Something Told Me You Guys Liked The First Post I Did Of This Meme So I Thought I Might As Well Draw

It's Just Fan Fic...

I got an email from a reader earlier.  The sender was a lovely young woman who had just re-read my first published fic and wanted to tell me how much she enjoyed it—how it made her feel, how it made her smile, how it made her cry, how it made her excited to get home each night and curl up in bed with it, how it helped ease the pain of a difficult patch in her life, and how much she misses it now that it’s over.  It was a beautiful letter, and my reaction to it must have been visible enough to make my saner half take notice from across the room.  He shot me a questioning look, and I turned the laptop around and gestured to the screen.

I followed his eyes as they scanned each line, saw his lips tip up in a smile that grew broader as he read, then braced myself for the good natured snark I’ve come to expect when my little literary hobby comes up in conversation.

“Wow.” He said. “That was kind of amazing.  How does it feel to be someone’s favorite author?”

“Don’t be a dick,” I said, slapping him on the shoulder.

“I’m serious,” he replied, gesturing to the screen.  "That’s what she said—right there: You’re my favorite author.”

“I think she means favorite fic author.  Not real author.”

“Is there a difference?” He asked.

“Yes,” I said, rolling my eyes.  ”Of course there is.”

“Why?”

“Because, as someone in this room who isn’t ME is fond of pointing out, self published gay mystery romance novels aren’t exactly eligible for the pulitzer.” I said, turning the computer back around.

“So what?” he shrugged, “Something you wrote inspired a stranger to sit down write what it meant to them and send it to you.  A lot of total strangers, as a matter of fact.  You write, people read it and react.  That makes you an author.”

“Huh.” I said, very eloquently, then got up and went into the kitchen to start dinner.

Hours later, sitting down to reply to the letter in question I find myself writing this post instead.  Because here’s the thing: That wonderfully crazy man who lives in my house is right.  (But please don’t tell him I said that)

From the moment I realized that letters made up words and words made up sentences and sentences made up worlds that were mine to explore any time I wanted to I’ve been a reader.  I have fallen in love with perfect phrases and epic stories and countless characters pressed between the pages of the thousands of books I’ve read in my life so far—and sitting down to string together those same 26 letters into tens of thousands of words of stories I felt needed telling?  That makes me an author.

I have adored the work of countless authors in numerous genres, and the world of fan fic is no exception.  I have admired and cherished and savored the words of talented writers whose work is no less legitimate for the fact that their names include random keyboard characters and their words don’t live on bound paper on a shelf.  

It’s not JUST fan fic.  It’s literature.  It’s published.  It’s read.  It’s loved.

It matters.

Thanks to all of my favorite authors for every word on every page on every screen that I’ve ever loved. 

One thing I love about being a writer is being able to go back through a piece of text and remember everything associated with it. 

Here, the scene you wrote at 3am, barely holding your head up, but fingers frantic to slam words on the keyboard.

There, a cheesy paragraph inspired by your own feelings of joy and wonder at the world. Something so sweet that you had to wiggle in your seat at the very thought.

Over here, the bit you were working on forever, because you couldn’t get the words right. You wanted to escape, but still forged on through the mess until you reached the end.

A story might be a story in itself, but it also contains ghostly records of all the actions and emotions around it, things the reader will never see, but the writer will never forget.

Sometimes writing is running downhill, your fingers jerking behind you on the keyboard the way your legs do when they can’t quite keep up with gravity.

Fangirl, Rainbow Rowell

When both your shoulder Demon and Angel agree and support you …

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST/ USE MY WORK! ^^;;

The tropes are hungry II

Part I is here

Canon gets a Clue*

It’s all over. Your favorite anime, book, movie, manga, series, television show, or video game has ended. But canon is only the beginning … 

You go hunting for fanfiction seeking out all kinds of alternate endings, canon divergences, and even alternate universes.

You find several stories that you just love and it makes you smile to read them. Nevertheless, you are still looking for more …

You find it. The most wonderful fanfiction you have ever read. Even if canon didn’t turn out the way you wanted it to; it was worth it to get this story. This was written for you!

@ao3commentoftheday

@salt-of-the-ao3

I always thought these cards would be a fun way to organize rec lists.

*Images taken from Clue (1985). It’s such a fun movie and I love Tim Curry’s character and also Madeline Kahn’s. The third ending is my favorite.

#chris evans #in where he is actually steve rogers

Hannah Alexander  -  http://neverbirddesigns.tumblr.com  -  https://www.etsy.com/shop/neverbirddesigns  -  http://www.redbubble.com/people/neverbird  -  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChouZJ5VI49OnRAMlYKZCXA  -  https://instagram.com/hannah_alexander24

moodboard by @gender-snatched

Take a Chance

Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling

Chapters: 1/1

Word Count: 54,865

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter

Characters: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Narcissa Black Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Pansy Parkinson, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, The Weasleys

Additional Tags: Post-Hogwarts, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Romance, Friendship

Summary:

Draco has kept his head firmly down post-War. His mother can worry and his friends can complain all they want but he’s perfectly content with the way things are, thank you very much.

Enter Ginny Weasley and suddenly the comfortable monotony of his life is thrown into complete disarray. Accompanied by a terrifying ginger family and the Golden Boy himself, her unexpected friendship is truly a force to be reckoned with. But as Draco learns how to live again, he realises that sometimes chances are meant to be taken and being brave isn’t just a Gryffindor thing.

AO3

FFN