Living is easy (with eyes closed)

[selenak]

Title:Living is easy (with eyes closed)

Rating: PG 13

Pairing: implied John/Paul

Warnings: Non-linear narrative.

Summary: Five events in Beatle history, from five different perspectives. (Maureen Starkey, George Martin, Ringo Starr, Brian Epstein, George Harrison.)

Disclaimer: Nothing is real. Nothing is owned, and everything is fictional

Comments

[rubber_soul64]

Oh, wow, I quite like this. I love the different writing styles portrayed throughout the different points of view, no doubt your intention:) And I 'aww'ed when Maureen was talking about Richie. Haha! Very good:)

[selenak]

Thank you very much for the feedback!

[rubber_soul64]

P.S LOVELOVELOVE the Donna Noble 'creative' symbol at the top of your entryXD

[selenak]

Thank you. :) (It's part of the Donna & the Doctor mood theme I found some years ago.)

[larainefan]

I love these vignettes, each told from voices we often don't hear much from

[selenak]

I hoped you'd like it. :) Thanks for reviewing!

Chris O'Dell's book: I agree with your assessment and this review, though I will write my own in time. (There are a few aspects I'd like to address as well, such as the very human way Chris sometimes projects her own feelings on the people she describes (we all do it), and the subjectivity of memory as evidenced here.)

Ken Mansfield: I haven't read his book yet, but I've seen several interviews with him in documentaries.

ETA: just in case you haven't seen them yet: people took pictures of the photos of George Paul shows at his concerts (taken by Linda), which aren't published anywhere, so check them out if you haven't already.

[larainefan]

Thanks for those links, I'll look forward to reading your review of the O'Dell book. Maybe I should re-read it so I can join in on the discussion. I do remember the scene where she was in the room with John and Maureen, and now both of them are no longer here, it sort of shrouded the incident with melancholy. Interesting she remembers all 4 Beatles at the party, though that is very unlikely. Much more likely would have been if John could have joined for Eric and Pattie's later wedding party, then all 4 could have jammed together. I see that in her book, Keith came off way better than Mick, it was always a gut feeling of mine that Keith was probably pretty decent, though I really don't know much about the Stones

[larainefan]

Oh, and thanks for sharing the pics of George and Paul from Paul's concert too, I appreciate that! :)

[suburban_boho]

Awesome piece, love. I really loved the different perspectives and especially the first bit from Maureen, especially talking about how Richie's eyes were so much happier when he was playing on the roof-top versus the previous year. So painfully true- in that one moment all the fighting and arguing was forgotten - and Ringo's eyes do change in pictures of those last years to reflect a lot of pain but in the footage he's back to seeming happy for at least that moment- all of them are. And Mo was a fan from to start to end so to see that historic moment from her point of view was perfect.

I loved all of this piece but I just had to share my love for the bit from Maureen's side.

^_^

[selenak]

Thank you very much for the kind feedback!

Ringo's eyes do change in pictures of those last years to reflect a lot of pain but in the footage he's back to seeming happy for at least that moment- all of them are.

Yes, that's so remarkable. I never was able to bring myself rewatching Let it Be in its entirety - once is painful enough - but the concert sequences are amazing because suddenly you can feel the joy returning to them, and the perfect communication via music as they couldn't in words anymore.

And Mo was a fan from to start to end so to see that historic moment from her point of view was perfect. I knew I wanted to include the Apple rooftop concert, and wondered about whose pov to choose, and then this hit me - that Mo was there from the beginning, that she had known them in the Cavern days, and so was in the unique position of being not only Ringo's wife but also, at that moment, a representative of the fans who had been with the group through all those years. Which made her perfect. (Plus I wish there was more fanfic

[suburban_boho]

(Plus I wish there was more fanfic featuring her anyway - she intrigues me - but that's another matter.)

Oh, Mo more than intrigues me - I'm down right obsessed with her - and Ringo too, and them as a couple (my truest OTP - I write my slash but at the end of the day they are love) - and wish more fic featured her but the wives community is rather dead and it's hard to work a wife into a slash fic except for having her walk in on her husbands entanglement.And I couldn't do that to a wife.

[selenak]

Not doing this to a wife: I hear you, do I ever.

Also I have no idea how many or few stories in this fandom I'll write, but I am determined to treat the wives as human, complex beings in their own right who are a part of the story of the Beatles rather than people to be ignored, I promise.

[klphillips56]

Ah I LOVE this. My favorite was the part on the plane.

He refused to believe they could die while John and Paul were in the middle of yet another staring contest. Fate surely knew better than to interrupted those
^That is my favorite line in the whole fic. It really describes how intense that eye contact between them was, that even Mother Nature would couldn't come between it.

Great fic. Can't wait for more from you. :D

[selenak]

Thank you for the encouraging feedback! Which worked, as I just posted another story.:)