Musings on writing...

[aggiebell90]

Now that the reveals are up for the hp_canon_fest I can now announce that I wrote the only Petunia/Vernon fic, Secrets. (Is it the only Petunia/Vernon fic out there??? I've never seen one before. :P

Comments

[author_by_night]

One of my betas told me that Petunia wasn't nasty enough in this, and I can't necessarily say I don't agree--she's not as nasty as she is in canon...yet. Except for the very last section, this story takes place pre-Philosopher's Stone. By the time we meet Harry and the Dursleys in canon, she and Vernon have put up with her freak of a sister's freaky son for ten years.

Plus, traditionally abuse - and that's what Petunia's treatment of Harry comes down to - doesn't happen in a day. If abusive spouses hit their future wives on the first day, those future wives wouldn't have married them. Control feeds into control, which feeds into a sickening sense of power and dominance. When Harry was allowed his own bedroom, it wasn't because the Dursleys became more lenient; it was because they lost some of the control they felt they'd gained over the years.

(Really, when you look deep into the books, even certain parts that don't involve the war are pretty dark.)

I think the way you wrote them worked.

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm not a

[aggiebell90]

When Harry was allowed his own bedroom, it wasn't because the Dursleys became more lenient; it was because they lost some of the control they felt they'd gained over the years.

Exactly--that, and they were afraid they were being watched, since the letter was addressed to Harry at "The cupboard under the stairs". I found that really interesting (although that's not the right word...maybe telling is better), because them moving Harry into his own room (crappy furniture and broken toys notwithstanding) like that told me that Petunia and Vernon knew perfectly well that the way they were treating Harry was dead wrong.

I think that's part of why this story gave me fits--I kept trying to figure out how to make these two characters (who I'd cheerfully strangle, given half a chance), into somewhat sympathetic characters.

[vegablack62]

You did a good job making them sympathetic because you showded us a limited view -- their own love for each other which is their only sympathetic trait.

[vegablack62]

Plus, traditionally abuse - and that's what Petunia's treatment of Harry comes down to - doesn't happen in a day... Control feeds into control, which feeds into a sickening sense of power and dominance

[rinnamarie]

This is completely off the subject, but I recently purchased the entire Percy Jackson series on audiobook so I could have something interesting to listen to while working on a project. My uncle used to buy the audiobooks for Harry Potter and copy them for me, and I loved them. I know you and your kiddos like tPercy - I can make copies of the audiobooks is you want. :)

[lyras]

Responding here rather than at the fic post because there was more I wanted to comment on. :)

I'm sorry you angsted through the writing of this, but I absolutely loved the end result, so thank you for sticking to it! IMO you were successful in getting the reader to at least understand where Petunia's coming from, and I don't think it's necessary to condone her behaviour towards Harry in order to do that. (Although it's much easier to sympathise with fictional characters than with RL ones, I find...)

...a Molly/Arthur//Petunia/Vernon//Alice/Frank//Lily/James fic about the births of Ron, Dudley, Neville, and Harry respectively (I'm still going to write that one, although I'm considering adding Lucius, Narcissa and Draco into the mix, too)

I'd love to read this when you get around to it!

[aggiebell90]

:) I'm so glad you liked it! A large part of my angst was because it was a gift, I think. I kept starting something and then going back to your request and saying, "But that's not what lyras asked for!" and going back to this. My poor betas had to wade through a lot of emails from me. :)

But it was definitely good for me as an author--your request challenged me to try a couple I'd never even considered before, and when I started thinking about Petunia and Vernon, and started really thinking about what made them so vehemently anti-magic, it was like this thing that wouldn't let me go. So thanks

[lyras]

"But that's not what [info]lyras asked for!"

Aw, I know that feeling. So sorry I was a hassle!

Yeah, I definitely find Petunia easier to understand than Vernon. At least in canon JKR went to some extent to show us Petunia's suppressed emotions, whereas she left Vernon very much in cartoon mode.