"Better Now" and "Every Fucking Morning"
Welcome to the actual fic discussion portion of this installment of the fanfic reading club!
I picked Better Now by LJ's suzvoy and Every Fucking Morning by ladybugkay because they are two of the best death!fics I've ever read. If you generally avoid death!fics, I implore you to give these two a chance. Neither will take you more than 10 minutes to read; Better Now is just over 1000 words and Every Fucking Morning is less than 700 words (but they're 700 of the most powerful, heart-breaking words you might ever read). So if you haven't read them yet, go for it right now.
When it comes to death!fics, I really don't like to be spoiled to who died (or is going to die) before I actually read the fic. I also don't like to be spoiled to the time period of fics (a good fic will make it clear on its own) so I'm not going to say more about what makes these two fics special and unique and awesome above the cut. Go read them!!! But if you want to know more about the fics before you jump in (or I guess if you want to understand the discussion/comments without subjecting yourself to the actual reading of a death!fic) then read on. You might even be convinced to give one or both of these fics a chance once you know a bit more about them.
So like I said, I picked these two fics because they are awesome, but I also picked them specifically because A) a different main character dies in each, and B) they are fantastic examples of two of the (many) distinct types of death!fics that I've come across.
* Better Now * - Timeline: post-122 (i.e. the prom) - Fic type: alternate ending/future fix-it make-it-worse fic - Who dies: Justin - What happens: We pick up the story after Justin is dead and buried… but not gone. He returns as a ghost and stays with Brian.
* Every Fucking Morning * - Timeline: far far FAR in the future (the boys had a long life together and, you know, death is just a fact of life… so go read the fic! Please? Pretty please?) - Fic type: the author describes it herself as a "first-person apostrophic fic"… which means that it is written as a direct address to an absent person (I had to look it up :P ) - Who dies: Brian - What happens: (put it together people) Brian dies and Justin addresses him directly. Justin is pissed that Brian went and died on him because every night he forgets that it happened and "every fucking morning" he wakes up and remembers again that Brian is gone *cries*
Again, feel free to answer any, all, some, or none of these questions… or to pose some of your own… or to just offer any other thoughts or comments! I let the authors know that I chose their fics for the fanfic reading club, so be sure to keep your comments respectful because they might be dropping in.
(Questions 1-4 all provided by tweedygal because I couldn't come up with anything at first! *smackles*)
1. Which fic do you prefer and why?
2. Do you think humor is helpful in a death!fic? (Better Now has a few lighter moments…)
3. What do you think about Justin as a ghost? What does this say about how Brian is dealing (or not dealing) with Justin's death?
4. Do you think that Justin is dealing with Brian's death in Every Fucking Morning any better than Brian did in Better Now?
5. Did either fic make you cry? Did one make you cry harder than the other?
6. Why are death fics nearly always about the person left behind rather than the person who is dying? [Question originally posed by secretsolitaire. It's a fantastic question, so I wanted to include it here, but make sure you go read her commentary and the many insightful responses that were already posted!]
7. Which images/thoughts/feelings in Every Fucking More are the most striking to you?
8. Which section of Better Now is the most moving for you?
9. If you didn't read the spoilers, how long did it take you to figure out what had happened in Better Now? Did you know whose POV we were reading from in Every Fucking Morning before you got to the line about the "fucked-up, bat-to-the-head brain"?
Again, so sorry for the delay in getting this discussion started. I can't wait to hear everyone's thoughts!