Fandom Snowflake Day 2

[martasfic]

Today's challenge: In your own space, promote three communities, challenges, blogs, pages, Twitters, Tumblrs or platforms and explain why you love them. Leave a comment in this post saying you did it. Include a link to your post if you feel comfortable doing so.

Which just... again, how do I choose? To make things easier, let me pick one group at random from the three corners of fandom I've gotten involved in.

1) First, Swordspoint. If you like comedies of manners where rapier wit doesn't necessarily just refer to the manners, this book is for you. And if you're lucky enough to get involved with other fans of this book, you know that Ellen Kushner is one of the most supportive authors a fandom could hope for. She is wonderfully accessible and kind and warm and welcoming, and makes time to talk to her readers - I hesitate to use the word "fan" because that's simply not the dynamic. She has an LJ and a FaceBook page which gives you a nice way to connect to her. She also talks about upcoming books and audiobooks and speaking events and the like.

On a related note: the _riverside community is your one-stop shop for all your Swordspoint fanfic needs. Such inventive people doing good work there.

2) Second, BBC Sherlock. If you follow this blog at all, you know that I am *cough* a little overenthused. Also that I like fanfic. There are many great Sherlock communities out there. Most of the ones I've found, I've found through the 221b_recs community. I'm yet to come across a recommendation that I read and didn't enjoy. Of course there are some characters and summaries and topics that don't inspire interest, and since it covers all variations of Sherlock Holmes, some fandoms I simply don't know enough about to be drawn to (apologies, Elementary!). However, the stories I start to read are always high-quality and have introduced me to many fun authors and artists as I've found my footing a bit in this overwhelming fandom. Plus the pace is just right for my reading habits.

On a related note (because we're apparently going for six rather than three): wellingtongoose has the best (and most consistently thought-provoking) Sherlock BBC meta I've come across. If you're interested in how the show's details fit in with RL situations common in the UK, particularly related to how health care works and how that matches up with John and Sally. Other things, too. Not to be missed, and she just had a birthday - I'm sure a comment would be a lovely gift.

3) Finally, Tolkien. All things Tolkien, and to a lesser degree all things Peter Jackson, have been my fannish bread and butter for over a decade now. There are so many great sites worth mentioning, but I think the one community that really stands out is b2mem, the Back to Middle-earth Month. I love them not only because they generate so much energy and fun and because they get some of my favorite Tolkien authors writing Tolkien fanfic even when they've moved on to other things, but also because they cross over so many of the lines we tend to draw for ourselves in fandom. You get people who are Gondor + Rohan fanciers, Hobbit lasses, Silmfic afficionados - all reading and writing and reviewing more or less together. March comes soon, so anyone interested in this yearly fest, do friend the community and look out for the announcements.

And because I'm apparently going three for three at keeping these limited to a single journal or comm, do check out Dawn Felagund's Heretic Loremaster (LJ /// blog). dawn_felagund is the master behind B2MEM --I should properly say the workhorse, since I know what goes into those kinds of events all too well-- but she's also an opinionated, educated, and very incisive commentator on all things fannish on her own. The Heretic Loremaster isn't updated all that often (and reasonably so, given what else Dawn has on her plate; she also helps run a major fandom archive), but I always love reading her thoughts and opinions on fannish news and issues. Check out her old posts, and subscribe so you won't miss out the next time she posts something there. It's always worth reading.

Comments

[aliana1.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the links, especially to the Sherlock rec community. I've yet to really dip into Sherlock fanfic; are there any off the top of your head that you would especially recommend?

And I'm glad that I'm not the only one getting psyched for B2MeM already (especially seeing as this is the first year I can do it without worrying about homework!)

Sherlock recs

[marta-bee.livejournal.com]

Hmm, custom-made recommendations are hard. Is there any specific thing you'd like to read? Do you have preferences for characters, whether you want it to be relationship-driven or more casefic or adventure or character study, etc.?

Alternately, I've begun using the bookmarks feature over at AO3 to store some of my favorite pieces, and given this is a fairly new thing for me, most of the bookmarks are Sherlockish.

http://archiveofourown.org/users/Marta/pseuds/Marta/bookmarks

[dawn_felagund]

I'm blushing for such kind recs for B2MeM and the HL! :) Thank you, Marta. I had no idea you thought so highly of the HL, and coming from a likewise opinionated, educated, and incisive commentator (as well as someone who has run major fandom projects!), that is high praise indeed! :D

I am always pledging to do better with posting to the HL. I have a folder full of partly finished entries, and Bobby and I have an idea for a collaborative project that will probably be housed there about Tolkien and mythology. I think it will probably get started back for reals (now I sound like my students ;) once I'm done with grad school. Even more than the fannish obligations, grad school and starting my teaching career has derailed everything fannish that I don't have to do, which is distressing at times. But there is a light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. :)

Thank you again! *hugs*