Another Day In Suburban Paradise

Day 3

In your own space, post a rec for at least three fanworks that you did not create.

I'm going to try to go for smaller fandoms here (Hunger Games probably being the largest of the bunch). Otherwise, all my recs would be in SPN, Avengers, Sherlock, etc. and would probably have been recced in a bazillion other places already.

So, here we go...

Much Unseen

This Friday Night Lights story is heartwarming without being cloying. Tyra Colette embarks on an unofficial summer reading program, and it will take her places she never expected. I love reading stories about people falling in love with reading. Even if you're not that familiar with the show, you'll probably enjoy this story a lot.

Dweller on the Threshold

I just recced this for Yuletide, and I'm going to rec it again here. This is the Twin Peaks fic I have been wanting for years. It resolves (but not too neatly, and with plenty of Lynchian weirdness) the series-ending cliffhanger. It has a fantastic Albert voice, and Audrey is simply magnificent. Plus, Denise gets a meaty role and Harry is wonderfully tortured (mentally, that is).

Hope In the Darkness That I Will See the Light

Hunger Games AU, covering the events of Catching Fire and Mockingjay. In the Quarter Quell, Haymitch goes into the arena instead of Peeta. This story (along with its sequel) has amazing world building, going far beyond what we see from Katniss's point of view in the books.

Carpetbaggers

This beautifully written Chronicles of Narnia fic follows what happens to the Pevensies after they defeat the White Witch. As the author says, "after the coronation festivities, the real work begins." This work introduces a heavy dose of reality to the Chronicles, but without destroying the feel of the series or making things too dark.


(Also, I'm delaying challenge #4 until and if I find an appropriate opportunity)

Day One


In your own space, post a rec for at least three fanworks that you have created. It can be your favorite fanworks that you've created, or fanworks you feel no one ever saw, or fanworks you say would define you as a creator.

I thought I'd rec across a sampling of the various fandoms I've dabbled in across the years.


Apocrypha (SPN)
This is the longest complete work I've ever written, and it's also the fic I feel is the one that most represents me as a writer. In short, it's my baby. It's also probably the ultimate example of my love of telling stories out of exact order, with multiple timelines echoing each other as they pull towards the conclusion.

Home Front (X1999)
This story illustrates two of my proclivities - playing with history and tying canon to history (WWII in this case) and exploring the backstory and motivation of minor characters.

Child's Play (Bleach)
In this story, I indulge my love for a particular character archetype - the apparently easy-going, lackadaisical, irreverent type (frequently a functional alcoholic and/or lecher) who has hidden, and frequently very dark depths.

amy37 asked me "What is one thing you would love to learn to do?"

I have to think of just one thing? Eek.

Seriously, one thing I adore is learning, whether it's learning about something or learning how to do something. I'm an inveterate dabbler, and sometimes something that catches my fancy "sticks" and becomes a lifelong interest.

That said, one thing in particular that has been nagging at me for the past several weeks is the desire to learn calligraphy. I'm pretty sure that this came from starting to use dip pens with various nibs in some of my drawing (if all goes well, you'll see results in my spn_j2_xmas entry) and enjoying the way they feel and the quality of the line I get from them. My everyday handwriting kind of sucks, so there's an appeal to the idea of producing letters and having them come out pretty. I could also see it being a fairly meditative process, allowing me to concentrate on one. simple. action. at a time and having it all flow together (currently I get some of that from weightlifting, but calligraphy would be less sweaty).

I'm also seeing there as being a fair amount of application to my artwork, both in terms of lettering things (not-so-secret dream: create a webcomic) and in terms of getting better control of my linework for doing things that I don't want to look "sketchy."

Just for grins, here are the next four runners-up on "things I want to learn how to do."

1. Home brewing - not to actually do at home, but just to learn the process for grins. I may see if there's some sort of class at one of the local microbreweries.
2. Draftsmanship. Dear heavens, do I need this for some of the art projects I've got noodling around in my head
3. Coding - I'd kind of like to be able to build a web site to my specs without having to hire someone to do it
4. How to actually use some graphics software effectively. I doubt I'll ever shift my focus away from traditional art, but having a few more basic skillz would be good for when/if I start promoting my stuff.
5. How to grill meat and have it be something I would like to eat.