Snape Manor

[icarus]

Woah. I've just spent the last [insert ridiculous number because I lost count] of hours talking to cordelia_v about Snape Manor. She now knows the entire plot as it stands now, and why I've been struggling with it.

Do I want to write this story? Even after two years it continues to haunt me.

Am I the last person to read In Between Days by atrata? Because if I'm not and you haven't, you must read this, as it's the finest, most uncompromisingly relentless characterisation of Snape I've ever read. Snape/Harry, NC-17.

For the time being, I'm off to write Percy/Snape. Or perhaps Jack/Daniel, I'm not sure which, but I'm writing something today.

Comments

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

"Well, I'm subtle about it of course. A talent for careful phrasing is essential for an historian." He sucks on the end of his quill as he considers. "And certain things don't belong in the general history texts. They might effect the minds of the impressionable."

He takes in Cordelia's shocked expression. "Well they should be recorded, of course! But for the likes of us, in the hallowed halls of history, not for general consumption. Now, I'm working on an abridged version of Hogwarts: A History. I'm sure you'll agree that the story of Dahlia Rakenfelter's affair with Godric Gryffindor is not appropriate for children and could very well diminish their respect for authority, as Godric is considered the very essence of Gryffindor...."

[cordelia_v]

Cordelia nodded. "Details like that don't really explain the institution's subsequent development, of course," she agreed. "And if you make the narrative too salacious, it narrows the audience you can reach, and the impact of your work."

"But I'm sure you'll want to expand the now-outmoded section on Hogwarts' early finances, won't you?" she added, her expression now quite earnest. "The names of the earliest contributors, and their policy goals were persuasively documented in Horace Thistlebottom's recent dissertation. And even though that casts a new and unflattering light on the origins of the Malfoy fortune, we can't ignore important issues like that, can we? Material interests should never be neglected in any sophisticated, multi-causal analysis of an institution."

Percy squirmed, and he looked slightly uncomfortable. But the expression was gone so quickly that Cordelia wasn't sure if she'd really seen it.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

It only takes a moment for Percy to catch his breath. "I'm sure that would provide a - a fascinating insight for scholars such as yourself, though I expect the subject is a trifle esoteric for the mainstream reader." He bobs his head as he interrupts himself, "-- though yes, I agree, it's vital to eliminate and reduce many of the distracting puerile elements. One wonders if the original authors had an editor at all."