Writing is a process that often undergoes heavy edits… that includes responding to feedback. 

It’s the “anonymous reader who’s never commented before” part of this kind of thing (mine are never quite like this because that’s not what they object to, but hey) that bugs me. 

Like dude I don’t even know you from some rando off the street and I’m not getting paid for this thing I give out for free! What even! 

WEIRDLY my regulars who consistently sign their names never do this stuff, even if/when there is actually confusion, disagreement or disappointment with content. 

how you can tell I’ve been dealing with this shit too long: my response would be “Yes. It is too much to ask. Thanks for checking on that.”

kept getting requests for gryphons so heres a bunch of them At Once

GRYPHONS

A changeling is a creature found in folklore and folk religion. A changeling child was believed to be a fairy child that had been left in place of a human child stolen by the fairies. A silly little comic I wanted to do in my spare time about a changeling child dropped off but the fairies forgot to do the actual swapping part.  My Patreon

@the-foxgirl-ao3, here is the thing!

THIS IS THE BEST.

I get the impression that a lot of fanfic writers tend to get tangled up in the idea that a fanfic needs to have a single, unified narrative from beginning to end. Thing is, that’s not actually true - there are lots of literary forms that can be adapted to fanfic that have no plot to speak of.

Take the picaresque, for example: in its simplest form, it’s a frame story about a journey from point A to point B, in which each chapter forms a self-contained micro-story about a single encounter that happens along the way. Apart from the protagonist and perhaps one or two companions, each chapter features an entirely new setting and cast of characters, and while there may be a thematic arc to the work taken as a whole, there’s no narrative continuity between episodes, which can be read in essentially any order.

(Also, many works in the genre maintain a running gag whereby every single chapter ends with the protagonist fleeing for her life for some reason, thereby moving her on to the next episode, though that’s by no means required.)

I mean, that’s just one example, but the point is: if you want to write a massive 100 000 word fic, but maintaining continuity gives you hives, there are forms that don’t require continuity. Not everything needs to be an elaborately plotted continuing narrative - a long-form work can totally be just a bunch of stuff that happens. Many well-respected works of literature are exactly that.

a frame story about a journey from point A to point B, in which each chapter forms a self-contained micro-story about a single encounter that happens along the way

Isn’t this essentially what we do with Five Times (Plus One) fics? They’re not always about a journey, but they fit the same narrative structure: each segment is (or should be) self-contained, a story within the story, that is thematically connected to the other parts of the complete work.

And while Five Times fics are usually shorter in length (I’d guess that most fall within the 1k-5k wordcount range), I have definitely seen some that surpass 50k.

Mm - not so much.

It’s true that both are episodic after a fashion, but the distinguishing feature of the five-plus-one fic is that they often don’t stand alone; many consist of fragmentary vignettes that can only be fully understood with reference to the specific work on which the story is based.

The picaresque story, conversely, ls self-contained not only on the whole, but on the level of individual chapters. Each episode presents everything you need to know about the characters involved, at least as far as that particular episode is concerned, and any needed backstory is directly incorporated by reference, reminiscence or anecdote. (Or, in plain English, if you need to know it, somebody will mention it.) It’s an intensely economical form, narrative-wise.

By that definition no fanfic can be a picaresque, because all fanfics draw from the larger work that they are a fanfic of. If I write a story about Kirk and Spock exploring different alien planets, that’s still dependent on the audience’s knowledge of Kirk and Spock… and if I don’t draw on what the audience knows, I’m failing at the great strength of fanfic, the thing that is most valuable about the form, which is that it does draw on information the reader already knows, so you don’t need to actually write down everything that the fanfic reader needs to know to fully understand the work.

All prose fiction draws on information the reader already knows. In this respect, fanfiction isn’t exceptional; like all fiction aimed at a particular target audience, it simply makes certain assumptions about what the reader already knows. A Star Trek fanfic that’s written in such a way that it’s literally impossible to figure out how the plot hangs together if you’re not already versed in Star Trek lore is no different from - for example - a cyberpunk story whose plot only makes sense if you know how public key cryptography works; it’s merely the particular domain of knowledge you’re assuming on the part of your readers that differs.

I’m confused then: how can any fanfic meet the standards of your picaresque suggestion? in terms of drawing on assumptions of previous information? maybe can you restate how the picaresque would work in terms of fanfic?

Fanfic doesn’t actually need to be structured so that you need to be familiar with the source material in order to understand it. I’d argue that most well written fanfic isn’t set up that way at all; given a decent Star Trek fanfic, somebody who’d never heard of Star Trek before could probably figure out the premise and tenor of the show in fairly short order. Indeed, I’ve read plenty of ‘fics with no prior familiarity with the source material and gotten by just fine. Granted, it’s true that some ‘fic doesn’t work that way, but the notion that being incomprehensible to anyone who isn’t already immersed in the lore of the source material is a defining virtue of the medium is both extremely peculiar, and not an especially accurate assessment of most actual fanfic.

Basically, I think a lot of fanfic authors tend to hugely overestimate the importance of being familiar with the source material with respect to properly appreciating their work. In most cases, it just ain’t that critical.

Two Lessons

Grandma: Did you know I marched on Washington with Martin Luther King?

Granddaughter: Woah. I didn’t!

Grandma: I took the bus down from White Plains - your grandfather threw a kinipchin fit about that. 

Grandpa: About what?

Grandma: About how I took a bus ride to Washington by myself. In the dead of night.

Grandpa: What do I care if you took the bus? It’s a miracle you get on a bus.

Grandma: Well, I was traveling alone as a very attractive young girl.

Grandpa: This is true. I grant you that. [winks]

Grandma: And so I got there, and walked straight to the Washington Monument, and I marched. I marched arm-in-arm with perfect strangers. And I kept at it until I fainted.

Grandpa: You didn’t faint.

Grandma: I came very close. 

Grandpa: Bull!

Grandma: I kept at it through a pouring rainstorm.

Grandpa: A monsoon, I’m sure.

Grandma: It was a rainstorm and I can prove it.

[regards the ocean out the window]

I had a beautiful green alligator handbag - what I thought was an alligator handbag - and I was out on the United States Capitol steps and I looked down and all down the front of my dress was green ink. A green mess. Awful! Can you imagine?

Granddaughter: Well, no.

Grandma: There are two lessons here, Bessie.

Granddaughter: OK.

Grandma: No matter what happens, keep walking. My Zeder always said that if the earth is cracking behind you right up to your heels, you keep going. Nothing’s as important as moving forward.

Granddaughter: What’s the second lesson?

Grandma: Never. Buy. Fake. Anything.

[All three regard the ocean out the window]

Can we take a moment to appreciate the fact that this sweet old man played the part of one of (if not the) most ruthless characters in Star Wars?

Okay this is one of the best things ever. Carpet slippers!

Grand Moth Tarkin

Carpet slippers included

@etienne-returns-to-middle-earth, this is that interview I was talking about last night.

This is priceless.

2016 Holiday cookies :D. It shows how behind I am - I’m posting this in January ;D.

@the-foxgirl-ao3, LOOOOOOK!

Om nom nom nom

My Name Is Cow: Masterpost(?)

(The first few stanzas covered by i-ddpej here.)

my name is Cow, and wen its nite, or wen the moon is shiyning brite, and all the men haf gon to bed - i stay up late.

i lik the bred.

my name is Dog, and wen its tea, i hope they giv sum foode to me - i hope they shair befor its gon - they never do.

i dont get non.

my name is Cow, and this is tru - my caynine frend, its up to yu. so just be brayve and smart insted - and be like me.

i lik the bred.

(Bridge, dividing original content from fan content: First Of All How Dare You)

my name is Cat no cares have i be it sun or moone that lytes the sky by night i prowl by day i stretch i salute u, Cow

u bold old wretch

O clevr Cat Who roams the barn I promys you I men no harm As yor a friend With stelthy tred I invyte you

To lik sum bred.

I am the bred With yeast I ryse Mine amber crust Doth pleas thyn eys

The cow and cat Whos tongues delit Upon my crust Both noon and nite

Are easy stop’d By dor and slat Perhaps the baker Noes not that?

@the-foxgirl-ao3, look, a master post!