Random Stuff
Apr. 24th, 2003 12:39 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rusty_haloI leave for Cleveland Friday morning. I'm going to go pack as soon as I finish this journal entry. I already went to the store and bought a ton of snack food and "just add hot water" mixes, since it doesn't look like there will be much, if any, vegan food available. I also washed all my clothes, so I have a million things to choose from. I hardly ever get the opportunity to dress up anymore, and I have all these cute outfits just sitting in my closet, so I'm going to take this opportunity to go all-out. Should be fun. :)
I'm really excited and also very nervous, because I've never flown alone before, and between getting from my apartment in NYC to the hotel in Cleveland, there are about 5 million opportunities for something to go wrong. *crossing my fingers for good luck*
In other news...
I think my site needs a new subtitle. I've always been uncomfortable using the word "redemptionist," but lately it's been grating on me even more than usual.
I'm interested in Spike's ambiguities. I'm not interested in seeing him be entirely evil, but I'm not interested in seeing him be totally good either. Both extremes are terribly dull to me.
I want him to ultimately make the right choices, but what I'm really interested in is his struggle. When I first started the site, "redemptionist" seemed like the right word because Spike was still very much an ambiguous character (and many still considered him "evil"), and "redemptionist" implied that struggle toward bettering himself.
Now, though, he basically is redeemed. I mean, a few insane B/A shippers might argue differently, but the show is presenting him as a heroic character now. For the most part he meets the traditional "redemption" criteria: he consistently makes the "right" choices, he's suffered for his crimes, he's made a conscious choice to better himself, blah blah blah. He's a good guy now; he's Buffy's right-hand man.
Problem is, this redeemed Spike bores me. He's just another hero, of which television (and most popular mythology) is already overflowing. I don't like watching black and white heroes and villains, because the real world isn't like that. It's a simplification of the complexities of our world, and that irritates me. And did I mention that it's boring?
I greatly prefer the ambiguous characters; the ones who are interesting, who struggle, who aren't just "good" or "evil" but somewhere in the middle (which is where I believe all human beings are, too). This is why I watched "Highlander" for Methos, or "Angel" for Wesley, or "BtVS" for soulless Spike (or why I would watch "Smallville" for Lex if I could bring myself to endure the other characters and the inane plots).
Now, the word "redemptionist" doesn't seem to have the same connotations of struggle that it once had; instead, it seems to imply that I support the transformation of Spike into yet another boring hero. So I'd like to choose another subtitle, something to show that my site is really more focused on Spike's ambiguities, his struggle toward good, rather than just Spike as a good guy.
Um, problem is, I can't think of a catchy subtitle. "Fanfiction that explores Spike's ambiguities" is long and awkward. Anyone have any better ideas? (And does the name-change thing even make sense or am I just being ridiculous?)
And, unrelated,
Two tiny little things that are annoying me beyond proportion:
1. The words "cannon" and "canon" mean two very different things. If you want to talk about stuff that's actually been shown on BtVS, you're talking about BtVS canon. If you want to talk about a great big mounted gun, you want the word cannon. I keep reading about "BtVS cannon" and I get very weird images in my head.
2. The word "oh" overused in fanfiction, particularly "and oh" thrown right in the middle of a sentence (like "she put her hand on his face, and oh, he was so beautiful"). Using this one time in a fic is fine, it adds emphasis or whatever, but lately I keep seeing it over and over. One story had it three times in the same paragraph, and that's just too much; it makes the prose sound really purple. JMHO.
I'm really excited and also very nervous, because I've never flown alone before, and between getting from my apartment in NYC to the hotel in Cleveland, there are about 5 million opportunities for something to go wrong. *crossing my fingers for good luck*
In other news...
I think my site needs a new subtitle. I've always been uncomfortable using the word "redemptionist," but lately it's been grating on me even more than usual.
I'm interested in Spike's ambiguities. I'm not interested in seeing him be entirely evil, but I'm not interested in seeing him be totally good either. Both extremes are terribly dull to me.
I want him to ultimately make the right choices, but what I'm really interested in is his struggle. When I first started the site, "redemptionist" seemed like the right word because Spike was still very much an ambiguous character (and many still considered him "evil"), and "redemptionist" implied that struggle toward bettering himself.
Now, though, he basically is redeemed. I mean, a few insane B/A shippers might argue differently, but the show is presenting him as a heroic character now. For the most part he meets the traditional "redemption" criteria: he consistently makes the "right" choices, he's suffered for his crimes, he's made a conscious choice to better himself, blah blah blah. He's a good guy now; he's Buffy's right-hand man.
Problem is, this redeemed Spike bores me. He's just another hero, of which television (and most popular mythology) is already overflowing. I don't like watching black and white heroes and villains, because the real world isn't like that. It's a simplification of the complexities of our world, and that irritates me. And did I mention that it's boring?
I greatly prefer the ambiguous characters; the ones who are interesting, who struggle, who aren't just "good" or "evil" but somewhere in the middle (which is where I believe all human beings are, too). This is why I watched "Highlander" for Methos, or "Angel" for Wesley, or "BtVS" for soulless Spike (or why I would watch "Smallville" for Lex if I could bring myself to endure the other characters and the inane plots).
Now, the word "redemptionist" doesn't seem to have the same connotations of struggle that it once had; instead, it seems to imply that I support the transformation of Spike into yet another boring hero. So I'd like to choose another subtitle, something to show that my site is really more focused on Spike's ambiguities, his struggle toward good, rather than just Spike as a good guy.
Um, problem is, I can't think of a catchy subtitle. "Fanfiction that explores Spike's ambiguities" is long and awkward. Anyone have any better ideas? (And does the name-change thing even make sense or am I just being ridiculous?)
And, unrelated,
Two tiny little things that are annoying me beyond proportion:
1. The words "cannon" and "canon" mean two very different things. If you want to talk about stuff that's actually been shown on BtVS, you're talking about BtVS canon. If you want to talk about a great big mounted gun, you want the word cannon. I keep reading about "BtVS cannon" and I get very weird images in my head.
2. The word "oh" overused in fanfiction, particularly "and oh" thrown right in the middle of a sentence (like "she put her hand on his face, and oh, he was so beautiful"). Using this one time in a fic is fine, it adds emphasis or whatever, but lately I keep seeing it over and over. One story had it three times in the same paragraph, and that's just too much; it makes the prose sound really purple. JMHO.
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(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-23 10:10 pm (UTC)Soooo with you that the morally ambiguous characters are always waaay more interesting (and more fun) than the clear-cut heros/good guys. They're always my favorite characters too, the ones who bitch and moan when they do help out, and you know they've got their own agenda, but you can never be quite sure what it is, or whether they'll do the right thing in the end -- and if they do, they'll keep on rubbing it in your face.
I wouldn't say Spike bores me now, because I love him too much and he's got a lot of other quirks that make him my favorite character ever -- and he's been funny lately, but I miss the guy who wasn't sorry, and still got nostalgic about his killing days. Sigh. Stupid soul.
I think we need an icon with Spike, Wesley, Methos, maybe Autalicus from Hercules (I {heart} Bruce Cambell), Tyr & Harper from Andromeda, Snape, etc. that says "morally ambiguity is sexy" or something. Or: "Heros suck! Ambiguity is much more fun."
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-23 10:48 pm (UTC)Very cool icon ideas. I think that morally ambiguous characters are so much more interesting and thought-provoking ... and they're often much sexier too. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-23 10:28 pm (UTC)Now you've got me worried I did this in my recent fic Maybe I should edit before asking you if you're interested in archiving!!!! :)
re: Morally Ambiguous being more interesting -- agreed. I was talking with someone about Edward from the Anita Blake books today. Sure he's a sociopath, but he's much cooler than the other characters.
Change the subheading if you want, but I think the diversity of the fic you choose to archive speaks for itself. You pick varied and interesting pieces, all of which showcase "Spike and the Ambiguities" (which reminds me of
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-23 10:45 pm (UTC)I noticed the "and oh" and I thought it was fine; it's when the writer does it over and over, in the same story, that it starts to annoy me. (And that might just be me).
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 07:59 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 09:50 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 10:32 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 10:43 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-23 11:14 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-23 11:21 pm (UTC)Re:
Date: 2003-04-23 11:25 pm (UTC)I'll just have to make do with the one and live vicariously through you on the others. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 05:02 am (UTC)"Spike: Sexy, Snarky, Morally Ambiguous" ;)
2. The word "oh" overused in fanfiction, particularly "and oh" thrown right in the middle of a sentence (like "she put her hand on his face, and oh, he was so beautiful").
Oh, crap, you're not talking about me, are you? I have a tendency to write sentences like that. Eep.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 05:59 am (UTC)Hi. My name is Annie, and I am paranoid.
::puts on tinfoil hat::
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 06:31 am (UTC)::puts on tinfoil hat::
Hey, save some of that foil for me, girlfriend. I'm right there with you on paranoia island.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 10:02 am (UTC)"dammit! I need to stop doing that! I suck!"
Annie, you're such a good writer; I don't think you could suck if you tried.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 10:46 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-25 09:59 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 10:22 am (UTC)Yup, that sounds about right. :)
Oh, crap, you're not talking about me, are you? I have a tendency to write sentences like that. Eep.
I'm not talking about anyone specific, really. Plus I don't think I've ever even noticed you using that phrase. And I could be wrong; maybe it's not even a problem.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 06:31 am (UTC)I just checked and I did that three times in three pages in the fic I'm working on.
Sigh.
(no subject)
Date: 2003-04-24 10:47 am (UTC)Looking forward to it...