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More spinning
Dec. 4th, 2011 12:07 amA couple of days ago I rambled on about writing fanfic for Prey, and what it meant for me.
( Further rambling... )
( Further rambling... )
A long, long thread
Dec. 1st, 2011 10:33 pmA few nights ago I dreamed about Prey*, so I pulled out the show to watch again. Parts of it haven't aged well and the science is shaky, but the writing is good, the characterization and acting is terrific, and I am happy to enjoy Debra Messing's† (redheads!) and Adam Storke's beauty and the occasional shot of Vincent Ventresca in loud boxers and nothing else. :P
The series ends dangling at the end of a frayed rope, with two characters on the run, one drugged unconscious, and one captured and subjected to one of his worst fears.
And that's where I came in.
I wrote fanfiction, off and on, for quite some time when I was young, though I had no idea what it was. My first brush with the idea came when I began reading Star Trek novels, but those were all commercially published; the first time I ran into the not-for-profit fan stuff was when I got hooked on Blake's 7 and started poking tentatively around (this was before the Internet really took off, so it was all printed fanzines). Unfortunately my naive self came smack up against catalogs of Blake/Avon slash and ran squeaking, and that was that, until I started watching Space: Above and Beyond in Bath§ and found an early fan site.
The only S:AAB fic I ever completed was a novelization of the episode "Choice or Chance", but I had fun reading for a while, though there wasn't much available then. And then I watched Prey, and was left--like the other fans--with the terrible ending and a burning need to solve it. At this point I can't remember what motivated me to actually post instead of just writing to please myself--I hadn't posted "Choice or Chance" online yet--but I did, throwing up roughly 18,000 words☂ that solved the cliffhanger (and began my own particular pattern of people rescuing themselves) but didn't actually end, per se.
And I was absolutely stunned by the response.
The Prey fandom was never that large, but it was my first fandom community, as it were, and they loved my humble effort. I was floored. Oh, I thought I wrote tolerably well, but it was the first time I had validation from someone who wasn't a teacher, or family. It was a generous outpouring of praise for an unbeta'd first-timer...and I was hooked. *grin*
Over the next year and a half I squeezed out three more parts, each one almost as long, ending up with roughly 66,000 words of story. Compared to some of my later efforts this seems paltry, but to me at the time it was an epic. And I fixed it. I solved some of the riddles, I answered some of the questions, and I gave the characters a much better future than the show ever did--not a happily ever after, because that didn't fit, but a bright new day.
Now, after watching the series again, I'm rereading Skein. And, despite some rough patches and spots I’d love to tidy, I have to say it holds up pretty well.
I did good.
*The link goes to IMDb, despite the lack of detail, because the Wikipedia entry is inaccurate.
†This was before she got her nose altered. I think she's lovely as she was, though I can see why she did do it.
§I actually went home before the series finished its run there, and waited over a year before it started reruns in the United States. I was not happy.
☂Skein is not available on my site or FF.net; the original version is still floating around the Internet as the Webmistress never got around to taking it down. The revised and expanded version in hardcopy form is apparently still available from Blackfly Presses, but honestly, it's overpriced. I suppose by this time I could repost it, but I hesitate to do so while Blackfly is still selling it.
The series ends dangling at the end of a frayed rope, with two characters on the run, one drugged unconscious, and one captured and subjected to one of his worst fears.
And that's where I came in.
I wrote fanfiction, off and on, for quite some time when I was young, though I had no idea what it was. My first brush with the idea came when I began reading Star Trek novels, but those were all commercially published; the first time I ran into the not-for-profit fan stuff was when I got hooked on Blake's 7 and started poking tentatively around (this was before the Internet really took off, so it was all printed fanzines). Unfortunately my naive self came smack up against catalogs of Blake/Avon slash and ran squeaking, and that was that, until I started watching Space: Above and Beyond in Bath§ and found an early fan site.
The only S:AAB fic I ever completed was a novelization of the episode "Choice or Chance", but I had fun reading for a while, though there wasn't much available then. And then I watched Prey, and was left--like the other fans--with the terrible ending and a burning need to solve it. At this point I can't remember what motivated me to actually post instead of just writing to please myself--I hadn't posted "Choice or Chance" online yet--but I did, throwing up roughly 18,000 words☂ that solved the cliffhanger (and began my own particular pattern of people rescuing themselves) but didn't actually end, per se.
And I was absolutely stunned by the response.
The Prey fandom was never that large, but it was my first fandom community, as it were, and they loved my humble effort. I was floored. Oh, I thought I wrote tolerably well, but it was the first time I had validation from someone who wasn't a teacher, or family. It was a generous outpouring of praise for an unbeta'd first-timer...and I was hooked. *grin*
Over the next year and a half I squeezed out three more parts, each one almost as long, ending up with roughly 66,000 words of story. Compared to some of my later efforts this seems paltry, but to me at the time it was an epic. And I fixed it. I solved some of the riddles, I answered some of the questions, and I gave the characters a much better future than the show ever did--not a happily ever after, because that didn't fit, but a bright new day.
Now, after watching the series again, I'm rereading Skein. And, despite some rough patches and spots I’d love to tidy, I have to say it holds up pretty well.
I did good.
*The link goes to IMDb, despite the lack of detail, because the Wikipedia entry is inaccurate.
†This was before she got her nose altered. I think she's lovely as she was, though I can see why she did do it.
§I actually went home before the series finished its run there, and waited over a year before it started reruns in the United States. I was not happy.
☂Skein is not available on my site or FF.net; the original version is still floating around the Internet as the Webmistress never got around to taking it down. The revised and expanded version in hardcopy form is apparently still available from Blackfly Presses, but honestly, it's overpriced. I suppose by this time I could repost it, but I hesitate to do so while Blackfly is still selling it.
I've now watched eleven episodes of Criminal Minds' first season (as well as a few others here and there), and it has finally dawned on my why Hotch is pushing my buttons--besides his own undeniable charm, of course.
He reminds me strongly of Tom Daniels from Prey. Not so much physically, though they are both dark-haired, but in seriousness and intensity, and in having painful pasts. And in wearing really sharp suits. It makes the rare smiles all the more powerful.
It also amuses me no end to see Hotch deferring to Garcia, but that's entirely separate. *grin*
He reminds me strongly of Tom Daniels from Prey. Not so much physically, though they are both dark-haired, but in seriousness and intensity, and in having painful pasts. And in wearing really sharp suits. It makes the rare smiles all the more powerful.
It also amuses me no end to see Hotch deferring to Garcia, but that's entirely separate. *grin*
Cortex Scene Investigation
Nov. 13th, 2006 03:42 pmI already knew that several cast members from Firefly had turned up on CSI, but I finally figured out the actual total, and it makes me wonder if there isn't some subtle wrinkle in the space-time continuum. *snerk* To wit:
Gina Torres--Warden Hutton/Zoe
Alan Tudyk--Carl Fisher/Wash
Summer Glau--Mandy Cooper/River
Mark Sheppard--Rod Darling/Badger (who counts as a recurring character), and he also turned up on CSI:NY
Gregg Henry--Roger Culpepper/Sheriff Bourne, and he also guested on CSI:M
Melinda Clarke--Lady Heather/Nandi
That's six. And Adam Baldwin and Sean Maher had guest roles on CSI:M.
I'm glad to see that the CSI casters are recognizing talent, to be sure, but it's still funny.
...Now that I've looked it up, I'm even more amused to note that seven folks from Prey have appeared on one or another of the CSI shows. Pity Larry Drake hasn't shown up yet. Though of course he was on Firefly...
Gina Torres--Warden Hutton/Zoe
Alan Tudyk--Carl Fisher/Wash
Summer Glau--Mandy Cooper/River
Mark Sheppard--Rod Darling/Badger (who counts as a recurring character), and he also turned up on CSI:NY
Gregg Henry--Roger Culpepper/Sheriff Bourne, and he also guested on CSI:M
Melinda Clarke--Lady Heather/Nandi
That's six. And Adam Baldwin and Sean Maher had guest roles on CSI:M.
I'm glad to see that the CSI casters are recognizing talent, to be sure, but it's still funny.
...Now that I've looked it up, I'm even more amused to note that seven folks from Prey have appeared on one or another of the CSI shows. Pity Larry Drake hasn't shown up yet. Though of course he was on Firefly...
