I had a friend whose work I'd read and I'd ask every once in a while "How did this character get from point A to point B?"
Oh yes, I would do that too. Sometimes I would say "how is that character suddenly sitting down? Last time I pictured him he was standing on the other side of the room" LOL But truly, it was a gift to take part in her creative process. I've written a couple of things before and I was pleased with them, but she was the real deal.
So the thing about meta. Hmmmmm. I will try to explain my feeling about it. Please don't think it is about you at all. This is just something I feel in general and it comes from my experience on LJ over the years.
The simple answer is yes, I dislike all nonfiction writing about btvs. That's not completely true, of course. But when I hear the term meta, I envision someone who has an opinion about the motivation of a character or the meaning of an episode, and they write a post to explain their opinion and make their case. Then people on their flist join in the discussion. So what's so bad about that? Well, nothing really. And my hat is off to everyone who posts meta and participates, as long as it stays respectful, because that is a really important part of the fandom. But there are few reasons it’s not my cup of tea.
First of all, I do like to get into a discussion about the show and the characters on occasion. But when it gets too analytical, I don't want to experience btvs on that level. It's not an academic endeavor for me. It's an emotional, gut level experience. Maybe it's because I'm not really a writer, but I am more of a visual artist. Too much talkie no good. But that's just my thing, it's not a statement about the value of meta.
Also, I have seen some of these posts turn into serious unpleasantness. I've been on LJ in the Buffy fandom off and on for about 7 years, and I've seen some truly awful fandom free-for-all's that have started off with someone posting their big fucking opinion. It's pretty tame around here these days, but sometimes I click on a link from su_herald under the heading "fandom discussion", and I end up being sorry.
And as far as meta being beta’ed… it just seems like it should come directly from the writer without intervention. It should be, as you say, a stream of consciousness from the writer, not a collaborative creation. But again, this is just how I see things. The great thing about being involved in the fandom is appreciating the show with so many different people who are approaching it from different angles.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2013-08-02 04:24 am (UTC)Oh yes, I would do that too. Sometimes I would say "how is that character suddenly sitting down? Last time I pictured him he was standing on the other side of the room" LOL But truly, it was a gift to take part in her creative process. I've written a couple of things before and I was pleased with them, but she was the real deal.
So the thing about meta. Hmmmmm. I will try to explain my feeling about it. Please don't think it is about you at all. This is just something I feel in general and it comes from my experience on LJ over the years.
The simple answer is yes, I dislike all nonfiction writing about btvs. That's not completely true, of course. But when I hear the term meta, I envision someone who has an opinion about the motivation of a character or the meaning of an episode, and they write a post to explain their opinion and make their case. Then people on their flist join in the discussion. So what's so bad about that? Well, nothing really. And my hat is off to everyone who posts meta and participates, as long as it stays respectful, because that is a really important part of the fandom. But there are few reasons it’s not my cup of tea.
First of all, I do like to get into a discussion about the show and the characters on occasion. But when it gets too analytical, I don't want to experience btvs on that level. It's not an academic endeavor for me. It's an emotional, gut level experience. Maybe it's because I'm not really a writer, but I am more of a visual artist. Too much talkie no good. But that's just my thing, it's not a statement about the value of meta.
Also, I have seen some of these posts turn into serious unpleasantness. I've been on LJ in the Buffy fandom off and on for about 7 years, and I've seen some truly awful fandom free-for-all's that have started off with someone posting their big fucking opinion. It's pretty tame around here these days, but sometimes I click on a link from su_herald under the heading "fandom discussion", and I end up being sorry.
And as far as meta being beta’ed… it just seems like it should come directly from the writer without intervention. It should be, as you say, a stream of consciousness from the writer, not a collaborative creation. But again, this is just how I see things. The great thing about being involved in the fandom is appreciating the show with so many different people who are approaching it from different angles.