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icarusI'm all about the Meta today. This piece is for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
femmequixotic.
I've moved from Lord of the Rings to Harry Potter, and then after being deeply enmeshed in Harry Potter two to three years, I shifted from that to Stargate SG-1 and now am writing Stargate Atlantis. The move from HP to SG-1 was particularly uncomfortable, so I hope this will prove helpful.
How To Write In A New Fandom
Moving from one fandom to another can be challenging (Icarus says in a 'bad infomercial' voice) especially when you're deeply entrenched, have won nifty awards where you are, and a fairly dependable following of readers with whom you feel comfortable. Changing what works can feel like you're on a diving board about to leap off into an abyss.
But you have to write what's in you, and if a different fandom is pulling at you, new stories bubbling out, there's no point in forcing yourself to stick to the familiar. Yes, you can be Mick Jagger and keep doing the same successful formula, but it's probably better for you as a writer to be David Bowie, changing your style and growing.
Prepare yourself: you will have fewer reviews, especially at first. Also, there will be subtle differences. Fandoms have different cultures and it'll take time to adjust. If you're used to writing Meta you might not be the voice of authority in this new fandom, which can seem strange.
Some will feel (to use an SG-1 example) like Daniel Jackson preaching to an emptying room as you post stories in your new fandom and are met with a resounding silence from the old. It will take time before you gain confidence and momentum in the new fandom, and you may never have the same presence. But most multi-fandom writers never abandon their old obsessions. They just simply write them less often. I gamble the last Harry Potter book will have all the oldtimers picking up their pens to bring Snape back to life or rehabilitate Percy.
Step one: Steep in the new fandom canon.
This is so obvious it barely needs mention. If you're interested in a new fandom of course you're reading the source material or soaking up the shows.
Be careful about absorbing more fanfic than canon at this early stage, because your image of the characters will struggle to develop if you're taking in a hundred different fanfiction interpretations. Each writer has their own take on John and Rodney and you need to develop yours. If you've already delved into the fanfic, then before you start writing your first piece, step away and re-read the book or view an episode or two.
Step two: Take a tour of the fanfiction.
Most people will have already done this, but if you haven't, read the main fanfiction stories in your new fandom. These keeps you from falling into that fandom's biggest cliches. Read some bad!fic too, because there's nothing more motivating than seeing a great character done poorly.
Hang out quietly and get a feel for the flavor and style of the fandom. Lord of the Rings is a rather "tweedy" group. Stargate SG-1 is intense and very earnest. Harry Potter is like a big city with teeny neighborhoods of cliques that pass like ships in the night. Stargate Atlantis is like a drunken luau with grinning old timers hanging out in bad Hawaiian shirts. They all have their little cultural norms and group hang-ups: LotR has an anti-slash bias, SG-1 has a painful history from when Daniel was killed on the show, Harry Potter has ongoing legal issues and chan.
Step three: Start with a few short character vignettes.
This gets your feet wet in the new fandom and helps you learn your characters' voices. Tackle the character that's hardest for you.
Post your vignettes and drabbles only in your LJ and for a few friends, where the lack of feedback may not seem to be too much of a problem. You're going to be a little OOC for these, but that's okay. My original John in my very first piece was a little rough, a little too "Jack O'Neill." Your Rodney might sound a bit like a blunt version of Draco Malfoy.
This is normal. It happens to OCs, too. If you look at the characterisation of Rodney in SG-1's "48 Hours" and compare it to "Hide And Seek," there is a marked difference as the writers got a feel for him.
Step four: Write that story that's nagging you.
That's the whole point, right?
Okay, not ready to do that yet? Fine, fine. If you don't feel ready or there isn't a particular story you want to write, participate in a challenge or two. People will give a writer they haven't heard of a chance when they're interested in the challenge or pairing itself.
In the Stargate Atlantis fandom I recommend the![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
sga_flashfic: there's always a great challenge going on, and it's quite open-ended. In Stargate SG-1 there is a yearly Jack/Daniel fic-a-thon, watch the jackslashdaniel for that one. In the sprawling metropolis of the Harry Potter fandom there are so many challenges it's impossible to keep track, but watch daily_snitch for the most recent.
How long will it take?
How much time will it take, do you ask, to establish yourself?
My observation is takes a minimum of ten stories, with at least one longer piece. Individual stories might get attention right away but usually it takes a repetoire before the readers recognize "Oh hey, I've seen this Icarus cat write SG-1 before." Occasionally a writer likemctabby can make a dent with one story, but it has to be the calibre of Two Worlds And In Between for that to happen.
Don't worry though. Chances are, if someone is a good writer in Stargate SG-1, they're still a good writer when they write Oz.
femmequixotic.I've moved from Lord of the Rings to Harry Potter, and then after being deeply enmeshed in Harry Potter two to three years, I shifted from that to Stargate SG-1 and now am writing Stargate Atlantis. The move from HP to SG-1 was particularly uncomfortable, so I hope this will prove helpful.
How To Write In A New Fandom
Moving from one fandom to another can be challenging (Icarus says in a 'bad infomercial' voice) especially when you're deeply entrenched, have won nifty awards where you are, and a fairly dependable following of readers with whom you feel comfortable. Changing what works can feel like you're on a diving board about to leap off into an abyss.
But you have to write what's in you, and if a different fandom is pulling at you, new stories bubbling out, there's no point in forcing yourself to stick to the familiar. Yes, you can be Mick Jagger and keep doing the same successful formula, but it's probably better for you as a writer to be David Bowie, changing your style and growing.
Prepare yourself: you will have fewer reviews, especially at first. Also, there will be subtle differences. Fandoms have different cultures and it'll take time to adjust. If you're used to writing Meta you might not be the voice of authority in this new fandom, which can seem strange.
Some will feel (to use an SG-1 example) like Daniel Jackson preaching to an emptying room as you post stories in your new fandom and are met with a resounding silence from the old. It will take time before you gain confidence and momentum in the new fandom, and you may never have the same presence. But most multi-fandom writers never abandon their old obsessions. They just simply write them less often. I gamble the last Harry Potter book will have all the oldtimers picking up their pens to bring Snape back to life or rehabilitate Percy.
Step one: Steep in the new fandom canon.
This is so obvious it barely needs mention. If you're interested in a new fandom of course you're reading the source material or soaking up the shows.
Be careful about absorbing more fanfic than canon at this early stage, because your image of the characters will struggle to develop if you're taking in a hundred different fanfiction interpretations. Each writer has their own take on John and Rodney and you need to develop yours. If you've already delved into the fanfic, then before you start writing your first piece, step away and re-read the book or view an episode or two.
Step two: Take a tour of the fanfiction.
Most people will have already done this, but if you haven't, read the main fanfiction stories in your new fandom. These keeps you from falling into that fandom's biggest cliches. Read some bad!fic too, because there's nothing more motivating than seeing a great character done poorly.
Hang out quietly and get a feel for the flavor and style of the fandom. Lord of the Rings is a rather "tweedy" group. Stargate SG-1 is intense and very earnest. Harry Potter is like a big city with teeny neighborhoods of cliques that pass like ships in the night. Stargate Atlantis is like a drunken luau with grinning old timers hanging out in bad Hawaiian shirts. They all have their little cultural norms and group hang-ups: LotR has an anti-slash bias, SG-1 has a painful history from when Daniel was killed on the show, Harry Potter has ongoing legal issues and chan.
Step three: Start with a few short character vignettes.
This gets your feet wet in the new fandom and helps you learn your characters' voices. Tackle the character that's hardest for you.
Post your vignettes and drabbles only in your LJ and for a few friends, where the lack of feedback may not seem to be too much of a problem. You're going to be a little OOC for these, but that's okay. My original John in my very first piece was a little rough, a little too "Jack O'Neill." Your Rodney might sound a bit like a blunt version of Draco Malfoy.
This is normal. It happens to OCs, too. If you look at the characterisation of Rodney in SG-1's "48 Hours" and compare it to "Hide And Seek," there is a marked difference as the writers got a feel for him.
Step four: Write that story that's nagging you.
That's the whole point, right?
Okay, not ready to do that yet? Fine, fine. If you don't feel ready or there isn't a particular story you want to write, participate in a challenge or two. People will give a writer they haven't heard of a chance when they're interested in the challenge or pairing itself.
In the Stargate Atlantis fandom I recommend the
sga_flashfic: there's always a great challenge going on, and it's quite open-ended. In Stargate SG-1 there is a yearly Jack/Daniel fic-a-thon, watch the jackslashdaniel for that one. In the sprawling metropolis of the Harry Potter fandom there are so many challenges it's impossible to keep track, but watch daily_snitch for the most recent.How long will it take?
How much time will it take, do you ask, to establish yourself?
My observation is takes a minimum of ten stories, with at least one longer piece. Individual stories might get attention right away but usually it takes a repetoire before the readers recognize "Oh hey, I've seen this Icarus cat write SG-1 before." Occasionally a writer like
mctabby can make a dent with one story, but it has to be the calibre of Two Worlds And In Between for that to happen. Don't worry though. Chances are, if someone is a good writer in Stargate SG-1, they're still a good writer when they write Oz.
no subject
Date: 2006-04-22 11:01 am (UTC)I've had limited success just dabbling in Angel and Firefly. I was actually rather surprised by the number of comments I received on those pieces from people not on my flist. Of the 6 stories I wrote, I think 3 of them were recced at various places.
I still haven't quite made the jump to HP (mostly because SG-1 has been biting my ass again), but I have been following the steps, as it were. ;)
Oh, and your description of the fandoms?
Stargate SG-1 is intense and very earnest. Harry Potter is like a big city with teeny neighborhoods of cliques that pass like ships in the night. Stargate Atlantis is like a drunken luau with grinning old timers hanging out in bad Hawaiian shirts.
That couldn't be more accurate. I'm often shocked at how intense the SG-1 fandom is and then next door SGA is like a drunken orgy. You'd think the fans would be more similar, but they have such different reactions regarding the shows. People are majorily disgruntled about Season 6, or Season 9, or Sam/Jack, and they just can't get over that and enjoy the rest of it. But over at SGA it's like, "Here's a beer; sit a spell; want to hear some music?" I think it has to do with the age of the fandom. SGA just hasn't had time to get people disgruntled. In 5 years, I think it might look more like the SG-1 fandom...
no subject
Date: 2006-04-22 05:22 pm (UTC)There's an earnestness to Stargate SG-1, a high-flying nobility and attempt to "get it right" that brings out an earnestness in its fans. Precisely because the shows tries very hard to get the military gear right, (as one example), you get fans who follow the military gear and are intense about "getting it right." Because you have a very blunt Jack O'Neill character you have a fandom that speaks its mind.
X-Files was all about secret plots and paranoia, and sure enough, the fandom collected into little back-stabbing groups.
Harry Potter has a cast of... well, not thousands, but lots, and is divided into Houses. Is it any surprise that the fandom is divided by House as well, with this person trumpeting Harry/Draco, while another cheering for Harry/Hermione? HP is one big Quidditch game, where outside the match people barely know what's going on in
SlytherinSnape/Draco.Then there's the Lord of the Rings with it's deep underpinings about death and endings and good-and-evil. Of course the readers emulate Tolkien's stuffy tongue-in-cheek style and are a little full of themselves, though they are relatively polite and hobbit-like when they are offended. Naturally, unlike Harry Potter which allows that there are many sides to an issue, in the LotR fandom you are either in the "good" side or must be outcast.
And so one. Star Trek had BNFs with long novels and egos the size of the Hindenberg...
Then you have the SGA fandom. The show barely takes itself seriously (space vampires...?). You have John Sheppard who's just borderline competent. Oh sure, he's a good soldier, but as a leader? Not so much. Rodney's (Rodney?) out in the field. With a gun. Which is a scary thought. And you have a long litany of Atlantis screw-ups, with all of them sweeping their mistakes under the rug (oops) and hoping no one notices or they don't die as a result. Naturally, the fandom has an attack of the sillies.
Icarus