I consider myself a newcomer to HP fandom and slash. I had originally discovered Buffy fandom and had read some slash fanfic there, but it did not grab me the way HP fanfic has
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I think that people definitely go through phases with fanfic, especially from the time they first discover it up to a point where they know what they like and don't like.
When I first started reading fanfic, I read a variety of different pairings and ratings and situations, and now I'm at the point where I know what will usually work for me, what won't, what pairings I like, what pairings I will never ever want to read even if it means certain death rather than read a fic with the pairing, pairings I am 'eh' about but know I will read if an author I trust or admire writes them, etc etc.
I've gone through a variety of different pairings. While I still mainly ready Harry/Draco and Harry/Snape, I also like a good Harry /Ron (gee, wonder which writer got me into that pairing). While I have read other pairings, I generally prefer fics with Harry.
I tend to scan something unless it is an author I know and like, or rec'ed by an author I know.
Yeah, I have certain characters that are my 'staple' to read as well. If it's got Harry, Draco, Ron, or James in it, I will almost always read it. :D I do like to read Sirius fics, but for some reason I prefer to only read about him when it's a Marauders-Era fic. I don't know why, but older!Sirius hasn't really appealed to me in fics that much. As for Snape, for a long time I avoided fics with him in them (although for a time Snape/Hermione was a very guilty pleasure :)) ), but now I will read a few Snape/Harry, Snape/Ron, Snape/Narcissa, young!Snape/young!Sirius, Snape/James fics - depending on who wrote them. I have always *liked* the character of Snape, but I don't always like what authors make him out to be in their fics, so I'm pretty selective about Snape fics that aren't gen.
Harry/Ron is my favourite slash pairing, followed closely by Harry/Draco and Ron/Draco. Throw a James/Sirius fic at me, and I'm also very happy. :D
I am very picky about my Snape characterization. I'll read most things with him, but will abandon a fic if his chacterization is off.
Snape/Hermione is a pairing I have never "gotten". Maybe it is the het, maybe I just have not found the right author.
I've also been looking for fics with the Weasley brothers, not incest, but with Charlie, Bill, Fred, and George (ok, I know Percy is a brother too...but I have yet to find a good fic with him).
Draco/Ron, eh? That is another pairing that I have not "gotten". Not squicked by it, just can't really see it.
I also think everyone has phases in their fic-cravings - both as readers and writers.
I've been in the HP fandom forever (mostly lurking) and in the beginning I only read romance and Snapegen. Then slash. Then lots of PWP and then came femslash which was a pretty long phase during which I only read and wrote f/f. Now post-HBP I am extremely picky about canon, I've realised. I want everyone in character and can't bother to read pairings I find too out there. HBP also reminded me why I love genfic so much. Currently I read anything - slash, het, femslash, gen - as long as it's high quality and stays fairly close to canon - or better yet, improves canon. I've also lowered my tolerance for WIPs since I can't keep track of things and want the reading experience to be done with in one sitting. I think that's mostly because of laziness. ;)
As much as I prefer quality fics, I found that my standards took a major dip right after HBP came out. I knew it would be a while before quality canon fics hit my flist, so why not go for gratuitous PWP?
I used to follow a ton of WIP's, now I just have a few. There are a couple that get updated very slowly, but I'm so hooked into the story that I keep checking on them.
I knew it would be a while before quality canon fics hit my flist, so why not go for gratuitous PWP?
Oh, there is certainly nothing wrong with a good PWP, either! After four years in the fandom, though, you've read all the kinks in the universe and I find that I crave smut based on the characters and their relationships to each other, rather than strap-ons/bloodplay/bondage/fisting. Somehow I think this is because I was spending one entire summer obessively reading and posting to pornish_pixies and then my interest kinda faded. I used to write nothing but NC-17, now I stay on the R-rated side. ;)
I'd have to say that when I first got into slash, I read anything available, because it was a few years before the widespreadness of Tah Intarwebs, which meant you had to special-order fanzines from home presses. (Yes, I just dated myself...) Anyway, as time went on I got a lot pickier, like, "I'd really like to read only about fandoms I'm familiar with, instead of just any slash." And then the canon kicked in, and the lack of tolerance for silly/stupid stuff, which pretty much knocked out fanfiction.net for me. ^_~ Why, no, I really don't want to read a story summarized with "wackiness ensues," or "I suck at summaries, plz read", or "this is pretty stupid but read it anyway
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When I first started reading fanfic, I read a variety of different pairings and ratings and situations, and now I'm at the point where I know what will usually work for me, what won't, what pairings I like, what pairings I will never ever want to read even if it means certain death rather than read a fic with the pairing, pairings I am 'eh' about but know I will read if an author I trust or admire writes them, etc etc.
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I tend to scan something unless it is an author I know and like, or rec'ed by an author I know.
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Harry/Ron is my favourite slash pairing, followed closely by Harry/Draco and Ron/Draco. Throw a James/Sirius fic at me, and I'm also very happy. :D
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Snape/Hermione is a pairing I have never "gotten". Maybe it is the het, maybe I just have not found the right author.
I've also been looking for fics with the Weasley brothers, not incest, but with Charlie, Bill, Fred, and George (ok, I know Percy is a brother too...but I have yet to find a good fic with him).
Draco/Ron, eh? That is another pairing that I have not "gotten". Not squicked by it, just can't really see it.
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I've been in the HP fandom forever (mostly lurking) and in the beginning I only read romance and Snapegen. Then slash. Then lots of PWP and then came femslash which was a pretty long phase during which I only read and wrote f/f. Now post-HBP I am extremely picky about canon, I've realised. I want everyone in character and can't bother to read pairings I find too out there. HBP also reminded me why I love genfic so much. Currently I read anything - slash, het, femslash, gen - as long as it's high quality and stays fairly close to canon - or better yet, improves canon. I've also lowered my tolerance for WIPs since I can't keep track of things and want the reading experience to be done with in one sitting. I think that's mostly because of laziness. ;)
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I used to follow a ton of WIP's, now I just have a few. There are a couple that get updated very slowly, but I'm so hooked into the story that I keep checking on them.
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Oh, there is certainly nothing wrong with a good PWP, either! After four years in the fandom, though, you've read all the kinks in the universe and I find that I crave smut based on the characters and their relationships to each other, rather than strap-ons/bloodplay/bondage/fisting. Somehow I think this is because I was spending one entire summer obessively reading and posting to pornish_pixies and then my interest kinda faded. I used to write nothing but NC-17, now I stay on the R-rated side. ;)
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