On writing…
I’ve been wanting to do more writing recently, more short stories and drabbles. It’s been so long since I took a pen to paper. When I was in Kenya, I was so determined to finish Like Never Before that I wrote for two afternoons, transferring crumpled paper of many edits to computer, writing two new scenes. It was great, I was on a roll, things were progressing, and I was going to come home and surprise everybody–not that I think anybody has missed my story, it would have mostly been for my satisfaction. I saved it on my memory stick and when I turned on my computer the next morning, somehow the stick had gotten corrupted and I lost everything. My sister has the same brand and it died two weeks later, so we think it’s some error with the stick itself, but I lost all motivation again. I hope it comes back.
I’ve missed the creative outlet that writing provides, the satisfaction that came from getting just the right word and turn of phrase. I keep thinking about trying to tackle some original short stories or essays (you may have noticed some of the attempts in my journal entries, to make them sound a little more like prose rather than ramblings. I have no idea how well I’m succeeding–this entry would not be an example, btw). Especially since I heard that Brooke was writing a children’s story, which knowing her will be completely wonderful and witty and alive, since that’s how she writes naturally, and Michelle’s been corresponding with a friend, a la “Sorcery and Cecelia”. But I don’t have the time or the ideas at this point. Okay, I shouldn’t use time as an excuse, since Atul Gawande wrote Complications as a surgery resident, snatching 15-30 minutes away from precious sleep, and I have a ton more free time than that right now. (BTW, that’s the best book on the practice and culture of medicine I’ve ever read. I highly recommend it, even to those who have no medical knowledge at all. It’s a fantastic, enthralling read).
No, for me, the real hiccup is the creative side. I can’t seem to come up with a single original idea. Every time I attempt to invent characters or plots, they feel like pale ripoffs of every single author I’ve ever read. That is the reason that I love fanfiction so much–the characters are there with preformed motives, personalities, behaviors, etc and the trick is to write your own story within those boundaries. It’s difficult, yes, to stay in character, but I like the challenge combined with the ease. However, I really love the opportunity presented with the minor characters–people that we might have names and looks for, but everything else is a blank slate. Why I can invent personalities and mannerisms in this case and can’t with OF is beyond me.
Anyway. As I said. I’ve been wanting to write. Gilmore Girls has passed beyond inspiration. Even with the lure of Jess coming back for one more eppy hasn’t been enough to light the fire (maybe that will change come April). And I’m really wanting to try something new.
So. The sum up is that I found a prompt community called 7spells for Harry Potter fiction. It’s only seven stories which is much more manageable than the fanfic100 communities and I like the prompts, and even more amazing, there was a character pairing not taken that I thought I could actually maybe write something about.
Behind the cut is my master list for writing Harry Potter/Luna Lovegood. I’m rather excited, actually. I had so hoped that Luna would become a bigger character after she proved herself in the 5th book and was disappointed in the sixth book. I loved her scenes, she was hilarious, but it was lacking in substance–she was just the humorous situation generator. Where was the whole “Hermione and Luna balance Harry” plotline? Or the mystical “life after death” connection.
Erm. I’ll stop now. I’ll be posting the stories to my journal, since communities have a tendency to disappear and I don’t want to lose anything, but you have no obligation to read anything. Promise. 🙂
![[info]](http://stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small} 7spells HP Fanfiction ChallengeAuthor: jcd1013 Character/Pairing: Harry Potter/Luna Lovegood |
| 1. five shades of white |
| 2. to the last syllable of recorded time |
| 3. a broken circle |
| 4. tomorrow is something we remember |
| 5. at the very ports they blow |
| 6. the chimera obscurant |
| 7. as near as snow |
Warning: file_get_contents(http://donnazita.livejournal.com/profile): failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 403 Forbidden in /home/lotrinkl/www/redheadsnippet/wp-content/plugins/also-lj-avatar/also-lj-avatar.php on line 118
I agree with what you’re saying about Luna’s literary development. I was entranced by her in book 5–(unlike Grawp)—she definitely served a great purpose for Harry, and she has her own depths and demons to deal with. I think JKR certainly could have developed her more fully in Book 6—IMO that would have been more worthy and logical than all the sentences about Ron/Lavender and then Harry/Ginny.
I hope Luna is more evident in the final book, but I have my doubts.
Yes! Exactly. There was a lot of potential there. JK kept hinting towards it in HBP, like when she made some austute observation about Ron, but by and by, nothing. She was dropped just as much as Ginny and Neville were in terms of development. Right now, there’s just no reason for her character to exist. None. And that’s sad
Warning: file_get_contents(http://donnazita.livejournal.com/profile): failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 403 Forbidden in /home/lotrinkl/www/redheadsnippet/wp-content/plugins/also-lj-avatar/also-lj-avatar.php on line 118
There is a chance JKR might bring Luna back in book 7—after all, she brought Lupin back after a time (btw, don’t get me started on his relationship with Tonks—we should have seen that coming!!), but you’re right—Luna’s big spotlight might have come and gone with HBP, just as Ginny’s came and went with COS. And despite the foreshadowings of a big Neville event in book 7, that doesn’t mean he’ll show himself to any degree whatsoever.
I just finished Eragon and the author thanked his dad for editing. Wow, great editing job. If only JKR had such an editor.
Sad to say, but after book 7 arrives and departs, we might see at least one person who goes thru and re-writes them on their own accord—better than JKR did herself–meaning that certain characters such as Ginny, Luna and Neville are fleshed out according to their true worth, and others—such as Grawp and the ghosts—are dropped completely.
It also would be great to see a television miniseries done, with particular alterations from the text.
Warning: file_get_contents(http://shirerain.livejournal.com/profile): failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 403 Forbidden in /home/lotrinkl/www/redheadsnippet/wp-content/plugins/also-lj-avatar/also-lj-avatar.php on line 118
I decided over the weekend that today would be the day that I start writing again. Again. Writing everyday, at least a thousand words, even if it is rubbish. That is the one good thing that ever comes out of my NaNo-attempts – I force myself to write every, single day. And I feel good about it, because I actually wrote something and didn’t just stare at the screen until I gave up. So, yes, that is my plan. I looked at those prompts and I like them, so I think I’m going to use them to write Charlie/Emma fics. Just to get me into the swing of things again. I also still need to finish that 50 sentences thing I told you about (and of course, the link to that was on my now dead laptop. *sigh* At least I still have the fifty word prompts, if I can’t find the community again). I’m always saying I need to write but somehow I never get around to it, and I really have to.
and Michelle’s been corresponding with a friend, a la “Sorcery and Cecelia”. But I don’t have the time or the ideas at this point. When you do have the time/ideas, I’ll be all for it! I loved that book so much and when I read how they did it, I was completely enthralled with the idea and I immediately thought of doing something like that with you.
*hugs* I miss our late-night fangirl conversations.
I couldn’t do a thousand words. I don’t write a thousand words in a week (journal entries excepted!), but I am trying to write something. I reread over HBP to get a sense of Luna today and I’ve come up with a few ideas that I hope to get out on paper. Soon.
We should totally do the correspondence thing! I think I’d have the time to do so now, if you wanted to. Would you have any ideas? I’d like to make it original, rather than fanfic, because I think that would be a better writing exercise for me. But I think together we could brainstorm of an idea. 🙂
Warning: file_get_contents(http://shirerain.livejournal.com/profile): failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 403 Forbidden in /home/lotrinkl/www/redheadsnippet/wp-content/plugins/also-lj-avatar/also-lj-avatar.php on line 118
The thousand-word-thing is just something to aim for – I got up to round about six hundred words yesterday (writing two
threedifferent fics at the same time, as usual) and that’s a whole lot better than nothing. While I’m at it, I should really work on that, as well – start and finish one piece of writing before going on to the next one.We should talk about it, then! I’ve also been thinking that it should be original – RP’ing and writing fanfic made me lazy and I should get back to writing original fiction. And we can take our time when we’ve started, so that it doesn’t start to feel like ‘work’ that you have to get out of the way. But we’ll talk and iron out all the details. *glee*
Warning: file_get_contents(http://popculturespong.livejournal.com/profile): failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 403 Forbidden in /home/lotrinkl/www/redheadsnippet/wp-content/plugins/also-lj-avatar/also-lj-avatar.php on line 118
🙁 I would’ve loved to see the end of LNB :((((
🙁 Me too. You still might. This, for example, encourages me and motivates me in dragging out my notebooks again. 🙂
Warning: file_get_contents(http://delusionalfancy.livejournal.com/profile): failed to open stream: HTTP request failed! HTTP/1.1 403 Forbidden in /home/lotrinkl/www/redheadsnippet/wp-content/plugins/also-lj-avatar/also-lj-avatar.php on line 118
I completely understand what you mean about writing OF. Especially since I’m in the middle of a fanfic right now, and the random drabbles I write every now and again, it’s really hard for me to concentrate on creating new characters because already established ones are right there. It’s frustrating as hell.
Could you explain the “Hermione and Luna balance Harry” thing? I don’t think I’ve ever heard that theory before, though I do agree with you on Luna’s underdevelopment. She was so dynamic in the 5th book and then it was just… nothing. It’s like there was a plan there that just fell through in favor of the disaster that was H/G and R/Hr. I would have preferred it if more time had been spent on Luna than either of those two pairings, no matter how much I love Harry and Hermione individually.