A bookish icon for a post on books and writing... and plot bunnies

[estepheia]

Squee! A parcel arrived today, with lots of English picture books for my kiddy English class! Thank you so much, mommanerd. I really appreciate your generosity. You're a peach!!!! *hug*

Tomorrow the Daniil Pashkoff Prize will be awarded in Braunschweig. Our chairperson is driving everybody nuts with last minute changes. I am to read two texts, which I haven't practiced yet. Oopsie. I have two award ceremony guests from out of town staying in our house for a couple of days, people I've never met before but who are friends of a friend. They are currently out, socialising, so not really a bother.

I'm thinking about re-animating calliopes_board - maybe I'll create a few smallish writing exercises. Or maybe I'll post a few interesting quotes from books I read. Or a critique of books on creative writing. No friendslocking this time. It's a shame, all the communities I know that were are supposed to help fanfic authors write original stories are dreadfully inactive. However, I did find a useful community for writers: little_details. Whenever I have questions that google can't help me with, I go there.

Hubby and I had a vague idea for a German screenplay. We'll toss it around a bit, see if anything sticks...

My current writing style is erratic to say the least. I've been tinkering with 4 different stories over the past two days, among them *gasp* a Giles/Xander story, of all things. Not sure if it will go into slash territorry or friendship territory. It's post-Chosen h/c... nothing fancy, something I started ages ago, abandoned, found again, and decided to poke with a stick. So it's not like I actually started a new one. Because right now I'm avoiding new stories like the plague. That's why I'm not signing up for the Schmangst-a-thon even though I'm itching to. I mean, I'd love to read a good Lindsey/Spike h/c fic, but I just can't take on any more projects.

I also got bitten by a Giles/Spike plot bunny while watching A New Man a few days ago. lostgirlslair thinks I ought to write it, but I really won't. No way. If anyone wants it, here it is,

Me: A Spike/Ethan bunny hopped up to me while I was watching ANM and nibbled on my big toe: What if Spike and Fyarl!Giles had been captured by the initiative... :-)

lostgirlslair: Oh, my, that does sound like an interesting bunny! So? Tell me! What would happen? :-D

ME: What would happen? Guess that depends on the genre. If I wore my nasty darkfic hat, they'd get locked up in the same cell, they'd argue, beat each other up... Spike would try feeding on Giles, Giles would trash him for the attempt, and then Giles would use his paralysing mucous...

If I wore my fluffy friendshipper hat, Spike would take pity on Giles and would talk to him, trying to anchor the Giles persona in a body that increasingly wants to killmaimdestroy, and he'd succeed at least long enough for some Giles to be left, once Buffy and the others have figured everything out and come to Gile's rescue - minutes before Professor Walsh tries to chop off a few bits for her pet project... And thanks to Spike there'd be enough of Giles left to salvage, and afterwards they'd be almost friends... At least they'd share a bottle of Giles's best Scotch...

If I wore my angsty slasher hat, I'd come up with a mix of both. Spike and Giles would both do nasty things to each other that they'd later regret, but they'd also find a way to cooperate and escape. And Spike would honor the agreement they made shortly before most of Giles's personality got swallowed by a need to destroy: namely that once they've gotten out Spike will hunt down Ethan and make him take the spell back.
Afterwards there's be talk about the darkness inside, the beast, the need to destroy, there'd be too many drinks, and some tears maybe, because Giles will have killed human beings while a Fyarl, and Spike will be snarky but understanding, and Giles will tell him about his time as Ripper and about Ethan, and how could Ethan do this to him? And Spike will nod, and there will be almost accidental touching, and then hungry kisses, because it's what they both need, and they don't have to tell anyone, they're both grown up, and things go further and then they are suddenly shagging like weasels only less rough, because Giles needs to prove he can still be gentle, although he still feels rage from being violated by Ethan's magic... And Giles's tenderness breaks Spike, who's been starved for any sign of affection for so long...

*clears throat*

Um, something like that. ;-)

lostgirlslair: ::blinks:: ::pants:: Oh, please write that last one? Please? ::gets on knees:: Pretty please?

Oh man, I am so tempted, but I really shouldn't. And I won't. Not now. Probably never, because at the rate my writing is going these days I'll spend the next ten years trying to finish my WIPs... So, if anyone wants to write this, please do. *gets on knees* Or if anyone wants to write this with me, well, in that case I might be game... But you'll have to twist my arm...

PS: Does anybody know a fanfic archive that specializes in Initiative fics?

PPS: Can you tell how chipper I am? Yesterday's 'oh my god, fandom is waning' post elicited many many wonderful responses. I can feel the fandom love growing again. Yes!

Comments

[aayesha-r.livejournal.com]

I just wanted to let you know I mailed a packet of books off yesterday. It was sent surface mail, though, so you won't get it for a month or more I'm afraid. At least your class will have something nice to read in the meantime.

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Oh thank you so much dear. Well, my class meets once a week, so we won't be reading those books quickly, but it's nice to have a selection. My next job will be to make vocab lists for the books so I can teach them the words before we actually read the stories. *bounce*

I also decided it's time to teach them a few good songs. I'm thinking 'Born to be Wild'... :-)

*hug*

[pinkdormouse.livejournal.com]

I unfriended little_details for a while, because it was full of very silly questions that it seemed the poster hadn't bothered googling for first. It looks saner now, so I may start reading it properly again.

Although I still find that a quick shout-out to my F'List, coupled with Google and the library nets me most facts I need.

Gina

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I agree that google should be the first stop. little details can help with real life experience. Although I actually found something nobody could answer, a geography question and a question about circuses.

Speaking of circuses. Today the words 'circus' and 'music' yielded a website selling circus music. Color me surprised. I listened to several mp3 circus tunes. I love the internet! :-)

[that_mireille]

Oh, that bunny is... guh. Yes. I don't have time to write it, as I have ficathons piled up beyond belief, but... I wish I did.

Did I just say I wish I had time to write Spike/Giles? *boggles at self* Never say never, Mireille. Never. Say. Never.

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Maybe we should write it together... eventually... ;-)

[that_mireille]

There we go. When your muse comes back and my schedule comes down, it's a deal. ;)

[marguerite-26.livejournal.com]

I'm thinking about re-animating calliopes_board ...

I'd love that. I'm still angry at myself for not doing the final 500 words with your hero thing...

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

I took on too many people. I should have done several courses in a row... Spent more time on the individual writers. I got kinda burnt out towards the end, got writers and stories confused. My memory is so bad, like a sieve...

But maybe I can do something useful with that board. It was fun. Some of the results were excellent...

[mommanerd.livejournal.com]

Oh good, you got it. I stuck a couple of "Highlights" magazines in there too, because they're pretty popular eductional tools here, but *way* expensive to subscribe to. I have plenty more books where those came from, so if you find some in there that seem particularly useful, just let me know. I didn't want to send you stuff that you really couldn't use.

About Calliope's board, I've revisited the idea myself of restarting the course and doing it right this time. I think I'm going to make a summer project out of it - something I can do while sitting at my daughter's softball practices. That sounds appealing!

restarting the course

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Yes, that's a lovely idea.
I'll gladly read whatever you come up with.

At first glance the books look very useful. As soon as the above mentioned award ceremony lies behind me, I'll read them all and jot down the words that we'll need to read them.
You have my warmest thanks.

[shapinglight]

Love that bunny!

Spike/Giles! :Sigh: