Other Fests and Firewhiskey

[paulamcg]

I'm still here – updating my journal less often than a year ago, but still writing at least some words of fic daily, checking my DW reading list daily, and also reading a bit of fic and giving some feedback at least almost daily. I've got no quantitative goals, and without making any decisions, I've thought that this year I perhaps won't continue to take part in every HP fest I can somehow consider suitable for the kind of stories I want to tell.

Last year I had fun branching out a bit while participating in a variety of fests. It feels lovely to see the same fests at the same time as last year, and so far there are a few I have not resisted – even a couple of fests that are new to me.

I've submitted fic to RS Fireside Tales, which has started posting here on AO3, and to Salt and Pepper Fest at hp_goldenage. I've completed a story for Remus Lupin Fest, and I should now start working on one for hp_bunintheoven.

And firewhiskeyfic is irresistible, as this community has shown me that even I don't always need to take fic siriusly. Last Friday's Awkward First Date edition produced sixteen works with brilliant creative spelling and incoherent story lines. Feel free to come and vote for your favourites at the latest this Saturday – unless you've committed drunken fanwork yourself, in which case you must vote.

Comments

[bemused_writer]

Giving feedback nearly daily is quite the accomplishment! I'm slowly making my way through a few longer fanfics and I'm looking forward to reviewing when I'm done.

I haven't been doing any fests at the moment although I've gotten some updates on a few that are going and they sound like fun. (^^) I have been taking part in Fanlore's International Fanworks Day event, though.

[paulamcg]

Oh, reviewing long fanfics would – and in your case will – be a great accomplishment! I hardly ever read any chapter fics, but when I do finish a chapter, I comment on it. I'm a slow reader, and nowadays I prefer (also writing) rather concise stories. And whenever I like a fic enough to finish reading it, I find it more rewarding to also comment. Now that you praise me for what I claim to have done, I'm starting to doubt I've done it on most days. But perhaps now I can remember to do it.

I noticed Fanlore's event – including something about reccing lesser known fanworks? – but I still haven't thought of taking part in anything like that. Perhaps because it's clearer that I'm in my quiet corner of one (huge and old) fandom, and after all my attempts at interaction last year, I feel that I'd better focus on what I find most meaningful to write, and on investing in smaller works by others, without any expectations for making such writer friends who'd be interested in my work in turn.

Thank you so much for commenting! <3

[bemused_writer]

Honestly, I think leaving any comment means you're doing better than a lot of fic readers. (^^)" Reading long stories can be very hit-and-miss for me, by which I mean I will either obsessively read it and nothing else and then leave a review or I will read obsessively up to a point and then forget to actually finish reading the fic. 8D It's a strange thing.

Fanlore's been doing quite a bit of late it seems! I used to miss a lot of OTW's announcements until I started following them on Dreamwidth oddly. You'd think I would have noticed given how often I'm on AO3, but apparently not. XD I think focusing on the stories that have most meaning to you is an important thing to do. It's definitely fun to write things a little more oriented for reviews, but when a fic is important to you and fun to write, the reviews/reception almost doesn't matter. It's a very freeing thing. Still, I'm rooting for more people to read your stuff all the same!

[paulamcg]

Thank you for still replying!

up to a point and then forget to actually finish reading Last spring and summer I read long and frequent chapters of a WiP, commenting on each, and then I just gave up, because I felt that following that fic took too much of my time.

I've tried a bit to do better. Around last weekend I posted several comments a day – but most of them were on 200-word drabbles.

And now after I've claimed to focus on writing the most meaningful stories, I've just posted a random drunk fic, and I'm proud to have earned an award for incoherency at firewhiskeyfic! :) In any case I've had some fun interaction at that fest. And – once again committing some kind of angst fic instead of pure humour or smut – I've actually processed some issues of loneliness and getting old.

When – for once – my beta's not only pointed out a few errors, but also mentioned how a fic worked for her, I feel that it almost won't matter if it'll get readers at the fest where I've now submitted it. Thank you for all your kind words!

[bemused_writer]

Commenting on each chapter is just too difficult for me, particularly if I'm reading it all in one go, so I figure I'll just leave a comment at the end.

Short stories still need comments, so I'd say that's a good thing to do! I feel like both very short fics and long ones have a hard time getting comments sometimes. There's that middle ground people seem to really like. XD

It looks like a lot of people are enjoying firewhiskeyfic! It's good to see.

I completely get that. ^^ Having a good beta is awesome!

[paulamcg]

I remembered there was a further comment from you somewhere, and I'm glad I've now found it. I always want to reply when someone's commented on my entry, and here there's still something I can't resist adding to... Thank you!

I suppose we need to follow our different ways of commenting, those that suit us best. I'm a slow reader, and that's why commenting on each chapter or on short fics works for me.

Oh, I do write some (100-word) drabbles, too, but most of my fics these days (years) must be 2000 – 6000 words long, and according to you that length shouldn't make them the hardest to get comments on, right? :) Anyway, whatever the reasons for the unpopularity of my writing are, I feel that in the month that's now passed, I've got more reconciled with the fact. When choosing what kind of story to contribute to one of the fests that are posting at the moment, I was happy to know I couldn't possibly even hope for much interest in that type of fic among other participants and readers in that fest. That felt like a very freeing thing (as you worded it above).

I've got a wonderfully loyal beta, who reads carefully and points out the tiniest errors, but rarely mentions something she likes about the fic, and never suggests any bigger changes.

[bemused_writer]

You know, I don't think I've ever written a proper drabble. They really are quite challenging. :0 But 2-6k is definitely a good length for a story. There really is something kind of nice about writing something for yourself that won't get much attention. I think that as long as we enjoy reading it ourselves we've done things right. And that beta sounds pretty good! Getting the tiny errors sorted out is a big help and the kind of thing I obsess over with my own stories. XD

[paulamcg]

Thank you for still replying, and making me see more clearly the positive sides of these issues. <3

I used to think that limiting a tiny story to exactly 100 words was an artificial, inessential challenge, But I've noticed it helps me edit out unnecessary words, and that was the reason why I once decided to write a bit longer (2k, it turned out) fic as a series of 100-word scenes (whereas each of my other drabbles is meant to work separately).

Yes, assessing on my own if I've done things right is another nice challenge. Of course, we don't all enjoy the same things, and it's fascinating how now I can't possibly enjoy reading a text I wrote fifteen years ago – and how I can rewrite that story so as to enjoy it again.

When it's a fact that my fics won't get much attention, it's actually nice not to need to consider together with a beta whether some bigger changes would make them work better for other readers. And I am fortunate that liseuse has been willing to beta for me since late 2019.

[bemused_writer]

Ohh, a series of 100 word scenes to make up a larger story sounds like a great idea. I've tinkered with the idea of trying that out someday; sounds like it would be a good challenge!

[paulamcg]

Glad to see a further response here – and to hear that the idea of a fic that consists of 100-word scenes fascinates you. In case you're interested in taking a look at the fic I wrote like that, you can find it here on AO3.

[kelly_chambliss]

So glad you're still hanging in there with the HP fandom; I always enjoy your work.

I had to miss the recent Firewhisky Fic, but I'm looking forward to some reading tomorrow (I hope). And HP Goldenage! I always have such good intentions of writing for that fine fest, but it always slips away from me somehow. But at least I can read the results.

[paulamcg]

Thank you, Kelly! <3 Two years ago I was so happy to find the inspiration and the true internal motivation to continue my story in the HP world. Now after a full year of doing my best to find interaction on these new (to me) platforms by participating in all the somehow suitable fests I've come across, I can't help wondering how long I'll be hanging in there.

My posts on DW have got even more focused on my writing. Now I realise I should remember to make rec posts – and could now rec fics I've read at HP Sweethearts and snapecase. I failed to sign up for the former in time, then tried to claim the pinch hit, and was too late to find out that it would have been okay to write a treat without making a request. I find it hard to fill in the sign-up forms at exchanges, because I'm happy to receive almost anything and more limited in what I consider meaningful to write. And I've thought I couldn't possibly write for snapecase because I don't know the Snape corner of fandom well enough. My decision not to follow the canon of HBP and DH is perhaps a bigger problem. I didn't see all the works at snapecase when they were posted, because I sometimes forget to check my LJ. However, maybe I'll end up participating only in journal fests, and perhaps the ones I like best are on LJ.

It's wonderful if you can enjoy just reading the drunk fics. I remember someone commenting on my (group) rec last year that they couldn't read fiction with SPAG errors. But of course you can – particularly after taking part yourself, and knowing how much fun it is and how delightful the typos and incoherency can be.

As for Golden Age, the fest would get a wonderful contribution from someone like you – a master writer of stories about the older HP characters. It seems to me that most of the fics last year and of the prompts this year were about characters who are clearly younger than fifty in canon, therefore stories set far in the future.

[lee_bella]

I like the idea of RS Fireside Tales, though I didn't sign up for it. I'm having fun guessing which story is yours. (I think I know which one it is. The additional tags can sometimes give the writers away. And the rating. And the turn of phrase. And the author's note at the end.)

For exchanges, I think saying "I'll be happy to read anything" is a legitimate way of requesting. That's the request I got from my recipient for HP Sweethearts. My request was also too broad (I listed fluff, angst and dark romance as my likes in my request for some reason), so I included some prompt words in my request. It worked out well in the end.

[paulamcg]

Thank you so much for your comment – also for the advice concerning requests! Perhaps I could still learn to combine the passion for my ficverse, and being happy to read anything, with trying to write something that other people will like, as it's already worked at a rare-pair wishlist event and even at a rare-pair exchange (or at least the recipients have been kind).

I can imagine you could write beautiful stories that would fit the idea of Fireside Tales! <3

In early 2020, when I was eager to find new fests, which could offer more interaction than R/S Small Gifts, I was too late to sign up for Fireside Tales and decided not to miss it again. But when it was time to claim a prompt, I realised that there was only one part of my single version of Remus and Sirius's story that seemed fitting. Perhaps you don't know my Remus and Sirius well enough, but I think comparing the sets of tags and the end notes and even the initials of the betas can help you figure out what's mine. Instead, I doubt any participant knows me, whereas they must know each other from Tumblr and Discords.

I want to read more HP Sweethearts double drabbles this weekend. I guess I could have read them all when they were anonymous, as they weren't as many as the HP Halloween entries, were they?