It's Thursday. It must be navel gazing day!

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There's been this mass proliferation of Generation Kill fic lately. But not just fic, really fucking good fic. I am particularly thinking of kaneko's After That, alethialia's Pleasure Over Propriety and romanticalgirl's Going Nowhere Slowly, all of which are tremendous and you should read them now. Go on. I'll wait.

Okay, now my initial thought about these stories was that they all take place in a post-series place and they all manage to take the series and expound on the events beautifully. And a part of me thinks, "Hey, why can't I do that too? Why the love of the AU? Other people are all over the source material. Shouldn't I just deal with what I'm given? Blah blah blah. Canon vs. crack, blah blah."

And then I get annoyed that a part of me has been warped into thinking my writing can be seen as "lesser" because I'm working outside of canon constraints.

The fact of the matter is that an Alternate Universe is just as valid as a canon.

The fact of the matter is that crack is just as valid as writing non-crack.

Anything that you put your heart and soul and time into is worthy and valid. Don't ever let anybody else convince you otherwise.

Everything we're writing is actually an alternate universe anyway, because unless you are writing for shows (and I know who you are), IT'S NOT HAPPENING. It is called fan 'fiction' for a reason.

You shouldn't automatically discount something just because it's not the norm or not quite what you're used to. And if AUs or crack aren't your thing, that's fine, but don't you dare fucking put someone else down just because they're not adhering to whatever the fuck you think they should. Who died and put you in charge of what's 'worthy'? If you don't like the story because you think it's faulty, that's fine. If the structure or characterization or the comma proliferation put you off, that's understandable. But slighting someone because you think your interpretation is greater and what they're doing is obviously lesser?

Fuck you very much. And shame on you.

The fact of the matter this: If you want something done, do it your damn self. So, if you don't like the way other people are doing it, stop bitching and write your own.

sparky77, I should've known that 'crack as a lesser art form' thing was going to come back eventually. Like acid-reflux.

And as for me and Generation Kill, the fact of the matter is that other writers write post-series beautifully, and I'm so glad that they do, because I can read their works... but that's just not what inspires me to write.



So it started like this:

svilleficrecs posted the below photo and asked: Who took the photo?






To which I wrote this:

//His lover. Who was obviously pretending to be fiddling with his/her camera at the time and mostly being ignored. You think they work as a team? I think they do. They tried not to, you know, bad form to spread your legs where you get your paycheck, but life is short and they see that more everyday and it just seemed so fucking stupid to deny something they clearly wanted so much. So, s/he's sitting on the bed, telling him to sit down, because he keeps pacing. It's wearing a groove in the floor, but he can't sit down. He wants to be out there, needs to be out there, telling this story, because this is a story of everything. It's fucking epic. Instead he's confined, they're confined, and his lover is exasperated and a little worried and a little horny, because that's kind of the norm when they're together and there's not a chance of imminent death, and s/he takes the photo, because it's more than just the time and the place, it's the idea and the history and where they are now//

And then when I said I actually had an idea of who they were. svilleficrecs naturally said who: I said:

When they first met Brad was the gristled veteran photographer and Nate was just this green thing, sent by the WSJ on the say so of Tom Ricks to Iraq, and Brad ended up looking out for him, b/c he couldn't really help himself, only it sort of evolved. Nothing happened in Iraq though. It didn't even when they got back stateside. Which to this
day, irritates the hell out of Brad. It actually happened in Pakistan, Nate almost got blown up in a roadside bomb, and Brad was in the car behind him. Actually, when he saw Iron Man (bootleg download, thanks satellites) he had a bad flashback to that day. Except Nate didn't end up with shrapnel in his chest, just a piece or two in his forearm, which is a whole other story. And that night, Brad tied Nate to the bed with three shirts and informed him that if he ever scared Brad like that again, Brad was going to send him the fuck home. Which Nate
reasonably pointed out that he wasn't six and couldn't be sent home. And Brad told him to stop being fucking reasonable, b/c it was irritating and then he kissed him and they've been together ever since.//

Which has since lead to this exchange with alethialia about Brad and scars and people and I think, when I can string a few more words together, I might send Brad back to Iraq.

Or maybe not.

Maybe I'll think this story is too hard. Too likely to upset me to no end with the politics. Or maybe I'll start thinking that AU's are a lesser art form instead and just 86 all of it. Or maybe I'll remember that every interpretation is as valid and valuable as the person who creates it, and anybody who says otherwise is just a moron.

Maybe I will write thief!Brad and detective!Nate.

I would do ninjas, but my local is opposed to me giving away trade secrets.

Comments

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Like everyone's saying above, I enjoy the AUs and crack (and your AUs and crack) because they're such a challenge to do well, but when they're pulled off, it's completely awesome. It takes skill and effort to take the Brads and Nates and Rays and Pokes we recognize and attribute certain characterization and behavior patterns towards, and to show the choices and events that make the new plot or situation possible, and how in turn the new plot or situation might change the characters or events, and so forth.

AUs and crack make you think, which I think is always kind of a mark of a good fandom, where you keep getting new bits and possibilities out of it.

Also, new opportunities for hot sex, but that goes without saying.

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

Well, if you'd watched Southland like I TOLD YOU TO, you could read the story I posted last week. Actually, you could read it anyway, apparently it works regardless.

[thorne-scratch.livejournal.com]

See, I want to read it after watching the whole thing. And since this weekend has no scheduled bridal showers, graduation parties, work conferences, sorry-you-lost-your-job drinking binges, congratulations-you-got-a-job drinking binges, bank robberies, deployments to Iraq, or anything, I have vowed to have caught up and commented by next week! So say we all.

PS, does war photographer Brad get to take pictures of Nate? In the name of preserving history? Naked history?

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

War photographer Brad actually ends up doing freelance work with WSJ correspondent Nate. Trufax. This is completely in addition to the whole war time in love, pretending otherwise, going stateside and acting the fool, going to Pakistan, nearly getting killed, and then Brad being like ENOUGH!