My Corner of Buffyverse Fandom and Welcome To It

[red_satin_doll]

Click on all images below to view full-size (They don't look at all right downsized. 'tis most distressing.) All artwork by me unless otherwise noted.






Gift from my amazing friend and a jewel of this fandom spikesredqueen for my birthday (Feb 2015, not snaggable)




       

"Winged Buffy" banner, a gift from the fantastically talented and generous comlodge, (June 2013, not snaggable)

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*My LJ is Hugs Central (mostly.)  Appropriate and consensual ones, of course. Safety and fun are at a premium here, so play nice with one another. Leave the weapons at the door, wipe your feet on the mat, and help yourself to some tea and homemade cookies.

...by any other name. (June 2014)

* Buffy is my Big Damn Hero and my #1 HBIC - because she's flawed and human and real. Because she loves deeply; she falls down but still fights, she grieves and endures, again and again. Because she breaks the rules and finds another way; because of her intelligence, intuition and wit. Because in watching her I identify with my own issues and strengths, and have a renewed appreciation for my mom as well.

* Because in talking about her with other fans, in telling my story through her, in voicing my truth, I discover that I'm not alone in my challenges, faults, and grief; that I don't have to be imprisoned by secrets and shame; and in sharing this, I can bring comfort to others. And because at the end of the day, Buffy gives me hope; and sometimes that's enough to make getting out of bed in the morning worthwhile. And because she is just so freakin' adorable, y'all.

 

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Keep Her Safe (alt 1) (March 2015)

* I love intelligent discussion of , and appreciation for , the ladies of the verse and their complex interrelationships  at the core of the 'verse: mothers, sisters, mentors, students, friends, lovers, enemies, allies. The Buffyverse without it's women would be a cold, barren place:  ("that bright optimism that becomes a great, raw wound-red in The Body" - the_royal_anna ). They bear witness to one another, the hurt one another when they don't mean to, they love even when it's difficult and painful to do so.

* And yes, this also includes Kennedy. No vitriol. No joke.  (Tara would not approve of the hate. A lot of the complaints I've seen about her are suspicously close to those lobbed at Buffy, btw.) Entitled? Yes. Arrogant? Uh-huh - and also loyal, courageous, stubborn and gentle. She's a "queer woman of color..that is allowed to be the hero."

* The Buffy & Tara friendship/connection is one of the most underappreciated aspects of the 'verse IMO. This WILL be rectified. I don't ship Buffy/Tara, but if that's what it takes to get fandom talking about them? A fangirl's gotta do what a fangirl's gotta do. (ETA 2014: I have seen the light of the true religion: Buffy/Tara shipping. I ship those girls so freakin' hard. Now say amen, somebody.)

My OTF/P (August 2014)

*In fact, let's just say "No bashing female characters, period." There's plenty of other places to do that, if that's your thing. The show's failures in terms of the depictions of women, of female sexuality, the lack of mature female characters, the massive fail in terms of race and class? Always up for intelligent, civil discussion and examination.

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* OTOH, I do reserve the right to bitch about call out their shit criticize objectively analyze and take issue with certain whiny, self-absorbed males on the series and their collective patronizing jackassery. Don't get me wrong, I can understand them, sympathize with them, and so forth. Xander trying to be a "better man" than his father? Even when he gets it wrong? I heartily approve. (I'll still call him out on his shit, though.) It's simple math: Grow up, get real or go home. Also I welcome any and every opportunity to make fun of Angel.  Particularly when penguins are involved.  As well they should be.

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I Walk Alone, another beautiful gift from comlodge based on her FFL picspam series for Round 18 of seasonal_spuffy.


 

* I 'ship Buffy&Spike S7 . Love in action is the hardest, most painful and most worthwhile work we can ever do - and IMO it trumps "true love" romantic fantasies every time. (That said, I fully support the right to ship Buffy with anyone you damn well please.) But he is not my central focus here. Nor are any of the men of the 'verse, except in terms of how they serve Buffy's story.  It turns out the protagonist of the "Buffyverse" is some gal named Buffy.  Weird, huh?

Comments

Re: from Ray (Kerkevik) in Scotland

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the update, Ray, I hope all is well with you too? Things are relatively stable for my sweetie and I right at the moment - in a new apartment (after the fire in August), my back/leg pain is quite a bit better last year's injury, and so forth. Rather quiet right now, which is fine.

I'm very glad to hear you are writing - you're a role model for "showing up at the page". I need to develop a similar ethic. And those cats - ah yes, they know perfectly well they own you, don't they?

Do take care and be blessed,

Janice

Re: from Ray (Kerkevik) in Scotland

[(Anonymous)]

I'm currently using this 'off' time to try and catalogue my fics into their various 'verses. I noticed that there are quite a few comments that lj has never notified me of, so I shall be replying to as many of those as I can in the near future.

Can't comment on my own lj right now; can't unscreen my own comments, but I wonder if you can send me a snail mail address. I plan on sending out as many solstice cards as I can on the 21st and 22nd.

Thought it was time I paid attention to that date.

Goddess watch over you both,
'tis ok to be Takei,
Ray.

Re: from Ray (Kerkevik) in Scotland

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

ETA: Ray, can you still PM me or can I send a PM to your DW account? I don't want to put up my email addy in public.
Thank you for thinking of my sweetie and I.


Catoguing your fics sounds like a tremendous task but I always appreciate it when folks group links to their tics/art/vids etc in one handy place. Are you putting up a post on your journal and/or do you have an account in something like AO3 or ff.net, etc. I like being able to find my favorite author's works quickly w/out having to sort through all their journal posts; and Ao3 lets authors group series together, which is very handy.

Re: from Ray (Kerkevik) in Scotland

[(Anonymous)]

Actually I was meaning as in snail mail. You have my address above. I don't have anybody's emails saved where I can access them. I'm going to write elisi a letter soon anyway, so doing that again might be good too. If things don't sort themselves out soon, I might just start afresh with a brand new lj. I can access my old one, which should have carried on side by side with the new one, but pooter idiot me screwed that up.

Things to look for, more Faith/Tara & Dawn/Lisa, and a special look at Satsu/Gazaleh for thee. Also I'm working on ideas for a Doctor Who 'verse where The Doctor becomes female. I have four actresses in my head to work with in my head. All are British, two are Afro-caribbean, one is Sri Lankan, and one is Welsh. I'll be trying to work in the lesbian couple that have appeared; all in stories I've not seen, but nevermind that.

I'm watching Gilmore girls right now. Not RIGHT now, but I now have all seven seasons, so the possibility of Gg fanfiction is high. Also DS9 stories where Jadzia & Lenara Kahn become a rebel Trill couple. I should also start writing gay male couples really.

Ray.

Re: from Ray (Kerkevik) in Scotland

[red-satin-doll.livejournal.com]

Oh! You meant for me to send you an actual card or letter, how delightlfully old-fashioned *I'm laughing at myself here right now, btw*

Also I'm working on ideas for a Doctor Who 'verse where The Doctor becomes female.

I haven't seen any of the "New Who" but I watched the old school version in college (up to #7, he and Ace were one of my favorite pairings) and I used to imagine the Doctor as a woman! I didn't write fanfiction back then because it never occured to me but I sketched out a costume for her and worked out adventures, and she had a particular dialect and manner of carrying herself.
So - yes, yes, the Doctor as a woman, I'm all for it!

I haven't seen GG or DS9 (or SPN, or TVD or so many other shows people here in LJ watch - Buffy is really my only fandom. Maybe I need to spread myself out a bit *lol*)

I should also start writing gay male couples really.

This is interesting to me because I said the same thing about my own writing. As a lesbian I've only written one "lesbian love scene" in Moulin Rouge fandom and it was snuggling, not sex and the characters weren't lesbians. Which is exactly the sort of thing I'll go on about in tv shows and movies - "I want to see genuinely lesbian characters!" (Part of the reason I will never ship Tara with a male character from any fandom and don't read those stories is exactly that reason - Tara is a lesbian, full-stop; and one of the very few in US tv or movies still.)

But I don't think that there really isn't any "should". We can't predict or control who we fall in love with (IRL or in fiction), who appeals or speaks to us the most; quite a lot of people who write about m/m or f/f pairings are straight, and vice-versa. If we write what we think we "should" then we'll be unhappy with it and not enjoy the process; and that shows up in the work. Anyway, there are plenty of other authors out there writing about gay male couples; and I'd say truly LESBIAN couples are underrepresented.

So continue to write who and what you love, always!