Meta Roundup

Misc. Fannish Meta

yayforjae: gender and fandom: "[T]he male vs female space and the gender of fandom are two really interesting topics ... I don't have any really coherent thoughts about gender in fandom at the moment, but I wanted to start writing about my experiences. So here's a bit about my first two fandoms ..."

elfwreck: Anti-Fanfic Bingo, Line three: "I look at this line on the card, and I just get hung up on one topic: Chelsea Quinn Yarbro. I want to weep."

And an entry that's from December, but I just it found today... gonewithoutjam: I'll Sail this Ship Alone: "So you're new to a fandom, or you're a lurker, and it seems everyone ships Y/Z. But hang on a minute. Are you sure about that?"

bethbethbeth wonders if there'd be interest in a Harry Potter Fic Fest that would let characters who are usually seen as too old or too ugly or in some other way undesirable get a little action for a change.

skuf: Bouncing off idea: fandom-related polls comm/archive

InsaneJournal / Siteschemes and Layouts

skuf: Poll: which IJ sitescheme are you using?

Also, the new sitescheme will soon be available as a template and go into beta-testing stage. There's a call for volunteers at ij_siteschemes (writing FAQs, Stylish, finding styles for different browsers).

sherlock suggested an S2 style contest in ideas. See also this post by pen.

Other

data_warrior has a detailed poll on icon creation, use and crediting.

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As usual, you can leave links to meta entries by commenting here or on the screened comments entry. General questions can be asked on the FAQ post. :)

rubyfruit_pixie: Retconning and Fanfiction: "Is there some rule governing fanfiction that says you can't retcon your fic?"

werewindle: PP rant: "You know one thing I really hate about fandom is people that feel the need to piss on someone else's fantasy. (...) Fiction is not the real world!"

Also, the lupin_snape meta month is drawing to a close. Some of the essays are closely tied to fics or the pairing (e.g. character studies), others are about general fannish things (e.g. the beta-reading process). The link goes to the asylum tag for November 2007 Meta Month.

As usual, you can leave links to meta entries by commenting here or on the screened comments entry. General questions can be asked on the FAQ post. :)

amalthia: Very Puzzled about something in SPN fandom: "Is this finally the non-con that is acceptable to fandom? Do they like the idea that the good guys in the show would have sex with not only a demon but a woman who can't consent to sex because she's not in control over her body? What would they say to her afterwards if they ever got her un-possessed, well assuming she survives that is?" (Spoilers for mainly S3, esp. in the comments)

rebeccama: Women in stories: "I do not identify or have an interest in a character simply because they are female. Give me Justin Taylor over a female character whose sole purpose in life is to "find a man". It is rare for me to find a female character in film or television with whom I connect at all."

tigresslilly: Meh: " The bf and I were watching Batman Forever when I blurted out "I think it would be healthier for a girl to have Cat Woman as a role model instead of Wonder woman". He turned to me with the usual "I'm waiting" look and I realized I should probably explain that a little."

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madam_minnie: [NaBloPoMo] Fanfic and Fandom: "It is a world where we can live out fantasies, explore new ideas and expand our vocabulary and writing prowess. A world where friendships are forged and lifelong ties are made." (mostly focusing on Harry Potter, though)

morgandawn: Vid Shows: The *Real* Story: "Have you ever wondered what actually goes through the hive mind of an audience that is watching a vid show? It is something like this ..."

artisticentropy: On Artist participation in fandom and fests: "As a fanartist living with a pretty prevalent writer and who has been online for over a decade, I've had occasion to observe some stuff that I'd like to share and discuss, while hopefully pointing out some things you might not have thought about concerning fanartists and why there aren't a lot of us out there and participating."

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lore: BloMo5: Ship maintenance and Snupin in 10 years....: "I think the key to making a ship "live" and keeping it alive is sheer effort and interest. I think the Snupin ship grew to the size it is because there were several of us who saw the Snape/Lupin potential from canon, and who started lobbying for more Snupin in our own ways at the same time."

scratchingpost1: Pairings and character choices in fanfiction stories (has a list of 5 questions, depending on whether you prefer pairing or gen stories)

reijamira: Ramblings about the German SPN Dub (on Monday, Supernatural aired on German free-tv)

As usual, you can leave links to meta entries by commenting here or on the screened comments post. :)

General Fannish Meta

lenija: ExcorcismMetaPuzzle (1) - recipient positions: "There are at least two levels on which you can like or dislike a character. [...] I suspect that people who have one OTP and one favourite character in a fandom tend to read that fandom mainly on Level One, especially when they fight over who is to be seen as the "best character" and which ship is most "true"."

yourlibrarian: Ship stats reviewed: "I was curious about where the SPN fandom, which seems active and growing, stood in comparison. And it kicked up something interesting. In most of the Buffyverse pairings there was clearly a preferred order for the characters to be listed in. Yet for SPN, whose biggest pairing are its main characters, there is a virtually equal number of Sam/Dean (493) Dean/Sam (492) and Wincest (491) listings on LJ."

rebeccama: QAF: The more things change the more they stay the same: "I have changed my mind about a number of things both since I started watching QAF, since I joined the fandom, and since the show ended. [...] However some of my opinions, views, and interests have remained the same from either 101 or at least early in the show. [...] Does anyone else have a list of things that have stayed consistent?"

babydraco: untitled post: "As someone who writes erotica with older teens frequently, but has only ever once written a story that involved what I thought chan was- I don't like people just lumping all of that together. It makes you as bad as the anti Potter porn people, because you're taking away the "Sorry, but I don't write chan" defense - don't call it chan when it isn't."

Other

elfwreck: Strikethrough links: it's not about law: "Links to prove that LJ's new interpretations of their polices aren't based on avoiding liability; they're based on management's content preferences."

Perhaps relevant to fandom: The Karen Fletcher Case. Miss Fletcher published original fiction online which was pretty graphic and dealt with the sexual abuse of minors, torture, and murder. She is believed to be "the first person in Western Pennsylvania charged with exclusively text based obscenity" (emphasis mine).

yourlibrarian (in mind_over_meta): Identification and the elephant in the room: A Spike/Xander manifesto: "I was having a discussion with someone about why some ships were heavily written and read and others such as Sparmony were practically non-existent which begged an exploration about why Spander became the fourth most popular ship in the Buffyverse."

Also by yourlibrarian: The Weight of the World in WIaWSNB: "What Is and What Should Never Be is likely to be one of the most meta'ed episodes in Supernatural if for no other reason than it'll likely be one of the few where we're so in a character's head. [...] In his commentary to the episode Kripke says that it is SPN's version of Normal Again. Yet in rewatching the Buffy S5 episode, Weight of the World, it strikes me that this is a much closer parallel. I hadn't yet heard someone mention an entirely different motivation for Dean's little head trip – guilt."

telesilla: Some "Adrift" meta: Who Makes the Call and What's In a Name?: "For me--and I suspect for a lot of you out there--the squee is about possibilities rather than proof. Rodney calling John by his first name isn't an invitation issued by TPTB, it's an excuse we can use to gate crash. And I don't know about anyone else, but I've been gate crashing for over 12 years now and I still love these parties."

babydraco: untiltled post: "The only way that fans can successfully form groups powerful enough to take on corporations like Livejournal and Fanlib is to quit trying to please everyone and giving everyone a say." (Note: I can only guess this is about the OTW and comment threads like this one.)

morgandawn is testing Stage6, another vid streaming site.

viridescence: More news about LJ suspending and restoring my account: "I have talked more with LJ Account Payments regarding them suspending my account. This information is relevant to anyone else who disputed their permanent account charge through their bank/credit card."

As usual, you can leave links to meta entries by commenting here or on the screened comments post. :)

skuf has a follow-up poll on the Canon / Fandom question.

greenwitch: Thoughts regarding Holiday Wishes project...: "I'm contemplating the ways running holiday_wishes on IJ might be different from LJ. [...] Basically, I'm wondering if the two communities should have the same structure, or a different structure. IE, should one be for fannish items, and the other be for any items?"

xanister (in qaf_cofeeclub): Define "crack!fic" without a drug reference...: "On my own IJ I was pondering what defines "crack!fic" since it's a term that I'm relatively unfamiliar with. I know that horribly outlandish fics are crack!fics but aside from that I'm kinda lost."

fickle: Convo snippet with Savior.: "The weird thing is, I think that I really like that dynamic. [...] it's not the sort of thing I'd RP, because it's a going-nowhere-downwards-spiral-locked-together relationship that's far from cheerful, but I love reading about it. It's not even about the sex, in those relationships, and maybe that's why it works for me as an asexual. It's about the emotion, and the confusion of it."

luzzu: Because I'm not run off my feet...: "I was browsing through fandom secrets over on LJ on one of my rare meanderings over there. [...] So this is my not really secret version of fandom/not fandom secrets, minus the pictures."

ldybastet: Discussion post 1- unresolved issues in HP: "After all, that is why we have theorised, discussed and ranted, and written fic and meta for so long, no? [...] Is there anything from the previous books that you feel was left unresolved, or cleared up in an unsatisfactory manner?"
(For the discussion rules, please read this post.)

LiveJournal-specific

skuf: LJ news - apparently now with screening/deletion of dissentient comments. Several links, also mentions the new Customize Journal area (which apparently does not support overrides) and the DVD/movie advertising in the news community.

Other

gueneiriol is looking for fan-friendly, affordable web hosts.

Also, IJlogin has now been incorporated into LJlogin, so you can use the same program for both journaling types. The bug that made IJ logged you out when you opened a new window has been fixed.