#also it's grad school so C's are effectively F's which is fun

[amarrymeinbostonwriter]

I have no idea what I'm going to do for NaNoWriMo this year. I feel very uninspired lately.

I just want to do well in my class and my energy has been low lately (season change on my new medicine, I'm guessing???). I need some energy because it's Shakespeare and I need to keep my grades up to stay in the honors society (no pressure lol).

Much More in the tags as per usual... :P

#also it's grad school so C's are effectively F's which is fun #I got into the honor's society this term but wow I don't know how I managed that (truly) #I switched medications half way through grad school so I feel like a different person wrote that Anne Bronte paper even though it was me!!! #sorry but Shakespeare is not my favorite but he's better than other stuff I've read lately #I'm more of a Romantics/Victorian reader but I like the history aspect of the middle ages and renaissance so I can probs get INTO it #I read A Little Life right before class started and yikes yikes yikes- it's the worst thing I've read in a while :( #I try to read some popular literature as well as the classics #I try to understand why certain books are popular but sometimes it misses me entirely #maybe my taste is really bad but that book could have been better if Jude's suffering wasn't so drawn out (800+ pages...) #it became too much for me tbh #the best book (play) I've read in a while is Richard III #again probably my bad taste but so far Richard III is the top Shakespeare play #I am reading 8 of his plays for my class so we'll see how they all compare- if anyone is interested in that? #King Lear was not as good imo and I have to rewatch/reread Henry V before I can offically give my opinion of that one #my paper is going to be on Richard and Henry so you will probably get shit posts about them and their plays #you're welcome I guess? #maybe I'll post some pictures of the new (used) books I bought off my beloved thriftbooks? It's been a while since I've done that #I feel like I haven't posted any updates in a while so here they are #hope everyone is doing at least okay if not great- it's a weird season #irl updates #grad school #mychatter

[foxsoulcourt]

Hello! I wanted to know what is your process to write your famous comments, do you use a word processor or one of the built-in tools in AO3? I really like to find them when reading a fic and they are so comprehensive that I got curious about the process. Thanks!

Dear Nonny, Goodness what a lovely compliment wrapped up in your question! You made me blush w/that ‘famous comments’ phrase. There’s a short-enough answer to your inquiry about the technical piece and --SURPRISE!-- a longer one about my philosophy + process of crafting comments under Keep reading.

M a n y (!!!) comments have been created on my phone, but it’s hard + easy to lose or get them scrambled up, so I prefer to use a keyboard. (Ummm, please tell me about those tools built into AO3 because I don’t know about them!) I often comment as I go, cutting/pasting bits while I’m reading either because I like the word-craft, imagery or plot point, and then I slap them into the comments section to organise + respond to when I’ve finished the chapter. If it’s a long or complicated chapter/work I open the work up in two side by side tabs + then scroll down while reading in one + type comments in the other.

This isn’t technical, but/and it’s important enough to keep ‘above the fold’: my guiding principle for comments is the same as how I seek to show up in fandom: always encourage others. 

Ready for the philosophy + process part?  Grab a cuppa tea, cuz --boy howdy!-- once I started thinking about this, I had a lot to say.

STRATEGY The aspects I keep my eye on when reading are: power dynamics between characters, signposts of emotional growth, the many types of intimacy (beyond  sexual), beautiful metaphors or phrasing + things which make me laugh out loud. When reading sexy times I look for what we learn about each character in those moments. What makes them blush? Revs them up? Frightens or concerns them? Surprises and/or delights them? 

Overall I enjoy the experience of being surprised or learning something new about characters; I love it when authors highlight an idea, trait, motivation or choice I hadn’t previously thought of understood. All of the above are usually what I highlight back to the author. 

Hmmmm, why did I blush over the phrase “your famous comments”?

CONFESSION Until I got to know @fuzzballsheltiepants through Back to the Start, I was really embarrassed about them. Why did they have to be so long?!! Why did I feel the need to quote long passages back to the authors? They already knew their work, why repeat it to them?! Why couldn’t I write concise, sassy comments like so many others?! And what about the times I didn’t feel like writing long comments? Was I disappointing the author (or maybe they were relieved)? Honestly, I was afraid people might be laughing behind my back. O O F. The stories we tell our sweet selves until we decide to be who we are, not who we think others want to be. 

BACKSTORY When I got quiet to figure out why DO I write such long comments, it came down to what was going on in my life when I got into fandom. Our daughters had both just left for college in two different states + I went back to FT work at a job I thought would be a decent enough match. It was + wasn’t. I learned a ton, but/and my work partner + boss were incredibly challenging. I help people + orgs navigate change. They told me they hired me to help them do such a thing, but it turns out they wanted me to write great emails + make effective slide decks. HO HUM. I haven’t had many jobs I didn’t enjoy; this was one.

It was a disorienting time and I was utterly disoriented.

When our kids were growing up I was a youth minister in my home faith community. (Uh, and yes, ofc it’s a community which supports LGBTQIAP+ justice, among many other justice issues) C+H grew up in a multi-generational village + around a lot of teens. They saw their Mama doing what she loved + was very good at. The girls just finished 6th grade (11 y.o.) when I left ministry. Even though sometimes it was REaL L y challenging (puleez, guiding + mentoring two very different humans who were both the same age?!!! During adolescence?!!!), I enjoyed being P R E S E N T for our daughters in ways I did not experience growing up + I know not many teens get to experience. It was a gift + also a responsibility which I took to heart. 

After catching on sleep for almost a year (I’m NOT joking), I went to grad school and learned the formal theories + practices about what I have been doing since I was a teenager: helping people + groups navigate change. Grad school was A KICK!  By the time the girls went off to college I had a consulting business. When Mr FSC + I came back to the emptier home, my identity shifted from Mama/Youth Mentor/Household CEO (all jobs I loved + am very good at) to whatever the next chapter was going to be. I decided getting a FT job working for someone else would help pay those tuition bills. I remember feeling so.under.appreciated at work. UGH. It took about 18 mos there before That Whole Experience began to negatively impact my health + I ended up going on medical leave and then quitting. It didn’t help that even during the interview process I KNEW there were a lot of red flags. I own it: I chose to overlook them because HELLO?!!! 2 kids in college! I decided to take the money + deal w/the other stuff as it came up.

THE GIFT OF FANDOM However --thank goodness-- about six months into that job I joined the Tumblr village, the AFTG fandom + dove into AO3 under ZinniaGirl and ZinniaGirl2Woman or something like that. Nearly every day when I went into the office every formatting + word choice was consistently critiqued. I’m a decent writer + this totally threw me off my game. (understatement!)

Ahhhh, but writing for fandom?!! IT WAS + CONTINUES TO BE A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT + WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE!!! Here I could stretch my legs + enjoy writing WHENEVER + HOWEVER I wanted to. I decided to make up my own rules. Early on I knew I wasn’t going to be a prolific author, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t work on the craft of writing. Quickly comments + Tumblr posts became my contributions to the fandom. Enough people responded positively that I kept up with both. Over time I’ve gained acquaintances, some really close friends, all while continuing to learn more about the craft of writing from some of the best in our fandom who also happen to be top drawer human beings.

YA YA YA, SO HOW DO I COME UP WITH THOSE “famous” COMMENTS? (I’m still giggling over that word!)

When I start reading a fic, I sink into the author’s world

I start noticing whatever they notice about the charaters we love

Next comes the strategy (above)

Add in having fun 

Sprinkle in encouragement, esp for first time writers or writers having a hard time

Sometimes I’m writing a analytical literary essay, other times they’re love letters

Sometimes I’m so moved I can’t combine words into a sentence 

No matter the style, early on I decided to E N J O Y the experience of being part of this GLOBAL, NETWORKED, CREATIVE, COLLABORATIVE, SUPPORTIVE village. It has been one of the greatest gifts of my life in the past decade.

WHAT ABOUT YOU DEAR ONE?!!

What do you love about reading + commenting on fics? What thrills you about being part of the fandom? Grab your magic wand + tell me what you wish could change about it. Which guiding principle(s) are the guardrails of your participation?  

Thanks for asking such a great question + being patient while I dumped out all of this content, sorted through it + then decided what to share. 

Here’s to fandom friends, those we know + those we do not know...yet.

Love,

Cory / foxsoulcourt

#this got reallllllly long #i tried to put most under read more #but it put the whole thing there #whatevs #like agap always says #i have lovely anons #commenting on fics #fandom came into my life at just the right time #have loved meeting so many interesting people + learning so much + reading so much great fic #fandom as lifeline #fandom life #fandom friendships #ok i'm gonna put this in queue #even though i feel pretty vulnerable