandoms I love so much. I hope that you enjoy writing the story as much as I'll enjoy reading it!
If you're looking to get a general idea of what pushes my buttons, you can read my fandom journal here; my main day-to-day journal is
ladyjestyr. But this wouldn't be a Dear Yuletide Writer letter without some specifics, so here goes!
( General Thoughts )
Now, onto the specifics!
( Fandom Thoughts )
First, and most importantly, thankyou very much for signing up to write a story in one of the fandoms I love so much. I hope that you enjoy writing the story as much as I'll enjoy reading it!
If you're looking to get a general idea of what pushes my buttons, you can read my fandom journal here; my main day-to-day journal is
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
( General Thoughts )
Now, onto the specifics!
( Fandom Thoughts )
Festivids thinking
Nov. 1st, 2009 06:13 pmLike Yuletide, Festivids is having a nominations phase before its signups. I spent a while thinking today about what I wanted to nominate - although vids are my primary fanworks these days, I find inspiration harder to come by, so I wanted to be sure I was nominating only sources that I'd be really happy to either receive, or vid for.
My noms list, finally, looks like this:
Appleseed (movie/anime)
Fifth Element (movie)
Galaxy Quest (movie)
Tomb Raider (movie)
Ocean's Eleven series (movie)
Pirates of the Caribbean series (movie)
Wall-E (movie)
I was amazed by the fact that there were no TV series in the list - but I think the series for which I have good source are pretty mainstream, and nothing really leapt out at me from the stuff I have on the computer.
My noms list, finally, looks like this:
Appleseed (movie/anime)
Fifth Element (movie)
Galaxy Quest (movie)
Tomb Raider (movie)
Ocean's Eleven series (movie)
Pirates of the Caribbean series (movie)
Wall-E (movie)
I was amazed by the fact that there were no TV series in the list - but I think the series for which I have good source are pretty mainstream, and nothing really leapt out at me from the stuff I have on the computer.
Yuletide nominations open later today!
\o/
...oh shit, I've lost my List Of Fandoms What I Want To Request Or Write For Yuletide. Augh.
Wait, no, there it is.
The Middleman
Glee (maybe)
Korman-verse
Leverage (probably too big this year though :/)
Castle
Constantine
Ballet Shoes
The Mummy
Dark Angel
Um. Am I missing anything?
Edit: Wait, that's eight, and I seem to recall you can only nominate six. Okay, I think I'd knock off Glee (since I expect it to be well-furnished with fic this year anyway), Leverage (as it's probably too big anyway) and... erk. Probably Ballet Shoes, as I'm not sure there's enough in it to really talk about.
ARGH, except now I want to write/read Swish of the Curtain, too.
Okay! Revised list:
Castle
Constantine
The Mummy
Swish of the Curtain
and two contenders from Korman-verse. I wrote No Coins, Please for Yuletide last year, so I might nominate Macdonald Hall and Bugs Potter this year. (I am, uh, suddenly inspired for Bugs Potter. Weird.)
\o/
...oh shit, I've lost my List Of Fandoms What I Want To Request Or Write For Yuletide. Augh.
Wait, no, there it is.
The Middleman
Glee (maybe)
Korman-verse
Leverage (probably too big this year though :/)
Castle
Constantine
Ballet Shoes
The Mummy
Dark Angel
Um. Am I missing anything?
Edit: Wait, that's eight, and I seem to recall you can only nominate six. Okay, I think I'd knock off Glee (since I expect it to be well-furnished with fic this year anyway), Leverage (as it's probably too big anyway) and... erk. Probably Ballet Shoes, as I'm not sure there's enough in it to really talk about.
ARGH, except now I want to write/read Swish of the Curtain, too.
Okay! Revised list:
Castle
Constantine
The Mummy
Swish of the Curtain
and two contenders from Korman-verse. I wrote No Coins, Please for Yuletide last year, so I might nominate Macdonald Hall and Bugs Potter this year. (I am, uh, suddenly inspired for Bugs Potter. Weird.)
...why do you ask?
This would be the sound of me signing up for not one but two prompts at
multiverse5000. However, I do at least have good ideas for both!
I hope.
Also,
andrastewhite - the mod of
multiverse5000 - has asked participants to mention the fest's existence, since it's had a big format change this year to make it easier to run and participate in. Duly mentioned!
(Man, some of the unclaimed prompts look awesome, and I'm only stopped from claiming them by the fact that I don't know their canons well enough. Oh, and the fact that writing two fics in the next six weeks is going to beat my previous average by several orders of magnitude.)
This would be the sound of me signing up for not one but two prompts at
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
I hope.
Also,
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
(Man, some of the unclaimed prompts look awesome, and I'm only stopped from claiming them by the fact that I don't know their canons well enough. Oh, and the fact that writing two fics in the next six weeks is going to beat my previous average by several orders of magnitude.)
Chewing off more than I can bite.
Apr. 16th, 2009 04:54 amIn her last post
zvi made reference to the launch of Femslash09, a femslash ficathon. I'd somehow never heard of the ficathon before, although it's been running since 2004 - clearly I'm oblivious, or not in the loop.
I see that there are some shows in the (potential) fandom list that I feel comfortable in offering to write - Firefly, NCIS, Harry Potter, and (whee) Leverage - and perhaps even Bring It On. Hee. So, I shall watch, and vote, and try my very best to participate - if it weren't for deadlines I'd never get anything done at all!
Also, if you can or will or do write femslash in femslashy fandoms, you should get on over there and nominate appropriate fandoms and sign up and write and stuff.
(And now I shall go and expire from the hypocrisy of me telling someone else to write. Sigh. :))
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
I see that there are some shows in the (potential) fandom list that I feel comfortable in offering to write - Firefly, NCIS, Harry Potter, and (whee) Leverage - and perhaps even Bring It On. Hee. So, I shall watch, and vote, and try my very best to participate - if it weren't for deadlines I'd never get anything done at all!
Also, if you can or will or do write femslash in femslashy fandoms, you should get on over there and nominate appropriate fandoms and sign up and write and stuff.
(And now I shall go and expire from the hypocrisy of me telling someone else to write. Sigh. :))