Fandoms Question Meme (1-4)

[thisbluespirit]

I picked this up somewhere and thought it might be fun to do an old-style meme (although I think this was probably designed as a tumblr ask thing, but hey: there are still no meme police!) and have a reason to talk about fannish things, which is, after all, why I'm here.


(I did the first four together, because they're quite similar and predictable answers are predictable.)

1. What was the first fandom you got involved in?

Doctor Who! I first watched it in 1988 (last ten minutes of The Happiness Patrol, my mind was both deepened and boggled and love for Seven was instantaneous), I bought Doctor Who Magazine from about 91 or 92, I thought up fanfic in my head, and then in 1995 I went to university and there they had the internet and newsnet and I discovered rec.arts.drwho, and, more importantly, alt.drwho.creative, and though I had a big internet/fandom gap again afterwards, that was it, really. I came back to finish a historical fic with Four, Sarah, and Harry I'd started in 1998 before the Internet famine, but having returned to post it in 2007, I discovered the Teaspoon and LJ, and I was in love, basically.


2. What is your latest fandom?

A difficult question. In the sense this meme probably means, as in a fandom where I'm really involved in lots of things, probably still Doctor Who, but I like writing for anything that takes my fancy. It usually is old TV things that I've been watching, but I can't seem to help that. (I think it takes the pressure off to write for things where you're not writing something ten other people have already done, which just seems pointless).

But it is lonely and I should probably try harder at modern fandoms; it just never seems to work out. I'm too far behind when I watch them, or I can't ship just one thing and everybody else is all lined up in shipping teams on tumblr, writing fluff.

The last new thing I wrote for is When the Boat Comes In, but I don't think I'd say I was in the fandom, even if there was one. I just wanted to write a thing, and so I did.


3. What is the best fandom you’ve ever been involved in?

Doctor Who, but I have also had a lot of fun in Blake's 7 and Sapphire and Steel. Most of my other fandoms are either too small or too big to work like that and so I'm not properly in them.

It also doesn't help that I can't really tumblr properly. I have a tumblr and I have fun there sometimes and have met a handful of very nice people, and it does some things very well, but I really preferred the varying levels of choice and filtering journalling and comms gave me, compared to newsgroups, forums, chatrooms, and now tumblr, which despite some filtering here and there are rather all-or-nothing in terms of public or private, which I've always found off-putting.


4. Do you regret getting involved in any fandoms?

Since, in my case, this mostly means "I wrote a thing for it one time", then, no, I don't. And of the fandoms I've properly been in, that's mainly the three above and I certainly couldn't regret being in them, not even the worst corners of DW fandom that I've spent 20 years hiding from. I've made friends, read and written fic, and learned new things from them all.


1. What was the first fandom you got involved in?
2. What is your latest fandom?
3. What is the best fandom you’ve ever been involved in?
4. Do you regret getting involved in any fandoms?
5. Which fandoms have your written fanfiction for?
6. List your OTP from each fandom you’ve been involved in.
7. List your NoTPs from each fandom you’ve been in.
8. How did you get involved in your latest fandom?
9. What are the best things about your current fandom?
10. Is there a fandom you read fic from but don’t write in?

Ship Questions for your Current Fandom
11. Who is your current OTP?
12. Who is your current OT3?
13. Any NoTPs?
14. Go on, who are your BroTPs?
15. Is there an obscure ship which you love?
16. Are there any popular ships in your fandom which you dislike?
17. Who was your first OTP and are they still your favourite?
18. What ship have you written the most about?
19. Is there a ship which you wished you could get behind, but you just don’t feel them?
20. Any ships which you surprised yourself by liking?

Author Questions
21. What was the first fanfic you ever wrote?
22. Is there anything you regret writing?
23. Name a fic you’ve written that you’re especially fond of & explain why you like it.
24. What fic do you desperately need to rewrite or edit?
25. What’s your most popular fanfic?
26. How do you come up with your fanfic titles?
27. What do you hate more: Coming up with titles or writing summaries?
28. If someone were to draw a piece of fanart for your story, which story would it be and what would the picture be of?
29. Do you have a beta reader? Why/Why not?
30. What inspires you to write?
31. What’s the nicest thing someone has ever said about your writing?
32. Do you listen to music when you write or does music inspire you? If so, which band or genre of music does it for you?
33. Do you write oneshots, multi-chapter fics or huuuuuge epics?
34. What’s the word count on your longest fic?
35. Do you write drabbles? If so, what do you normally write them about?
36. What’s your favorite genre to write?
37. First person or third person - what do you write in and why?
38. Do you use established canon characters or do you create OCs?
39. What is you greatest strength as a writer?
40. What do you struggle the most with in your writing?

Fanfiction Questions
41. List and link to 5 fanfics you are currently reading:
41. List and link to 5 fanfiction authors who are amazing:
42. Is there anyone in your fandom who really inspires you?
43. What ship do you feel needs more attention?
44. What is your all-time favorite fanfic?
45. If someone was to read one of your fanfics, which fic would you recommend to them and why?
46. Archive Of Our Own, Dreamwidth, LiveJournal, Fanfiction.net or Tumblr - where do you prefer to post and why?
47. Do you leave reviews when you read fanfiction? Why/Why not?
48. Do you care if people comment/reblog your writing? Why/why not?
49. How did you get into reading and/or writing fanfiction?
50. Rant or Gush about one thing you love or hate in the world of fanfiction! Go!

Comments

[liadt]

Blimey there's a few questions! And a few that will take some time for the multi-fannish.

I get a bit miffed with the idea to be fannish you have to be shipping the characters that tends to come over with these questions sometimes. It's nice to see a fanart mentioned. I tried to find a fan art/craft questions meme and all I could find was prompts to make works.

I dislike how public tumblr is which is another reason why I don't use my account.

[thisbluespirit]

There is more to fandom than shipping!! Srsly, people. I dunno.

Yes. I like the option of the different layers of how public you are on Dreamwidth/LJ. I mean, nothing's entirely safe on the internet, but I prefer some measure of control/choice. But the people voted with their feet: they like the all or nothing arguing and shipping way of doing it best. (Not that people didn't do that on LJ. It was just easier to avoid them if you wanted.)

[liadt]

DW: home of people who hide from the public and ships!

[ravenskyewalker]

Oh, hey, did you ever use #drwhochat? I rarely did. I recently stumbled across mention that George Solana (Drake), who created that channel, died last year. Sorry to hear that. Kind of a mournful thing when your fandom gets old enough that people you remember from 20 or more years ago start dying... (Been encountering mentions of old-time fanzine people who are dying off, too. *sigh*)

[thisbluespirit]

The only chatrooms I've really used have been more recently with the various wranglechat things, so no. That is sad, though.

[spikesgirl58]

OMG, I love these I am so using them! :D

[thisbluespirit]

Steal away!

[spikesgirl58]

Stolen! :D

[swordznsorcery]

Sees fandom meme, gets interested, reads list of questions... OTP, OTP, OTP... *falls asleep* :p

Your answers above are great though. I always like reading about people's memories of early days online. And your first Who was the one with Bertie Bassett, and it didn't put you off! Clearly a fandom that was meant to be. :D Although if it was just the last ten minutes you caught, it's possible that you missed Attack Of The Evil Liquorice All-Sort. I daresay it would be an interesting one for the uninitiated!

Might do the first ten questions sometime - if I can dig deep enough into my brain to remember!

[thisbluespirit]

Yeah, I stole it off someone who didn't do fic, so they'd crossed off all that bit. We shall see how I go with the shipping section, too. I may combine or bail, or just plough through unshippily (or shippily, it does happen). :-D

I love The Happiness Patrol! It was a long time before I saw the first 100 or so minutes, but, yes, the last ten do include the Kandyman getting his comeuppance. But it is the best, it is so great. I am on the loves it side of that Marmite story. ;-p

[swordznsorcery]

Well, we all ship sometimes, it's true. I often surprise myself with the enthusiasm of my Dayna/Tarrant! And Abbie/Crane blew up out of nowhere, and rather stuffed up the showmakers' plans for Katrina (that and her being rubbish). It just rankles how we're apparently supposed to be all shippy, all the time. But that's probably just me being a grump. :)

That icon is fab. I hope Twelve keeps those boots. Did you see the new logo, btw? http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05ytp4c I think it's pretty groovy.

[thisbluespirit]

There are always some people standing around Not Shipping! ;-)

And, yes, some ships are fun. We just can't agree on which ones they are...

It is a lovely icon - it was made by fueschgast from the new logo/promo stuff.

[executrix]

I never stop being bemused by people looking only at the ship, not whether the story is interesting or IC or at all plausible or any fun. Sure, there are ships that I like (although I do find some of them need a degree of suspension of disbelief, cough, Avon/Simon from Firefly) but I'd rather read a good story with a different ship than a rotten story just because it claims to be about characters I like.

[thisbluespirit]

I know, it's like when people used to doe fandom manifesto's and all they'd tell you was it has these two cute guys in and you can slash them!

And, I'd be like, yes, but what's it ABOUT? Are there any good female characters? Plot? Jokes? WHAT?

People are mysterious and strange. ;-p

[paranoidangel]

That is a lot of questions. And seems to be aimed at serial mono-fannish people who ship and really don't ship things.

everybody else is all lined up in shipping teams on tumblr

That sounds terrible. Why only ship one thing when you can ship all the things? Or none of the things and enjoy some gen?

[thisbluespirit]

Yes. I'll have to decide whether I do them all or not, but it's nice to talk fannish things sometimes.

Why only ship one thing when you can ship all the things? Or none of the things and enjoy some gen?

It's better in small fandoms - like, in B7, on tumblr, it's pretty open and fun, but it seems to be the main way that people break down the big fandoms and if you don't do it that way, you're not in it. I expect there are workarounds, but not that I know how to do.

[aralias]

i dont think i regret any of my fandoms either - i can definitely see why people might. like the canon really disappointed them, or people were mean, or something, but i've been in most of the same ones that you have, so it's been all good :)

doctor who is almost definitely the best fandom. it has it all. this is definitely true.

as for the other questions - this is the one that makes me laugh, because it is so true: What do you hate more: Coming up with titles or writing summaries?

[thisbluespirit]

doctor who is almost definitely the best fandom. it has it all. this is definitely true.

It has all of time and space and everything, which is just cheating as fandoms go. It is the best. *nods*

i dont think i regret any of my fandoms either - i can definitely see why people might. like the canon really disappointed them, or people were mean, or something, but i've been in most of the same ones that you have, so it's been all good

Yes. I mean, DW has its fair share of awful behaviour, but it's also always been easy to find pockets for - this Doctor's era, Big Finish, that spin-off, or whatever, in between the places that still get like rec.arts.drwho back in the day.

[unsentimentalf]

The author questions look potentially interesting (to a writer) and seem to come with less assumptions than the others!

[thisbluespirit]

Yes, I like them too! I think I may either skip the shipping section or just do it one post. But it's nice to have a light fun meme on the go sometimes. :-)

[dbskyler]

Pretty sure Doctor Who is a modern fandom, so there's one at least!

Glad I'm not the only one eye-rolling at all the shipping questions. We non-shipping people get to be in the fandom, too!

[thisbluespirit]

There are a lot of shipping questions! I actually find it strange that people ship and don't ship, because relationships (of some kind or another) are part of everything and either getting hung up on only one or standing around declaring there should be none, ever, seems to have nothing to do with whether or not something's an interesting story I want to read.

Pr0n of course is another matter. Because that can be very off-putting if you're not into it!

[dbskyler]

When I say I don't ship, I don't mean that I don't believe in romantic relationships! I mean that my reason for being in the fandom has nothing to do with the romantic relationships. They are there, but for me, they're not the most interesting thing about the fandom. They're not what I usually want to read about, and almost never what I want to write about.

So when someone says "what's your OTP for [insert fandom here], I'm like "oh, I didn't realize I was supposed to have an OTP." While shippers can name off all their OTPs, nOTPs, etc. right away.

[thisbluespirit]

*nods*

Yes, I didn't mean you so much, but I do know some people who do start to sound as if even platonic relationships are some sort of alien thing... and then I wonder what on earth they do read and watch, or want out of fanfic. But probably they've just been annoyed by shippers once too often. Probably. (The world is full of all sorts!)

So when someone says "what's your OTP for [insert fandom here], I'm like "oh, I didn't realize I was supposed to have an OTP." While shippers can name off all their OTPs, nOTPs, etc. right away.

Yes. I mean, about the only thing I really, really, honestly have an OT[whatever] for is Sapphire and Steel, where I can't see the show without shipping Sapphire/Silver/Steel to some degree in whatever weird inhuman way it works for them.

For the rest, it's a bit of conversation stopper, yes!

[scripsi]

I'm going to gakk this. I have done similar ones before, but I can't resist a fandom meme. :)